Wolverhampton Wanderers vs Nottingham Forest Match Report and Podcast
A bonus podcast as Rish managed to see the Wolverhampton Wanderers horror show.
Tags: match report, nottingham forest, podcast, wolverhampton wanderers, wolves Posted in
Wolverhampton Wanderers 5-1 Nottingham Forest
The last two times I visited Molineux were during David Platt’s tenure. We lost 3-0, with Tony Vaughan and David Prutton being dismissed (Vaughan was red-carded for being headbutted by Ade Akinbiyi), and Michael Branch scored that cheating goal; the following year, we lost 2-0, with two more red cards. So when I shelled out an extortionate £28 for a ticket, I consoled myself that at least it couldn’t be as bad as the last couple of times I went.
At the end, I was probably less disheartened than you would imagine. The last couple of times, Forest were abject, and Wolves weren’t necessarily that good either. However, this time, we were taught a real footballing lesson by a rampant Wolves team who play football the way that Sir Brian intended. Even though it was from the wrong team, I kind of felt privileged to have watched some of the best quality football that I have seen in many a year.
Forest were poor, no doubt about it. I have talked on the podcast about how the 4-3-3 doesn’t seem to work away, borne out by the defeats to Wolves and Swansea. Wolves base their play on Michael Kightly and Matt Jarvis on the wings, and Jules and Luke Chambers both had torrid afternoons. It has to be said that the formation does not provide much protection for the full-backs, but they really did not help themselves with their positional sense (or lack of it), and both ended up in the book (Chambers was only saved from a deserved early bath by some very lenient refereeing).
Of course, by the time that Forest went 4-4-2, the match was long gone. Nathan Tyson was the only player who can hold his head up after this; Smudge tried his best but has to take responsibility for the weak punch that caused the second goal (although as usual he made a couple of good saves which prevented further embarrassment). After putting Chambers out of his misery by sticking Kelvin Wilson at right-back, it will be interesting to see what CC does during the international break to try and solve the problem in both full-back positions. Once we get more players back, I would like to see a 4-4-2; although 4-3-3 has worked well when attacking at home, the full-backs are sometimes unfairly exposed in this formation. Having said that, both Luke and Jules made basic errors in this match, especially with regard to their positional sense – they have both played enough matches in their respective positions to know what they should be doing (so I do not accept any arguments about Chambers really being a centre-half).
Anyway, all the players will have a lot to learn from this one – in midfield, Chris Cohen worked as hard as usual, but his positional sense was also appalling, as he seemed to spend a lot of his time playing as a fourth forward. The delivery from Martin and Cohen from set-pieces was poor, with all the balls going straight into the gloves of Wolves’ custodian. I also have to confess that I did not even notice that Earnshaw went off injured a few minutes early, as he never really had a chance to get involved.
Contrary to what was written on the official site, there were a good number of Reds still there after 90 minutes, and many of us applauded the players (or at least the players who took the time to applaud us). Some of us also applauded Wolves for an imperious display, just as some of us applauded Michael Kightly when he was substituted – he had been the best player on the park and I hope Garath McCleary is inspired by the tale of “non-league lad made good”.
Don’t be too disheartened, this was simply a demonstration of the gulf in class between a team who are new to this league, and a team who are likely to be challenging for promotion. A Wolves-supporting friend told me afterwards that, although we clearly had a bad day, he thought we would be fine this season; also many Wolves fans are pointing out that they haven’t played that well for many years.
Forest (4-2-1-3): Smith; Chambers (Wilson 71), Morgan, Breckin (c), Bennett; Perch (McCleary 71), Moussi; Cohen; Earnshaw, Tyson (Cole 71), Martin. Not used: Thornhill, Roberts. Goal: Stearman (og) 55
Wolves (4-4-2): Hennessey; Foley, Collins, Stearman, Ward; Kightly (Gray 77), Jones, Henry, Jarvis (Edwards 66); Iwelumo, Ebanks-Blake (Keogh 65). Not used: Ward, Ikeme. Goals: Jones 14; Morgan (og) 29; Kightly 44, 62; Iwelumo 45.
Tags: julian bennett, luke chambers, matt jarvis, michael kightly, nottingham forest, wolverhampton wanderers Posted in
Another mystery solved
While delighted to see Lee Martin in the garibaldi, creating and scoring goals, and scaring defenders, in the back of my mind was a nagging doubt about his loan move; Forest had never confirmed how long he would be staying with us for.
Well, now we have confirmation that (despite the NEP’s assertions at the time), Lee was on loan for a month. The good news is that he is now with us until the of the year. Hooray. I wonder what the chances are of extending that (or making it permanent), if he continues to display such good form?
Tags: lee martin, loan deal, nottingham forest Posted in
The pride of the East Midlands
Predictably, after a decent performance, both managers were keen to praise the Reds’ contribution to the match. James Perch was upset about losing the match. However, I particularly liked Roy Keane’s reference to our new, improved playing style:
“The way they play football is great. People should come and watch Forest and see the way they play. Other clubs should come. Honestly.”
In other news, some (presumably Forest-supporting) wag has chosen to use eBay to poke fun at our woolly friends…
Tags: derby county, james perch, nottingham forest, roy keane, sunderland Posted in
Nottingham Forest 1-2 Sunderland (aet)
Forest (4-2-1-3): Smith; Chambers, Morgan, Breckin (c), Bennett; Perch, Moussi (Sinclair 108); Thornhill (Cole 95); Cohen, Earnshaw, McCleary (Tyson 79). Not used: Roberts, Moloney, Heath, Reid.
Sunderland (4-4-2): Gordon; Chimbonda, Nosworthy, Collins, Bardsley; Malbranque (Miller 20), Whitehead (Leadbitter 58), Reid, Diouf; Cisse, Murphy (Healy 63). Not used: Ward, Edwards, Higginbotham, Stokes.
Well, as you know, I didn’t see the match in the end. Liverpool also went to extra time, I wish they had lost.
This one sounded like a cracker, although looking at the stats and watching the live text, Sunderland did have more chances. However, in these circumstances, there is always a feeling of “what might have been” – especially after Luke Chambers hit the bar with just a few minutes of extra time remaining. As it was, Phil Bardsley’s scrambled equaliser and David Healy’s extra-time winner were enough to cancel out Robert Earnshaw’s 59th minute free-kick.
Not much more that I can add – I will leave it to others who have actually been to the match to do better reports…
Tags: david healy, nottingham forest, phil bardsley, Robert Earnshaw, sunderland Posted in
P*ssed off
At half-time, Forest are drawing 0-0 with Sunderland. Great. According to Radio 5live, it is fairly even so far. Even better.
I am not happy however – I went down to my local (I live in the suburbs north of Birmingham), settled down with a pint, and watched the first 14 minutes of the match, at which point, the barmaid changed the channel. Seeing me turn around with a surprised look on my face, she apologised; she had been asked to change to the Liverpool match. I said that I was watching the Forest match; she asked me to wait a minute, then reported that the “gaffer” had said that the Liverpool match must be shown. I had a bit more of my drink, then politely placed the glass back on the bar, telling the barmaid that I wasn’t going to hang around if they stopped showing the match that I wanted.
I then traipsed for 20 minutes around the area, in every pub they were showing the Liverpool match. In one place (which was fairly empty) I even asked if they could put it on one screen, and was told, sorry, it is not possible because the sound for the match goes though the Sky box (so even if they watched ITV1 on Freeview, they wouldn’t have any sound).
Bloody scousers.
Tags: bloody scousers, ITV1, liverpool, nottingham forest, sky, standard liege, sunderland Posted in
Can you explain?
We all know that the modern footballer is very much the epitome of the modern-day metrosexual. Ever since the late 80s, footballers have been swathed in hair gel and peroxide, and these days they personalise themselves further with coloured boots and a range of tattoos. The saving grace is the fact that all footballers have to wear the same kit as their team-mates, don’t they? Well, it seems as though Lee Martin doesn’t:
What’s going on with the white socks over his red ones? My guess is that his boots are too big, so his Mum told him to wear two pairs of socks (it worked for me in school). Maybe he should have worn the white ones underneath though, or maybe he is so vain that he needed to wear the white ones on top, so that they matched his white boots.
Or maybe none of this matters, as long as he keeps playing like he did on Saturday…
Tags: lee martin, nottingham forest, vain footballers, white boots Posted in
Nottingham Forest 3-2 Watford
Forest:
P Smith
Chambers Morgan Breckin (c) Bennett
Moussi Perch
Cohen
McCleary Earnshaw Martin
Subs: Tyson (McCleary 66), Sinclair (Earnshaw 82), Cole (Martin 86). Not used: Roberts, Thornhill.
Watford (4-3-2-1): Poom; Doyley, Bromby, DeMerit (c), Sadler; Williamson (Francis 59), Eustace, Harley (Priskin 59); McAnuff (Hoskins 26), T Smith; Rasiak. Not used: Loach, Mariappa.
Goals: Martin (10), 1-0; T Smith (22), 1-1; Earnshaw (35), 2-1; T Smith (61), 2-2; Tyson (68), 3-2.
In the podcast we talked a lot about some of the players who did and didn’t do so well, and having seen the highlights on “The Championship”, I want to start by admitting that I may have been a bit harsh on the Moose – he wasn’t as good as he was against Reading, but he had a hand in all three goals, so that counts for a lot! His physical presence in midfield will certainly scare opponents, as will the pace and skill of our three scorers today
The good: Forest were going for it; CC’s tactics have been criticised by many Reds, but he has signed lots of attacking players and seems to want to implement a “pass and move” style of play that just wasn’t possible in League One. On today’s evidence, it might work, because defenders will struggle to cope with the trickery and sheer pace of our forwards.
The not-so-good: The concession of soft goals – both times, Tommy Smith had time and space to score, and having watched the highlights I am afraid that I have to point a finger at Luke Chambers, who was often out of position and seemed a little out of his depth today. Garath McCleary on the right wing also seemed a bit ponderous, as if he wasn’t sure what to do with it – he created a chance for Earnshaw, but apart from that seemed to run into defenders as a result of a heavy first touch.
The ref and his team were poor. They started well, but the award of a corner for Watford’s first goal was ridiculous (linesman in front of Sir Brian’s stand), trumped only by the award of a free-kick to Watford when Hoskins appeared to get brought down by one of his team-mates (referee, standing about ten yards away)! I am not suggesting that the officials were biased though, as Forest got the rub of the green in later decisions, but many fans of both clubs were baffled. I also don’t know where three minutes of first-half injury time came from, nor four minutes in the second…
As we mentioned in the podcast, McAnuff’s aforementioned injury played into Forest’s hands, as Watford brought on Hoskins and went 4-4-2, with Tommy Smith moving wide. This freed up Perchio from his apparent duties shadowing Smith, plugging the great big gap that seemed to exist between defence and midfield. However, Aidy Boothroyd’s subs had a more positive impact for the Hornets in the second half, when the introduction of Priskin and Francis seemed to bamboozle the Forest players, allowing Tommy Smith (who had switched from right-wing to left as part of the reshuffle) the space to slot home again.
Just an honourable mention to a couple of players: Ian Breckin has had his detractors, but he was magnificent today and marshalled the troops well. Paul Smith also had a good game, was not at fault for either goal, and was desperately unfortunate that no Forest player chose to track Tommy Smith after he made a magnificent save from Bromby’s flick for the first Watford goal.
However, for me, the pick of the defensive players was Perchio – after being freed from man-marking Smith, he screened the backline in an almost Scimeca-esque fashion, and we all remember how important Riccy was to the (almost) success of that team. He also played a fantastic through-ball to Tys late on, who will feel that he should have made it 4-2. On any other day, he would have been the eighteensixtyfive Man of the Match, but on this occasion, it has gone to Lee Martin for a fine display of skill, pace and hard work, topped off with a fine goal.
Finally, a mention of two things – despite a disappointing attendance (20,500), there was a decent atmosphere, especially in the second half; on the pitch, we should also take heart that, despite being pegged back on two occasions, the Reds didn’t let their heads drop, and seemed determined to win the match.
Remember that you can listen to our views on the match in the eighteensixtyfive podcast
Tags: ian breckin, james perch, jobi mcanuff, lee martin, nathan tyson, nottingham forest, Robert Earnshaw, tommy smith, watford Posted in
Nottingham Forest vs Watford: Match Report and Podcast
The second podcast of the season.
Forest lined up with Paul Smith, Luke Chambers, Ian Breckin, Wes Morgan and Julian Bennett, James Perchio, Guy Moussi, Chris Cohen with Gareth McCleary, Rob Earnshaw and Lee Martin up-front.
Overall an excellent game with lots of fast-paced attacking intentions and the welcome return of Nathan Tyson.
Tags: match report, nottingham forest, podcast, watford Posted in
Forest v Watford preview
Following the news that Lewis McGugan has joined the walking wounded, there is a new gap in the team, which will be filled by either Garath McCleary or (more likely) Matt Thornhill. I personally wouldn’t mind seeing McCleary start, as it means that Chris Cohen would be able to drop into his more favoured midfield role, and it would even create the possibility of playing 4-4-2 (Martin and Cohen on the wings, McCleary and Earnshaw up front) – however, there is more chance of a cameraman coming home from the ladies’ beach volleyball complaining that he doesn’t like his job.
I have never been a fan of Watford, and not just because Forest rarely seem to beat them (I have, in fact, seen the Reds triumph both at the City Ground and at Vicarage Road). I just cannot remember ever seeing a Watford team play decent football (in fact I remarked the other day that they are “anti-football”), and on top of that they groundshare with Rugby League club Saracens, owned by enemy of the Forest, Nigel Wray. Hate is a strong word, but…
As it happens, I think that Saturday’s match could easily swing the way of the “Golden Boys” (sic – and that nickname does make me want to vomit). They have signed Gregorz Rasiak, and will therefore probably spend all their time hoofing the ball up to him, which means that any of Wes’ customary slip-ups could prove costly. However, they do have some guile as well, partly in the shape of City Ground treatment room reject Will Hoskins (pictured below); we will also need Perchio and the Moose to be on good form to counter the likes of John Eustace in the midfield, and I hope Luke Chambers doesn’t have an off-day, especially if Jobi McAnuff plays. Hopefully our strikeforce of, erm, Robert Earnshaw will be able to cause problems for the Shittu-less Hornets.
Team news update: It seems as though there is an outside chance of Nathan Tyson and Andy Andrew Cole playing some part in proceedings tomorrow. I am not holding my breath, but it would be excellent news. Less good news is the rumour that Kelvin Wilson may miss out – this is from a fan who claims to know the players, and his history of postings suggests that maybe he does know something we don’t.
We will be recording a podcast after the game, reflecting on the match and the reaction to the Swansea defeat. All being well, it should be available on this site Saturday evening, and those of you who have subscribed via iTunes should get it delivered straight to your “Podcasts” folder.
Tags: garath mccleary, lewis mcgugan, matt thornhill, nottingham forest, podcast, watford, will hoskins Posted in
