eighteensixtyfive

Lennon Gone?

I have always thought that defensive midfield is the most important position on the pitch. Break up the opposition play, turn defence into attack with a pass to a player in space. The lack of one is why Paul ‘Evo’ Evans made such an impact when he first joined (shame he couldn’t keep it up). I was excited when we signed Gary Holt (shame he couldn’t run, tackle or pass). Even more excited when we signed Neil Lennon.

But there are a number of rumours doing the rounds that he has gone back to Scotland. Depression? Unable to settle in Nottingham? A coaching role at Fester? Breckin returning and becoming captain? A bust-up with CC? Or a back strain, as the club has said?

“It’s Baggio”, on the LTLF forum posted the following quotes from the NEP and Guardian (no links however):

Mystery surrounds the future of Forest star Neil Lennon after the club today refused to confirm or deny rumours he has walked out … The official explanation for his absence was a back strain, with manager Colin Calderwood warning that he was already a doubt for the weekend visit of Tranmere … But the ex-Leicester and Celtic player is said to have made his frustration clear after the weekend’s dour defeat at Luton and had apparently become disenchanted with life at the club.

NEP

Neil Lennon, 36, is on the verge of quitting Nottingham Forest and returning to Scotland four months after joining the club from Celtic. The former Northern Ireland midfielder missed last night’s game against Oldham Athletic at the City Ground and was heading back to Glasgow for urgent talks with his representatives.

Guardian

As for those who say he isn’t needed … do you not watch football? It’s not all attack, attack, attack. Just ask Kevin Keegan.

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Boss very angry at Forest loss

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/teams/n/nottm_forest/7066331.stm

Colin Calderwood was “very angry” after a 2-1 defeat at Luton ended their unbeaten away record. “This is a real kick up the backside and a lesson for us,” he fumed.

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Oh no he’s back

Whoops! I think BBC Nottingham missed the “former” from this news item - put me back in time by about two years and left me in a cold sweat:

Megson leaves Leicester (updated 08.34, 25/10)

Forest boss Gary Megson is expected to become the new Bolton manager after leaving Leicester City yesterday. He should take charge of the club in time for their premier league match against Aston Villa on Sunday. Given that he only took over at Leicester six weeks ago, their chairman Milan Mandaric says his exit is a big shock.

Catching a snippet of 606 last night, it seems as though Bolton fans are in despair and the bin robbers are pleased that Megson is gone (results OK but no creativity and dull football - sound familiar?), while still annoyed at having to find a sixth manager since Milan took over…

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State of affairs

Nottingham Forest have published their accounts for the 2006-7 period. I am not going to run through the minutiae here, there are other people far more qualified than me to do so, and the commentary provided on the official website seems to cover most things that we would want to know. In addition, “Through the Seasons Before Us” has it’s own, fans-eye opinion on the matter.

Obviously I don’t want to overlap with the analysis of my fellow blogger, but it seems to me that the salient points are:

• The club’s total loss is £4.2 million, compared to a stonking £8 million in the previous year
• Annual turnover was £9.2 million, an increase or £1.3 million
• 90% of turnover was spent on staff costs (wages, NI contributions etc) - this is way above the Football League’s benchmark figure of 75% for clubs in the bottom two tiers of the league
• The sale/release of players on high wages has reduced the burden, as has CC’s frugal spending in the transfer market - new player purchases were financed by the release of others
• Nigel Doughty loaned the club £3 million last season, saving the demanding repayment terms and interest costs of using external sources of finance
• The operating deficit of £4.2 million would most likely be plugged should Forest earn promotion to the Championship, which, it is estimated, would be worth £4-5 million per annum

So, once again, we owe the chairman a debt of gratitude for finding the cash, contrary to what many critics seem to claim. Yes, they are loans, but given that the club will continue to operate at a loss for at least another season (possibly more, depending on when we get promotion and when the rewards from said promotion starts to flow inwards), I doubt that Mr Doughty will realistically expect the money back in the short or even medium term.

Everyone is entitled to their opinion, but the above figures should serve as a stark reminder that without Nigel Doughty, Forest may very well not exist today.

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Did you know?

That Neil Lennon suffers from depression?

That Junior’s real name is Manuel?

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That Lovin’ Feelin’

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Nottingham Forest 2 - 1 Hartlepool United

First time in my Dad’s seat in the Brian Clough Lower. So instead of hearing chanting, singing, swearing and moaning, it was mainly overhearing tales about grandchildren. Definitely a different experience to normal.

CC had us lining up in a 4-3-3:

The game started relatively slowly - this was mainly down to Lennon who totally controlled the play. Every time the ball came to him he slowed things down and played the simple pass. When one of our players ran into a dead end he made himself available - again via a simple pass - and then gently got us moving again. Bennett and Chambers did a good job of providing width and it paid dividends when early in the first half Agogo tried to play in Tyson who missed the ball. Luckily Commons ghosted in at the back post for a simple tap in.

As the half went on the pace didn’t really increase but we were definitely in control of things. The major incident was Commons having his legs taken out from under him in the penalty area - unfortunately he decided to exagerate and the ref waved play on. Hartlepools broke, Cohen laid on a dodgy challenge (in fury at the penalty decision) the ball spilt to Tyson who then had a two-footed lunge on one of his ankles, in retaliation for Cohen’s tackle. Pools later broke down their right, a high lofted cross found Barker totally unmarked and he scored with a simple header. Probably unfair given the balance of play in the first half.

Second half and I was wanting Forest to step up a gear (as we had been playing at a pretty leisurely pace in the first). But it was Hartlepools that stepped up - fast short passing cutting through our midfield, without ever really threatening. Lennon’s slow pace started annoying - we needed to step up, not put our foot on the ball. Gradually, as Hartlepools’ dominance came to nothing we began to win the midfield battle. But the real turning point was Tyson. He started limping (I thought as a result of the earlier challenge but CC stated, afterwards, that it was his other foot) and needed some treatment. Shortly after Grant replaced him - and suddenly we seemed to click into place. Not because Grant was very good although he was involved much more than Tyson ever was. But Sammy took the game by the scruff of the neck and provided the engine that Lennon couldn’t. With Clingan pulling the strings we started pushing Hartlepools back and eventually this paid off as Commons shot rebounded to Agogo to put the game beyond the Monkey Hangers.

All in all a big result for what was actually a big game. 3 points off the top with a game in hand, a decent performance and a quiet confidence about the team. I could imagine a similar game last year ending in an annoying last minute concession, rather than a late winner. We’re not like last year’s juggernaut - winning games without deserving it - instead we had to work but there was a level of belief I’ve not seen in a while. It’s just a shame that third division football is so poor - CC said it was a great game - I don’t really agree, even though it was probably as good as League One has to offer.

Man of the Match: Lennon in the first, Clingan in the second.
Honourable Mentions: Wes was immense, Chambers and Bennett did well and Agogo worked very very hard for little reward. The plaudits will go to Commons for the goals but he wasn’t really in the game - not that I’m complaining. These mercurial types tend to drift in and out.

All in all, a good day.

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Feel the pressure

I think we can safely conclude that the fifteen point penalty has galvanised Leeds, and they really have made an extraordinarily good start to the season. Dennis Wise has today been charged by the FA for abusing a ref; he was apparently incensed by the fact that the ref allegedly used bad language towards him. While the ref should not react like that, I laughed out loud when Wise appeared on the TV saying, “Unfortunately I am going to have to report him”. Hello, Mr Pot, my name is Mr Kettle!

Yes, Leeds probably can feel hard done by for the 15 points, but I think they would earn a lot more sympathy if they conducted themselves with a little more dignity. Fight the legal battles in the courtroom, rather than conspiracy theories about how the FA and Football League want to see them down/out of business/slip on banana skins etc.

There is of course the obvious parallel between Chelsea and Leeds; both teams have been disliked by others for playing dirty, and showing a lack of grace in victory and a lack of dignity in defeat. Isn’t it strange how history repeats itself?

Interestingly, following on from Andy Ritchie’s protestations over last night’s ref, one of the Leeds players sent off at the weekend was Jermaine Beckford - yes, the same Jermaine Beckford who was very lucky not to be sent off at Forest for dissent (the ref looked as though he was reaching for the book before realising that it would have to be a red card for his second offence), before going on to score the winning goal. So I suppose sometimes these things do even themselves out over the season…

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The secret of success?

So, unbeaten for a number of matches, and CC is a contender for Manager of the Month. He has bravely tried a 4-3-3, knowing that he has the option to change things around. Those who muttered about how no-one arrived before the transfer window shut are now conspicuously quiet.

Last night was a bit of a test. I don’t think the Galpharm Stadium is an easy place to go, so am not too unhappy with a point. Naturally, there have been many moans and groans about the ref, but the NEP quotes CC as saying that the ref had warned both managers that any player leaving the pitch to celebrate would be booked. However petty, the ref was at least consistent on that count.

There is a saying about winning at home and drawing away, and the back four, Smudge and the Lenster are all performing their tasks with distinction at the moment, if reports are to be believed. You will go a long way if you score more goals than you concede, and our defence are miserly at the moment.

After a sticky start, we now have players getting fit again (I can’t wait to see Cohen play), and the team playing like a unit. There is still room for improvement, but shall we give the players and manager some credit where it is due?

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