eighteensixtyfive

Nottingham Forest 1 – 0 Swansea City: match report

A six-pointer against the team in fourth place. Lose and their game in hand puts them in pole position. Win and we gain some breathing space.

However, Billy was forced into some changes today;

Wilson and Earnshaw had both injured themselves in training yesterday, meaning we essentially ended up playing our away side at home. New boy Georgie Boyd slotted in on the left wing, finally allowing left-footer Chris Cohen to take the left-back slot. But disaster struck early as McKenna sustained a serious injury, only to be replaced by Lewis McGugan who had a point to prove.

And if you’re travelling to Preston next Saturday, you can book yourself a coach; and if you’re making a night of it you can find yourself a hotel (or travel to Bristol in April).

 

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Tags: chris cohen, chris gunter, dexter blackstock, george boyd, Guy Moussi, Lee Camp, lews mcgugan, luke chambers, Paul Anderson, paul mckenna, radoslaw majewski, wes morgan   Posted in Match Reports, Podcasts

Coventry City 1-0 Nottingham Forest: has the bubble burst?

So much to report upon…

As we already know, Forest didn’t sign anyone in the transfer window (Just Got Back has expressed this far more eloquently than I could, before reporting on last night’s match against Coventry), and Billy had a rant about the lack of signings, especially the failure to tie up Raddy “Radi” Majewski. And worse than that, we have started to lose games, when only a couple of weeks ago, we felt like we would win every … single … match … we … play.

Has the bubble burst? I hate to say it, but possibly:

• Billy playing mind games with his superiors in the media suggests that he is frustrated, and a frustrated manager may not stick around for long.
• We have the perennial “square pegs in round holes” situation, a weaker squad than we had three weeks ago, and Billy’s apparent willingness to tinker with the balance of the team to make a political point.
• Chris Cohen was apparently decent at left-back last night, but he has driven our midfield for the last four to six weeks, and with Tys and G-Man McCleary apparently out of favour/form, he leaves a gaping hole on the wing that is, unfortunately, not the same shape or size as Joe Garner.
• The players are starting to look tired, particularly Paul McKenna, and against Sheffield Wednesday, there were indications that, having been beaten into submission at D*rby, they have got the fear.
• The reason why our players are good, but not necessarily great, is that some of them are either brilliant, or rubbish: Moose, Earnie, Ando, McKenna, Garner, Goldie, even Dex – all of them either make an amazing contribution or look like rabbits in the headlights. McKenna and Moose, in particular, have really flattered to deceive in the last week or two. Our form since October was usually about the team playing greater than the sum of its parts, but all the proverbial cogs do need to be working for the machine to function*

What does this all mean? Firstly, that I am probably feeling unnecessarily negative after a hard week and a half for the Reds; secondly, that it is worth remembering that only two or three months ago, we were all saying that upper mid-table would be a victory this season, and even Billy was saying only a couple of weeks ago that promotion in one season is too much; all is not lost, as we are still only four points from the top of the table, and the play-offs would hardly be a disaster… Finally, remember that there is always the emergency loan market (ahem)!

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In other news, Amy Fearn coming on as a supersub referee last night was the first time a woman has officiated a League match. Our luck against Sheffield Wednesday has been recognised (especially as both Billy and Alan Irvine admitted that it shouldn’t have been a penalty), but nonetheless, Dex-On-Fire took his chance and ended up in the Football League Team of the Week (NB this link opens as a PDF). Finally, Radi Raddy Majewski’s thunderbolt against Derby has been nominated as one of the top 20 goals of 2009 in the Football League – vote for it here!

* Sorry if I am mixing my metaphors here!

Tags: alan irvine, amy fearn, billy davies, chris cohen, coventry city, dexter blackstock, Guy Moussi, joe garner, just got back, paul mckenna, radoslaw majewski, sheffield wednesday   Posted in General

Nottingham Forest 2 – 1 Sheffield Wednesday: match report and podcast

After last week’s setback (and its subsequent fallout), we finally get back in action in front of nearly 4000 Wednesday fans.

A couple of changes see us line up in a 4-4-2:

This saw Tyson replace Anderson on the left (probably giving Ando a rest) and Moooooose replacing Majewski in the middle – a controversy that Billy brought to everyone’s attention in the post-match interview. As you’ll hear, we have our own feelings on this; Billy and the club are both playing a dangerous game.

As for the game itself, it was pretty poor from us, Wednesday looked well-drilled and organised, but the match really belonged to the officials who were as poor as anything I’ve seen in a long while.

 

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Tags: billy davies, chris cohen, chris gunter, dexter blackstock, Guy Moussi, james perch, kelvin wilson, Lee Camp, nathan tyson, nottingham forest, paul mckenna, rob earnshaw, sheffield wednesday, wes morgan   Posted in Match Reports, Podcasts

Gearing up for Donny: news roundup (updated)

New number 3 Nicky Shorey talks about his Aston Villa “hell” (I am sure that there is no artistic licence in that headline), and reflects upon the possibility of making a permanent move to the Reds. In the meantime, Billy lays down the gauntlet to Joel Lynch to play as a left-sided centre-half.

Tomorrow’s match against sometime-bogey team Doncaster Rovers will be notable for the lack of segregation in the Sir Brian Clough Stand. In the meantime, Forest need to beware of Billy Sharp, while two of our own strikers, Dex-on-fire and little Robbie Earnshaw hope to make a return to the starting line-up (yes please). Another player-on-fire is the Moooooossssse, who talks about his aspiration to play as a box-to-box midfielder and how it feels good to be injury-free.

Finally, former Red Andy Reid sings a Snow Patrol song for charideee, while his former Forest boss Paul Hart reflects ruefully on what might have been at Pompey…

Tags: andy reid, aston villa, billy sharp, dexter blackstock, Guy Moussi, joel lynch, nicky shorey, paul hart, Robert Earnshaw   Posted in News

Nottingham Forest 1 – 1 Bristol City: match report and podcast

We lined up unchanged from last week’s heroics at Cardiff with Billy again playing McGoldrick as a lone striker in front of a packed midfield.

The game itself started with an impeccably observed minute’s silence for Remembrance Sunday today. And then settled into a pattern of defensive organisation from Bristol and frustration for us. Joe Garner looked particularly frustrated out on the right (but looked great when he played centrally) and Moose was more of a headless chicken than usual. But it was fantastic to see us try to play our way through them, rather than just resorting to hoofball. And Adebola, when he came on, made a real difference – probably the best I have seen him play for us, in front of his old club.

 

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Tags: bristol city, chris cohen, chris gunter, david mcgoldrick, dele adebola, Guy Moussi, joe garner, kelvin wilson, Lee Camp, nottingham forest, Paul Anderson, paul mckenna, radoslaw majewski, wes morgan   Posted in Match Reports, Podcasts

Nottingham Forest 1 – 0 Newcastle United: match report (but no podcast)

Sorry folks – the late kick off meant that we didn’t get chance to record a podcast after the game yesterday. So you’ll have to make do with a traditional match report.

On the way to the ground, Radio Nottingham announced the line up as a 4-5-1: Campo in goal, Gunter and Cohen at full back with Wes and Wilson in the middle. All the Ms in a midfield trio of Majewski, McKenna and Moussi, with Tyson and Anderson out wide and Dex as the lone striker. My immediate thought on hearing this was that it was one of those 4-5-1/4-3-3 things that never seems to work and Billy had his heart set on a point.

Luckily, I was wrong. It was much more of a 4-4-1-1, with Madge playing just behind Dex. And, for the first twenty minutes or so it really really worked. My brother commented that Madge could win this game for us single-handedly and this “in the hole” position suited him. We were making all the running and forcing saves from Harper.

But as the half went on, Newcastle became stronger. In particular, Smith (who was outstanding) and Nolan took control of the midfield and Carroll started to get the better of Morgan and Wilson with his niggly fouls and constant complaints to the referee. In fact, by about thirty minutes in I was looking to the bench. We were getting very little out wide and the two Newcastle players had the centre of the pitch sown up. But despite that, the chances were falling to us, which made me even more worried – was it to be another of “those days”? (Especially as Marlon was playing against us – old club syndrome and all).

Well, no. A nice bit of passing play resulted in a defence splitting pass for Dex to run onto. He took it around the keeper and shot agonisingly slowly into the back of their net. One nil up, just before half time. Newcastle looked angry and had us on the back-foot for the remaining couple of minutes before the whistle.

The second half started and Newcastle continued where they left off. Smith and Nolan bossed the midfield and their physical, niggly play took us out of the game. The game was really narrow – Tyson and Ando were switching flanks regularly but neither could really get in to the game – and when it went through the centre, Newcastle just snuffed out any of our threats.

By now, Madge had faded out of the game and was replaced by McGoldrick, who was outstanding. Not only did he support Dex but he was also involved in several amazing tackles in the centre of the park, snuffing out Newcastle attacks before they reached the back four.

The Geordies made a change, bringing on Gutierrez – this changed things slightly as now they had an outlet on the wings. And actually it probably worked in our favour as the centre became less congested. However, it has to be said that if they had anyone who could finish (sorry Marlon), they would have been three up in the second half. As it was, the corner flags and Row Z were in the most danger from their shots. But eventually they did get the ball in the back of the net – although the linesman ruled it out for offside. I, personally, thought it was good; the replay on the TV that night showed the official was correct.

Ando got clattered and was replaced by Lewis and I was fully expecting to see Dele Adebola replacing the now-knackered Blackstock. In fact Dele stripped off and was stood by the fourth official when Newcastle took Marlon off, replacing him with Ranger. Marlon left the field to a standing ovation from about half the Forest fans (which I was very pleased to see, as I still love him as a player) and the Forest coaching staff immediately called Adebola back to the bench. A few minutes later, McKenna was replaced by Garner, who promptly got his customary booking. I thought this was really interesting – Adebola was the obvious substitution – play it long and he can hold it up – very useful when you’ve been under the cosh for forty five minutes. But bringing Garner on instead suggested we wanted to play it and control the game more.

And that was probably that. Newcastle could feel aggrieved to come away with nothing, especially after their second half performance. But their finishing was woeful and their physical play was annoying (and very un-Calderwood).

For us, I think there were a few negatives. McKenna and Madge faded very quickly, suggesting a lack of fitness. Tyson wasn’t really in the game today (at one point he tried to take Enrique for pace and Enrique just strolled past him) and Camp looked very short of confidence (especially after the ref gave him a talking to following an incident with Carroll).

But the positives outweigh the negatives. Firstly, we beat the best side I’ve seen this season. Smith, Nolan, Enrique and Khizanishvili were the four best players on the pitch (Smith the best by far) yet we still took the three points. Despite extreme provocation from Carroll, Wes and Wilson dealt with their strike-force. Cohen proved why he is now first choice left-back with some excellent positional and passing play. The Mousse was outstanding, covering the entire pitch and rarely misplacing the ball when he had it. Ando worked really hard for little reward and David McGoldrick was a revelation. And Dexter, what can you say about our top-scorer? He just quietly goes about his business, with no fuss, getting the odd goal and working really hard for the team. What a man.

But the absolute best thing about yesterday was us. When Billy Davies had yet another rant about the negativity at the City Ground I just wanted him to shut up. But fair play to the man – when he speaks, even if it sounds like bollocks, it’s always for a reason, always designed to plant a seed. And today, even when we were struggling, the fans never turned on the players, barely even let their nerves filter through to the pitch. And it showed at the final whistle as the players, once again, made a point of thanking us for their support. So, it has to be said, that this was my best game of the season so far and truly Billy Davies’ victory.

Tags: chris cohen, chris gunter, david mcgoldrick, dexter blackstock, Guy Moussi, joe garner, kelvin wilson, Lee Camp, lewis mcgugan, marlon harewood, nathan tyson, newcastle united, nottingham forest, Paul Anderson, paul mckenna, radoslaw majewski, wes morgan   Posted in Match Reports, News

Nottingham Forest 0 – 1 Blackpool: match report and podcast

Hard to beat. That’s us.

Apart from on today’s showing.

Earnie got his wish and made the starting line-up – with recalls for Tyson and the Moose.

So Billy selected:

Campo,
Gunter, Morgan, Chambers, Lynch,
McKenna (c), Moussi,
Cohen, McGoldrick, Tyson,
Earnshaw

To be honest, it didn’t really work. Although we did make chance after chance after chance.

And, finally, as we were leaving, one of the TVs in the Trent End was smouldering – resulting in the fire brigade being called out. Which was nice.

 

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Tags: blackpool, chris cohen, chris gunter, david mcgoldrick, Guy Moussi, joel lynch, Lee Camp, luke chambers, nathan tyson, nottingham forest, paul mckenna, rob earnshaw, wes morgan   Posted in Match Reports, Podcasts

News roundup: McKenna, Moussi, Mills, Megson and Mattock

The new Forest captain, Paul McKenna, has rather unremarkably spoken about how good he thinks Forest’s prospects are for this season, and suggest that we should be challenging for promotion (no thanks Paul, not just yet, anyway). He also seems confident that his captaincy experience can only help the younger players (amen to that).

In the meantime, last year’s captain James Perch has been joined on the sidelines by the ever unlucky cult-hero Guy Moussi. With Perchio’s absence, Billy Davies has admitted that we are short of defenders, not helped by Matt Mills’ decision to join tomorrow’s opponents Reading; however, former Reds manager Gary Megson has admitted that Forest have expressed an interest in Danny Shittu.

Finally, Joe Mattock has apparently expressed a desire to leave the crisp bowl, whether he does is another matter (and whether it would be to come down the A46 is yet another matter completely).

Less than 27 hours to go now!

Tags: billy davies, danny shittu, gary megson, Guy Moussi, james perch, joe mattock, matt mills, nottingham forest, paul mckenna, the moose   Posted in News

News roundup: playing for pride

Tys and Turner are out for tomorrow’s end of season party, but the Mousse may make a return.

While Southampton only have pride to play for.

Dexter Blackstock sounds keen to stay next season (although that may be related to his proposed £3K/week pay rise) – and says Billy will be looking for a top six finish.

Which is exactly what Kris Commons is saying won’t happen across the A52.

Tags: derby county, dexter blackstock, Guy Moussi, iain turner, kris commons, nathan tyson, southampton   Posted in General, News

Nottingham Forest 3 – 2 Bristol City: match report and podcast

4-4-2 for us today: Turner, Gunther, Morgan, Wilson, Lynch, Anderson, Moussi, Perchio (c), Cohen, Blackstock, Earnshaw. And one of the best endings to a game in years (after much tedium).

 

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Tags: chris cohen, chris gunter, dexter blackstock, Guy Moussi, james perch, joel lynch, kelvin wilson, match report, nottingham forest, Paul Anderson, rob earnshaw, wes morgan   Posted in Match Reports, Podcasts