The football season may end, but football doesn't. Instead of fixtures and on the pitch action - at least until the Euros - fans face a long summer of speculation. Especially so if you're a Forest fan, with takeover news, managerial rumours and - eventually - transfer gossip on the menu.
Social media is the 'grapevine' to pick up the latest news on all of this but, as we all know, it can be hard to know what's right and wrong. At best, you're right up to speed with the very latest. At worst, you're mired in a timeline of clickbait, banality and untruths.
From bitter experience, here's a few lessons to help you cut through the garbage:
Follow the right people. I've always thought we're lucky, as Forest fans, to be served by a decent set of journalists and have a good selection of people in the national media who support the Tricky Trees. Here are the essentials (sorry if I've missed anyone off):
Clearly you'll want the official account, and Fawaz
Paul Taylor
Nottingham Post Sport
Radio Nottingham
Robin Chipperfield
David Jackson
...and then the national journalists who are Forest fans
Daniel Taylor
Nick Miller
Daniel Storey
...and the journalists who seem to know their onions about Forest/the Midlands
Alan Nixon
John Percy
Pat Murphy
Don't be too trusting. The above list isn't exhaustive and wisdom doesn't solely reside with that lot. However it's important to keep an open mind. Some people on Twitter do have genuine information about the goings on at the club. Many don't. Journalists such as the one's mentioned should, by and large, have stood up their stories through one or more trusted sources, people on Twitter won't have done. That's why people on Twitter might sometimes appear to have 'got it first' - they don't need to bother getting it verified. Sometimes journalists get information that they are not able to publish as it would compromise their source. Basically, you can pick up juicy titbits on Twitter that journalists won't have put out, but it pays to consume all of your gossip with a tablespoon of salt. Whenever you see a rumour it's well worth asking - 'who has this come from?'. If it's some bloke who has never tweeted before who looks like they've paid for some made up followers then ignore it. Also, no-one who has ever seen a player 'looking round houses' or 'shopping in West Bridgford' is telling the truth.
Tomorrow never comes. The worst Twitter rumours always promise news at a certain time or by a certain date. Many a hyped 'press conference' has never materialised, many a deadline gone by without delivering on a promise. Don't allow yourself to get sucked into being glued to your timeline at the 'promised time' and don't get angry or frustrated when it emerges it was garbage all along. It normally is.
Parody accounts aren't funny. Twitter is only ten years old but it probably ought to be growing up. One of the oldest and lamest of jokes is the 'parody account'. Some of these can be funny, granted, but for every one that is there will be countless rubbish ones.
Fakes are a pain too. Parodies are set up to make you laugh, fakes are set up to catch you out. Brace yourself for false Fawaz accounts and fake Henri Lansburys. People often set up spoof Sky Sports News accounts and tweet transfer 'breaking news' and 'done deal' snippets at various points in the summer. Colin Fray is a favourite for Forest fakers too. He isn't on Twitter but someone will, at some point in the summer, set up an account pretending to be him. Expect it, expose it and don't fall for it.
Give Paul Taylor a break. There are plenty of people who love to give Paul Taylor stick but most of it seems unfair to me. He wasn't the man behind the infamous 'It's Baggio' headline - and we should probably drop that now anyway. He's a Notts fan, yes, but so what? He isn't responsible for the annoying ads on the Post site either (they're a sad reality that we have to accept if we want to get our news for 'free') and he doesn't write the more clickbaity stuff that every paper is sadly forced to do to meet web targets and keep people in jobs. Paul Taylor keeps fans up to date, runs an interesting weekly web chat and does a good job of making sense of the mess that is our football club.
Don't feed the clickbait monster. There are hundreds of websites and social media accounts that leech off football fans. Yes, 'HITC', I'm looking at you. These accounts will make a whole story from a single tweet, regularly rehash the bookies odds and trot out endless unfounded transfer and managerial rumours. Even in the last week or so you'll have noticed Forest being linked to a number of transfer targets, despite the fact we have no manager, no scouting network and are in the midst of a takeover. They'll continually link us to Steve Evans too, despite the fact the club has said he's not a candidate on two or three occasions now. It's garbage, avoid it all.
Don't bother with 'banter'. There are some opposition fans who will genuinely want to discuss news and views with you and this can be one of the joys of Twitter. But those from D*rby or other clubs who are on the 'wind up' need to be ignored. Plenty of people go 'fishing' looking for a bite and an argument. Leave them alone, they'll soon crawl back under their rocks.
Polls? The jury is out. Should Twitter have made it so easy for polls to be created? A - Yes, I love seeing the same question asked every day. B - No, I'm sick of the sight of them. C - Some of them are good (In The Top One's superb 'World Cup Of Shirts for example) but I'd be happier if there weren't as many of the buggers clogging up the NFFC hashtag. I'm saying C.
Fawaz being on Twitter is a recipe for disaster. Some might think it's refreshing that a club chairman is on Twitter and interacts with the fans and, on paper, it is. Yet this also opens him up to any Tom, Dick or Harry with a smartphone. Sometimes I fear that when Fawaz says he's trying to 'please' the fans he's referring to a very narrow cross section. I regularly wince and cringe at some of his posts and 'interactions'.
Saturday, 21 May 2016
Sunday, 8 May 2016
Brilliant Britt strikes to end the season on a high
It was the perfect way to end a decidedly imperfect season. Britt Assombalonga stepped off the bench, bagged the winner for a 10-man Forest and left us all singing his name as the curtain came down on the 2015/16 season. Perhaps only the home win against the Sheep could rival this as the campaign's most satisfying moment.
Ending the season on an Assombalonga winner was heartwarming but also fitting too. Ordinarily, if we'd been pegged back to 1-1 and then reduced to 10 men then the very limit of our ambitions would be to cling on to a point. In fact, even with 11 men we've struggled to turn draws into wins and defeats into draws. With Britt we had the firepower we'd so badly needed to make a difference.
Look at the final table and you'll notice that we conceded just two more goals than Sheffield Wednesday and four more than the Sheep the sixth and fifth placed sides. Yet we scored 23 goals fewer than both sides. Of course it's too simplistic to put this solely down to one man, but the Britt shaped hole in our strike force is there for all to see. That he returned with a goal in this game at least gives hope that he can return to his deadly best from the start of next season.
The identity of the first goal scorer also helped to make the occasion special too. Chris Cohen, for so long a treatment room buddy of Britt as he recovered from a third serious injury, rose to head home a superb curling cross from Ben Osborn.
At that point, Paul Williams' men looked capable of running riot at the expense of their already-relegated hosts. The home side's midfield gave up far too much time and space to allow Forest to play in. Cohen stepped forward very ably into Henri Lansbury's usual advanced midfield role and Chris O'Grady returned - presumably for a last appearance - and made a nuisance of himself.
Oliver Burke, let loose at last, was also making hay down the right flank, beating Dean Lewington for pace and strength and generally warming to the task in hand.
Then came two setbacks that shaped the game. First Nicky Maynard - who spent the summer on trial at the City Ground - swept home after the brightest and breeziest bit of some bright and breezy MK play. That caused the visitors to doubt themselves all over again. The passing was less crisp and the decision making slapdash. Josh Murphy, the architect of the goal, had the beating of Eric Lichaj and looked dangerous.
Then, renaissance man Danny Fox harshly saw red for a sliding challenge. From my vantage point it certainly looked like he'd won the ball and while he had undoubtedly slid in so too, surely, did Jordan Spence. Fox's main crime seemed to have been to win the ball and tackle. Still, his reaction probably didn't help too much when the referee made his decision.
That left Williams with a tactical headache. He resolved the issue with the first of three well-timed substitutions on a day that was surely his finest showing as manager too. On the face of it, shifting the effective Burke up front, hauling off O'Grady and putting Mancienne at the back could be seen as a negative move, with no recognised striker left on the pitch. However, the interim boss realised that he needed all of his ten men to run hard and display the sort of movement, pace and energy that isn't O'Grady's game.
That's not to say Burke was completely effective on his own up front. The young winger ran at defenders, twisted and turned and put in a good shift but did lack support from his colleagues.
The hosts continued to be bright and breezy, firing in plenty of shots and crosses but mostly to little avail. That said, Kevin Long and especially Nick Maynard - him again - should've done better with their chances.
It was clear something needed to change and Williams, to his credit, delivered again around the hour mark. Robert Tesche was replaced by Britt Assombalonga and, soon after, Burke was replaced by Ryan Mendes.
The Cape Verde man's fresh legs breathed life into the ten men, with his pace and trickery proving a real handful for the Dons back line. He capped off one cracking run with a shot that seemed goal bound. The fact it kissed the bar summed Mendes up. So near yet so far.
Luckily his fellow sub proved more clinical. The winning goal began with an outrageous flick from Ben Osborn which got him past his man and allowed him to tee up Assombalonga. With time, Britt weighed up his options, fooled the keeper and stroked the ball into the corner of the net to send 4,000 travelling Trickies into raptures.
A goal from Britt, the calming influence of a mature and fit again Cohen, three points and an away win. It was a small glimpse of what we hope to see next season. Now we just need a manager, a CEO and a few signings. Another quiet summer then...
He's back - well and truly. #NFFC pic.twitter.com/OearVdW72o— Nottingham Forest FC (@Official_NFFC) May 7, 2016
Ending the season on an Assombalonga winner was heartwarming but also fitting too. Ordinarily, if we'd been pegged back to 1-1 and then reduced to 10 men then the very limit of our ambitions would be to cling on to a point. In fact, even with 11 men we've struggled to turn draws into wins and defeats into draws. With Britt we had the firepower we'd so badly needed to make a difference.
Look at the final table and you'll notice that we conceded just two more goals than Sheffield Wednesday and four more than the Sheep the sixth and fifth placed sides. Yet we scored 23 goals fewer than both sides. Of course it's too simplistic to put this solely down to one man, but the Britt shaped hole in our strike force is there for all to see. That he returned with a goal in this game at least gives hope that he can return to his deadly best from the start of next season.
The identity of the first goal scorer also helped to make the occasion special too. Chris Cohen, for so long a treatment room buddy of Britt as he recovered from a third serious injury, rose to head home a superb curling cross from Ben Osborn.
At that point, Paul Williams' men looked capable of running riot at the expense of their already-relegated hosts. The home side's midfield gave up far too much time and space to allow Forest to play in. Cohen stepped forward very ably into Henri Lansbury's usual advanced midfield role and Chris O'Grady returned - presumably for a last appearance - and made a nuisance of himself.
Oliver Burke, let loose at last, was also making hay down the right flank, beating Dean Lewington for pace and strength and generally warming to the task in hand.
Then came two setbacks that shaped the game. First Nicky Maynard - who spent the summer on trial at the City Ground - swept home after the brightest and breeziest bit of some bright and breezy MK play. That caused the visitors to doubt themselves all over again. The passing was less crisp and the decision making slapdash. Josh Murphy, the architect of the goal, had the beating of Eric Lichaj and looked dangerous.
Then, renaissance man Danny Fox harshly saw red for a sliding challenge. From my vantage point it certainly looked like he'd won the ball and while he had undoubtedly slid in so too, surely, did Jordan Spence. Fox's main crime seemed to have been to win the ball and tackle. Still, his reaction probably didn't help too much when the referee made his decision.
That left Williams with a tactical headache. He resolved the issue with the first of three well-timed substitutions on a day that was surely his finest showing as manager too. On the face of it, shifting the effective Burke up front, hauling off O'Grady and putting Mancienne at the back could be seen as a negative move, with no recognised striker left on the pitch. However, the interim boss realised that he needed all of his ten men to run hard and display the sort of movement, pace and energy that isn't O'Grady's game.
That's not to say Burke was completely effective on his own up front. The young winger ran at defenders, twisted and turned and put in a good shift but did lack support from his colleagues.
The hosts continued to be bright and breezy, firing in plenty of shots and crosses but mostly to little avail. That said, Kevin Long and especially Nick Maynard - him again - should've done better with their chances.
It was clear something needed to change and Williams, to his credit, delivered again around the hour mark. Robert Tesche was replaced by Britt Assombalonga and, soon after, Burke was replaced by Ryan Mendes.
The Cape Verde man's fresh legs breathed life into the ten men, with his pace and trickery proving a real handful for the Dons back line. He capped off one cracking run with a shot that seemed goal bound. The fact it kissed the bar summed Mendes up. So near yet so far.
Luckily his fellow sub proved more clinical. The winning goal began with an outrageous flick from Ben Osborn which got him past his man and allowed him to tee up Assombalonga. With time, Britt weighed up his options, fooled the keeper and stroked the ball into the corner of the net to send 4,000 travelling Trickies into raptures.
A goal from Britt, the calming influence of a mature and fit again Cohen, three points and an away win. It was a small glimpse of what we hope to see next season. Now we just need a manager, a CEO and a few signings. Another quiet summer then...
Sunday, 17 April 2016
Fantastic Mr Fox helps stop the rot in Rotherham
This is what progress looks like. It may not have been always been pretty, it could well have gone either way, but a toughed out 0-0 in South Yorkshire was just what the doctor ordered.
I'm sure I wasn't the only travelling Tricky concerned about what we might see on Saturday. A rampant Rotherham, managed by Neil Warnock, didn't seem the ideal fixture for a hapless side that had registered a meagre one win and one draw in its previous 11 outings.
A managerless (Paul Williams, bless him, doesn't really want this poisoned chalice does he?) mishmash of a side would surely be outfoxed by a wily Warnock and outfought by his confident charges.
Yet, it wasn't to be. Building on a promising second half against Brighton, Forest held their own. Yes Richard Wood could - and should - have done better with a series of headed chances but the fact that the best chances fell to him is testament to the way in which the Millers' attack was largely kept in check.
Chief frustrator for the Men in Black was Danny Fox, the man brought in from the cold by Williams and Reid after yet another injury crisis. A full back by trade, Fox has slotted in to the heart of the defence - a position he did play under Stuart Pearce - and deserves high praise for his performances. Pearce himself once said Fox possessed one of the best left feet at the club. We laughed at the time but Fox's distribution at the New York Stadium showed that his dreadful displays at full back haven't done him justice.
Perhaps most impressive of all was that Fox was strong in the tackle, good in the air and quick to intercept any danger - proving he was up to the physical test that the hosts posed and making him a good foil for the also-solid Matt Mills.
It was a day for unlikely star men. Ryan Mendes, an often frustrating figure, was undoubtedly Forest's main - if not only - attacking threat. His pace proved a major headache for the Rotherham back four, forcing Warnock to tweak his tactics at half time to try to nullify him. While he was quieter after the break, he was still a threat - setting up Lansbury, drawing a save from Lee Camp and dancing into the box Knockaert-style in injury time (sadly without the same end result).
The Cape Verde man is desperately close to being a decent player yet if he could finish - or provide more killer final balls - he wouldn't be on loan with us. Saturday proved that, if nothing else, pace alone is enough to give most Championship sides a real headache.
Speaking of unlikely star men, quite why Lee Camp was given man of the match for barely two saves was a mystery. Sadly he went on to prove the decision right by making a smart stop to deny Mendes.
Had others around Mendes been sharper then more points were there for the taking. Henri Lansbury's afternoon was best summed up by the fact he slipped on his backside when put through by Mendes, while Dexter faded badly in the second half. Neither were helped by the fact that Gardner and Tesche were never fully in control and able to give them the service required.
Rotherham's superior crossing ability and Greg Halford's long throws ensured the hosts always posed a threat and the 2,001 away fans could never sit comfortably. Maybe it was these nerves that resulted in Warnock only receiving one chant by way of abuse - or maybe it was that people feared Fawaz might still have to go back to him with a begging bowl in the summer.
A strangely inactive staff in the dugout made just one change - to run down the clock in injury time - while an animated Warnock threw on fresh legs and tried to orchestrate a winner.
A point was probably fair though and it should prove useful for both sides, keeping MK Dons at arm's length. It also meant that a fifth defeat in a row wasn't forthcoming (something we'd apparently not 'managed' since 1992. Even under Megson) and was the first clean sheet since Freedman departed.
One more coherent display against Blackburn would surely be enough to end the relegation nerves. If Fox and Mendes can step up to the plate, is it too much to ask for one last push from the others to see us over the line?
I'm sure I wasn't the only travelling Tricky concerned about what we might see on Saturday. A rampant Rotherham, managed by Neil Warnock, didn't seem the ideal fixture for a hapless side that had registered a meagre one win and one draw in its previous 11 outings.
A managerless (Paul Williams, bless him, doesn't really want this poisoned chalice does he?) mishmash of a side would surely be outfoxed by a wily Warnock and outfought by his confident charges.
Yet, it wasn't to be. Building on a promising second half against Brighton, Forest held their own. Yes Richard Wood could - and should - have done better with a series of headed chances but the fact that the best chances fell to him is testament to the way in which the Millers' attack was largely kept in check.
Chief frustrator for the Men in Black was Danny Fox, the man brought in from the cold by Williams and Reid after yet another injury crisis. A full back by trade, Fox has slotted in to the heart of the defence - a position he did play under Stuart Pearce - and deserves high praise for his performances. Pearce himself once said Fox possessed one of the best left feet at the club. We laughed at the time but Fox's distribution at the New York Stadium showed that his dreadful displays at full back haven't done him justice.
Perhaps most impressive of all was that Fox was strong in the tackle, good in the air and quick to intercept any danger - proving he was up to the physical test that the hosts posed and making him a good foil for the also-solid Matt Mills.
It was a day for unlikely star men. Ryan Mendes, an often frustrating figure, was undoubtedly Forest's main - if not only - attacking threat. His pace proved a major headache for the Rotherham back four, forcing Warnock to tweak his tactics at half time to try to nullify him. While he was quieter after the break, he was still a threat - setting up Lansbury, drawing a save from Lee Camp and dancing into the box Knockaert-style in injury time (sadly without the same end result).
The Cape Verde man is desperately close to being a decent player yet if he could finish - or provide more killer final balls - he wouldn't be on loan with us. Saturday proved that, if nothing else, pace alone is enough to give most Championship sides a real headache.
Speaking of unlikely star men, quite why Lee Camp was given man of the match for barely two saves was a mystery. Sadly he went on to prove the decision right by making a smart stop to deny Mendes.
Had others around Mendes been sharper then more points were there for the taking. Henri Lansbury's afternoon was best summed up by the fact he slipped on his backside when put through by Mendes, while Dexter faded badly in the second half. Neither were helped by the fact that Gardner and Tesche were never fully in control and able to give them the service required.
Rotherham's superior crossing ability and Greg Halford's long throws ensured the hosts always posed a threat and the 2,001 away fans could never sit comfortably. Maybe it was these nerves that resulted in Warnock only receiving one chant by way of abuse - or maybe it was that people feared Fawaz might still have to go back to him with a begging bowl in the summer.
A strangely inactive staff in the dugout made just one change - to run down the clock in injury time - while an animated Warnock threw on fresh legs and tried to orchestrate a winner.
A point was probably fair though and it should prove useful for both sides, keeping MK Dons at arm's length. It also meant that a fifth defeat in a row wasn't forthcoming (something we'd apparently not 'managed' since 1992. Even under Megson) and was the first clean sheet since Freedman departed.
One more coherent display against Blackburn would surely be enough to end the relegation nerves. If Fox and Mendes can step up to the plate, is it too much to ask for one last push from the others to see us over the line?
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Millmoor is just across the road from the new ground
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Rotherham: Home of legends
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Tuesday, 12 April 2016
Blackstock and Lansbury: The accidental attack that almost toppled Brighton
No-one is sitting comfortably yet are they? No matter how much logic tells us that a nine-point cushion from the relegation zone with five games to go is 'enough', it doesn't pay to take anything for granted with a side that has won one in the last 11 games.
The Calderwood promotion came after we'd been 11 points off with seven games to go. In that respect a 2-1 defeat at home to Brighton should offer scant hope and, yet, strangely there was a crumb or two of comfort.
For about the first half an hour of the second period Forest produced their best football of the Paul Williams caretaker regime. After a tepid first half we landed upon a vaguely useful formula by accident and should have taken at least a point against a below-par Brighton as a result.
Plan A had been to ask Jamie Ward to be Jamie Ward and annoy his way to a goal. There was a lot of running and chasing but, let's be frank, the usual lack of end product followed by the all-too-familiar injury.
In his place came Dexter Blackstock. I recently described Dexter to a colleague as a man who resembles a bag of limbs jumbled up and rearranged in the wrong order. Sometimes things work, other times arms and legs flail and the ball flies off in all directions. Sarcasm aside though, it's clear that Dexter isn't the sort of player to be a like-for-like swap with Ward.
Williams instead pushed everyone a little further forward and it paid off. Lansbury's 'free role' almost became a second striker position as Blackstock was given some support. Osborn was more comfortable on the left and suddenly we attacked with energy and purpose and had the game in our hands.
Blackstock, fittingly, got the goal. It was arch Blackstock too, a brilliant header from a whipped free kick after he'd fought to muscle himself into an inch of space.
It confirmed that Dexter probably is the best we've got available (wince at the thought if you like). It's surely worth a manager asking themselves what a defender would least like to face and Williams, a decent defender himself in his day, should know that a physical Blackstock is the best answer from our severely depleted arsenal.
Dexter might well have enough left in the tank to scramble us over the line to safety this year. He won't be able to plough a lone furrow up front on his own these day though. Equally we haven't got two strikers useful enough to play a pair. That may well mean that Lansbury playing in and around Dexter as a second striker is the best thin sheet of paper we have available to tentatively stick over the cracks in our 'strike force' right now.
The formula provided a couple more chances to the accidental attack take the lead after the equaliser. The first, to Lansbury, was fired over and the second, an awkward header to Dexter, squirmed wide. At that point Dexter was dominating Connor Goldson and looked in the mood for another goal.
Yet, sadly, the chances dried up. Vaughan and Gardner had to come off, Cohen tired and Brighton sent on the subs. Knockaert bamboozled us again and Steve Sidwell swept home an ill-deserved winner. It summed up the season - we simply weren't ruthless enough in both boxes to capitalise on the opportunities in the game.
You'd have to hope that the midfielders might be fit again for the tough looking trip to a rampant Rotherham. We also might as well bottle that unlikely Blackstock/Lansbury formula in the short term and see if, somehow, it can stop the freefall and cobble together a more comfortable finale.
Having bagged his 44th in Garibaldi Red, Dexter is slowly edging towards being the first man to score 50 for Forest since David Johnson. Lansbury himself had scored 18 across the last two seasons but just two this time around. He's apparently been craving a more forward thinking role and, while this was probably further forward than he meant, it's time for him to deliver and rediscover his goalscoring touch. It's not ideal, it's not what any of us would've stuck down on paper as a first choice attack and it's not the solution in the long term but little else has worked recently.
The Calderwood promotion came after we'd been 11 points off with seven games to go. In that respect a 2-1 defeat at home to Brighton should offer scant hope and, yet, strangely there was a crumb or two of comfort.
For about the first half an hour of the second period Forest produced their best football of the Paul Williams caretaker regime. After a tepid first half we landed upon a vaguely useful formula by accident and should have taken at least a point against a below-par Brighton as a result.
Plan A had been to ask Jamie Ward to be Jamie Ward and annoy his way to a goal. There was a lot of running and chasing but, let's be frank, the usual lack of end product followed by the all-too-familiar injury.
In his place came Dexter Blackstock. I recently described Dexter to a colleague as a man who resembles a bag of limbs jumbled up and rearranged in the wrong order. Sometimes things work, other times arms and legs flail and the ball flies off in all directions. Sarcasm aside though, it's clear that Dexter isn't the sort of player to be a like-for-like swap with Ward.
Williams instead pushed everyone a little further forward and it paid off. Lansbury's 'free role' almost became a second striker position as Blackstock was given some support. Osborn was more comfortable on the left and suddenly we attacked with energy and purpose and had the game in our hands.
Blackstock, fittingly, got the goal. It was arch Blackstock too, a brilliant header from a whipped free kick after he'd fought to muscle himself into an inch of space.
Here's a look at Dexter Blackstock's equaliser for @Official_NFFC #SkyFootball https://t.co/xuhPl2ojfl— Football League (@SkySportsFL) April 11, 2016
It confirmed that Dexter probably is the best we've got available (wince at the thought if you like). It's surely worth a manager asking themselves what a defender would least like to face and Williams, a decent defender himself in his day, should know that a physical Blackstock is the best answer from our severely depleted arsenal.
Dexter might well have enough left in the tank to scramble us over the line to safety this year. He won't be able to plough a lone furrow up front on his own these day though. Equally we haven't got two strikers useful enough to play a pair. That may well mean that Lansbury playing in and around Dexter as a second striker is the best thin sheet of paper we have available to tentatively stick over the cracks in our 'strike force' right now.
The formula provided a couple more chances to the accidental attack take the lead after the equaliser. The first, to Lansbury, was fired over and the second, an awkward header to Dexter, squirmed wide. At that point Dexter was dominating Connor Goldson and looked in the mood for another goal.
Yet, sadly, the chances dried up. Vaughan and Gardner had to come off, Cohen tired and Brighton sent on the subs. Knockaert bamboozled us again and Steve Sidwell swept home an ill-deserved winner. It summed up the season - we simply weren't ruthless enough in both boxes to capitalise on the opportunities in the game.
You'd have to hope that the midfielders might be fit again for the tough looking trip to a rampant Rotherham. We also might as well bottle that unlikely Blackstock/Lansbury formula in the short term and see if, somehow, it can stop the freefall and cobble together a more comfortable finale.
Having bagged his 44th in Garibaldi Red, Dexter is slowly edging towards being the first man to score 50 for Forest since David Johnson. Lansbury himself had scored 18 across the last two seasons but just two this time around. He's apparently been craving a more forward thinking role and, while this was probably further forward than he meant, it's time for him to deliver and rediscover his goalscoring touch. It's not ideal, it's not what any of us would've stuck down on paper as a first choice attack and it's not the solution in the long term but little else has worked recently.
Thursday, 31 March 2016
Martin? Oh no! Don't fall into the disappointment trap
As a Forest fan it's best to expect disappointment. That way you'll either be prepared for the worst or pleasantly surprised.
It's the hope and expectation, after all, that kills you. Whether it's Cloughie's chance to win the FA Cup, relegations, play-off debacles, players on strike or off-field 'events', experience has taught us not to get carried away.
That's why I'm worried about any talk linking Martin O'Neill with the annual vacancy at the City Ground.
For him to take the job, some very big hurdles would need to be overcome. Firstly, O'Neill would have to want to jack in his current job with Ireland after leading the side to the Euros in France. In doing so he'd forego a shot at qualifying for the World Cup in Russia too.
Then, if and only if he doesn't fancy the World Cup, we'd also have to hope that O'Neill is something of a footballing romantic. Although things didn't end too well at Sunderland, O'Neill's record in the domestic game does not suggest that he'd have to go back to club football with a side treading water in the mid table of the second tier (at best).
We'd have to hope that he's got a similar pair of prescription strength Garibaldi-tinted specs that we all sometimes don and that he is sucked in by the chance to return us to success from roughly the same state in which Clough found us in the 70s.
We'd have to hope that that fairytale would be enough to blind him to Fawaz's paper thin club structure and the spending limitations (even if the embargo is lifted) we face.
Kenny Burns says the feeling in his gut (no jokes about Kenny's gut please) is that O'Neill is an unrealistic prospect and I'd have to agree. I don't think sentiment is enough on its own and, let's be frank, Martin is too good for us.
Of course John Robertson is right. We should 'give Martin a call'. You never know if you don't pick up the phone but I suspect it'd be a fairly short and fruitless conversation.
My worry is that, having flirted with the idea during this grim post-Sheep international break, whoever we do eventually get might feel like an almighty let down in comparison. When Ian Holloway or Steve Clarke come riding into town the collective sigh of disappointment will be even greater having dared to dream of O'Neill.
Part of the reason the O'Neill story lasted, I suppose, was because it was at least more positive than some of the alternatives. A couple of overseas names - men who seem to be a) cheap, b) failures elsewhere and c) used to owner interference - have been floated. I'm gritting my teeth and hoping these are just people who have applied and aren't serious contenders.
Beyond that Nigel Pearson remains the bookies favourite. He's from Nottingham, has had success at this level and is available which, to be honest, is probably all that those odds are based on. Barring the odd bit of bizarre behaviour on the touchline and that 'ostrich rant' he's actually shown himself to be a smart manager and laid the foundations for Leicester's current title push. He has also been linked to the now-vacant Villa job though and, interestingly, wouldn't come with the team that surrounded him at the Crisp Bowl, making him both a diminished force and likely to hold out for something better. If Mick McCarthy and Neil Warnock can turn us down then Pearson might also resist our advances.
Second favourite is Nigel Clough who seems destined to appear in the running every time the vacancy is available (every Feb/March). Is there an inevitability about Clough Jnr's return to the City Ground? He's apparently engineered a clause in his Burton contract that would allow him to talk to the club if approached. It seems a little odd that he's that interested in Forest to me. Of course talking and agreeing to come are not the same. He does have a chance to take his current club to the Championship and carry on the building job he began years ago and that might seem a better prospect than jumping into the Fawaz firing line.
Nigel's record suggests he'd bring through young players and could hunt out bargains if we're still hampered by FFP. But, post-Pearce, do we really want to return to another club legend? (That's how he should be viewed too, not as an ex Sheep boss). I'm uneasy about both that and the fact that Nigel seems someone for the long term. This post, as we all know, doesn't have a long shelf life.
The trouble is, who else? Neil Lennon is third favourite but seems broken by his Bolton experience and joint third favourite is a certain William McIntosh Davies. Anyone know much about him?
Mind you, even Ricardo Moniz is only 20/1 which suggests that the bookies are as baffled as the rest of us. It's a list ridden with unrealistic ideas, failures and unsuitable candidates. Like Alan Sugar's Apprentice contenders.
Still, whatever happens, I certainly won't be dreaming of an O'Neill fairytale. That will only, surely, end in nightmares...
It's the hope and expectation, after all, that kills you. Whether it's Cloughie's chance to win the FA Cup, relegations, play-off debacles, players on strike or off-field 'events', experience has taught us not to get carried away.
That's why I'm worried about any talk linking Martin O'Neill with the annual vacancy at the City Ground.
Martin O'Neill for Forest? Worth a call, says John Roberston. #nffc https://t.co/QVGb2ooCNW pic.twitter.com/w7KuFLMoTD— Mike Sassi (@MikeSassi) March 24, 2016
For him to take the job, some very big hurdles would need to be overcome. Firstly, O'Neill would have to want to jack in his current job with Ireland after leading the side to the Euros in France. In doing so he'd forego a shot at qualifying for the World Cup in Russia too.
Then, if and only if he doesn't fancy the World Cup, we'd also have to hope that O'Neill is something of a footballing romantic. Although things didn't end too well at Sunderland, O'Neill's record in the domestic game does not suggest that he'd have to go back to club football with a side treading water in the mid table of the second tier (at best).
We'd have to hope that he's got a similar pair of prescription strength Garibaldi-tinted specs that we all sometimes don and that he is sucked in by the chance to return us to success from roughly the same state in which Clough found us in the 70s.
We'd have to hope that that fairytale would be enough to blind him to Fawaz's paper thin club structure and the spending limitations (even if the embargo is lifted) we face.
Kenny Burns says the feeling in his gut (no jokes about Kenny's gut please) is that O'Neill is an unrealistic prospect and I'd have to agree. I don't think sentiment is enough on its own and, let's be frank, Martin is too good for us.
Kenny Burns: sentiment won't be enough to lure Martin O'Neill back to Forest as boss #nffc https://t.co/thDvRnUp8z pic.twitter.com/NaIR4tcAwn— Nottm Post Sport (@NottmPostSport) March 28, 2016
Of course John Robertson is right. We should 'give Martin a call'. You never know if you don't pick up the phone but I suspect it'd be a fairly short and fruitless conversation.
My worry is that, having flirted with the idea during this grim post-Sheep international break, whoever we do eventually get might feel like an almighty let down in comparison. When Ian Holloway or Steve Clarke come riding into town the collective sigh of disappointment will be even greater having dared to dream of O'Neill.
Part of the reason the O'Neill story lasted, I suppose, was because it was at least more positive than some of the alternatives. A couple of overseas names - men who seem to be a) cheap, b) failures elsewhere and c) used to owner interference - have been floated. I'm gritting my teeth and hoping these are just people who have applied and aren't serious contenders.
Beyond that Nigel Pearson remains the bookies favourite. He's from Nottingham, has had success at this level and is available which, to be honest, is probably all that those odds are based on. Barring the odd bit of bizarre behaviour on the touchline and that 'ostrich rant' he's actually shown himself to be a smart manager and laid the foundations for Leicester's current title push. He has also been linked to the now-vacant Villa job though and, interestingly, wouldn't come with the team that surrounded him at the Crisp Bowl, making him both a diminished force and likely to hold out for something better. If Mick McCarthy and Neil Warnock can turn us down then Pearson might also resist our advances.
Second favourite is Nigel Clough who seems destined to appear in the running every time the vacancy is available (every Feb/March). Is there an inevitability about Clough Jnr's return to the City Ground? He's apparently engineered a clause in his Burton contract that would allow him to talk to the club if approached. It seems a little odd that he's that interested in Forest to me. Of course talking and agreeing to come are not the same. He does have a chance to take his current club to the Championship and carry on the building job he began years ago and that might seem a better prospect than jumping into the Fawaz firing line.
Nigel's record suggests he'd bring through young players and could hunt out bargains if we're still hampered by FFP. But, post-Pearce, do we really want to return to another club legend? (That's how he should be viewed too, not as an ex Sheep boss). I'm uneasy about both that and the fact that Nigel seems someone for the long term. This post, as we all know, doesn't have a long shelf life.
The trouble is, who else? Neil Lennon is third favourite but seems broken by his Bolton experience and joint third favourite is a certain William McIntosh Davies. Anyone know much about him?
Mind you, even Ricardo Moniz is only 20/1 which suggests that the bookies are as baffled as the rest of us. It's a list ridden with unrealistic ideas, failures and unsuitable candidates. Like Alan Sugar's Apprentice contenders.
Still, whatever happens, I certainly won't be dreaming of an O'Neill fairytale. That will only, surely, end in nightmares...
Sunday, 13 March 2016
Freedman sacked as Fawaz's Forest farce continues
I've tried to give Fawaz the benefit of the doubt. Even now I think his heart's probably in the right place. He's got money and he wants to make a success of Nottingham Forest. But, let's face it, he hasn't got a single clue how to bring that success about. We're further away from being a Premier League club off the pitch than we are on it and - as anyone who saw us put to the sword in the second half yesterday will attest - that's saying something.
Dougie Freedman's sacking is the latest piece of nonsensical management from the club. And by the club I mean Fawaz and that bloke that looks 16 and has seemingly never heard of a direct debit since there seems to be little else resembling a 'structure' at the City Ground. His departure means that the current owner still hasn't stuck by one manager for a whole season.
Dougie wasn't the messiah, let's not kid ourselves. His style was stodgy at times and he wasn't the most charismatic of figureheads. But he's rolled his sleeves up, worked with the twin pressures of an embargo and crippling injury list and done some much-needed dirty work. He's started to build a side - from the back as you should - and has helped to trim the budget and mop up Fawaz's financial mess. Ironically when he's tried to be more attacking (was he leant on by Fawaz?) it has cost him his job.
We did need to see more goals and more style in time if we were to be capable of contesting promotion but Dougie had earned the right to be given a chance at the job with his star players fit and a transfer budget. Now that he's been denied that chance his rebuilding work is put at risk. The whole of the last year might well be for nothing. The style won't magically improve by sacking the man who has moulded the current 11. In fact the risk of relegation, something Fawaz told Natalie Jackson in mitigation, has just been made worse. Freedman at least knew how to batten down the hatches and tough out a few points.
Fawaz has to understand that their is a direct relationship between the style and substance on the pitch and his actions off it. Attendances, another concern, are hardly going to rise when the owner himself has pretty much written off the season by leaving a caretaker in charge.
Paul Williams now takes charge for the run in. He's a Freedman recruit of course but looks to have some promising and progressive ideas learned under the tutelage of Mauricio Pochettino at Southampton and has a small amount of experience at Brentford. He seems a bright prospect, which means he'll have no chance of getting the nod full time. Quite how he's supposed to impress is anyone's guess. Not getting our trousers unceremoniously pulled down at Hull and Derby would be a start. Good luck with that.
The Freedman regime didn't just include Williams of course. You doubt that the wise old words of Lennie Lawrence will be heard around the training ground for much longer and Dougie clearly had contacts in France and Spain who dug up some decent transfer targets. He'd also just recruited a 'head of sport science' from Charlton and, most frustratingly of all, had lined up a striker to try to fill the goalscoring void in his team. Little else symbolises the ridiculousness of the situation better than sanctioning the loan deal of a striker and then sacking a manager before he gets the chance to use him on the pitch.
If it's not Williams, then who next? This is, after all, a hotseat turned down by Neil Warnock. The same Neil Warnock that fancied the Rotherham job (and I genuinely mean no disrespect to Rotherham there). Most managers would probably need a minimum of two seasons to gain promotion - and that's if everything goes in their favour - yet it's highly unlikely that anyone appointed will get two years. In that sense it's a near-impossible job.
Perhaps most frustratingly of all is the situation regarding the running of the club. I'm under no illusions that operating a Championship football club is easy but Fawaz is clearly struggling. He has the money and the ambition but he badly needs someone to run the 'business' on his behalf. So far he hasn't shown willing to let anyone do that.
It's highly likely that the 'Fawaz out' ranks will be bolstered by Freedman's sacking. Yet even that makes me nervous. If he does decide to pack his bags but asks for as much as a third of the £67million-plus he is owed in loans to be paid back, then the club's future is in jeopardy. This club - supposedly celebrating a 150th anniversary - has been had many firsts in its history, being the first big name to fold is too horrific to contemplate.
The feeling towards the owner could well turn even more sour in the coming week. By taking this course of action Fawaz has put himself in the spotlight. If we lose heavily at Derby he'll undoubtedly bear the brunt of the fans' ire. Is he ready for that? Given that he seems unable to ignore people on Twitter I fear not. Those fans willing to go along with him before aren't likely to stand up for him too strongly either. It could turn ugly.
Just a final thought: is anyone really that confident we'll come out of the embargo in the summer? Our track record in delivering paperwork, meeting deadlines and working around FFP isn't great, to put it mildly, and I'm not counting my chickens that it'll happen.
Dougie Freedman's sacking is the latest piece of nonsensical management from the club. And by the club I mean Fawaz and that bloke that looks 16 and has seemingly never heard of a direct debit since there seems to be little else resembling a 'structure' at the City Ground. His departure means that the current owner still hasn't stuck by one manager for a whole season.
BREAKING: #Nffc terminate the contract of manager Dougie Freedman with immediate effect. pic.twitter.com/BKlUUh4DxC— BBC Nottingham Sport (@BBCRNS) March 13, 2016
Dougie wasn't the messiah, let's not kid ourselves. His style was stodgy at times and he wasn't the most charismatic of figureheads. But he's rolled his sleeves up, worked with the twin pressures of an embargo and crippling injury list and done some much-needed dirty work. He's started to build a side - from the back as you should - and has helped to trim the budget and mop up Fawaz's financial mess. Ironically when he's tried to be more attacking (was he leant on by Fawaz?) it has cost him his job.
We did need to see more goals and more style in time if we were to be capable of contesting promotion but Dougie had earned the right to be given a chance at the job with his star players fit and a transfer budget. Now that he's been denied that chance his rebuilding work is put at risk. The whole of the last year might well be for nothing. The style won't magically improve by sacking the man who has moulded the current 11. In fact the risk of relegation, something Fawaz told Natalie Jackson in mitigation, has just been made worse. Freedman at least knew how to batten down the hatches and tough out a few points.
Fawaz has to understand that their is a direct relationship between the style and substance on the pitch and his actions off it. Attendances, another concern, are hardly going to rise when the owner himself has pretty much written off the season by leaving a caretaker in charge.
Fawaztells me he tried his best to keep DF & wants stability for #nffc but is worried about relegation, fans concern over style of play 1/2
— Natalie Jackson (@NatJacksonsport) March 13, 2016
.. and falling attendances. He also says he wants to take his time over appointing a new manager and won't rush. 2/2 #nffc
— Natalie Jackson (@NatJacksonsport) March 13, 2016Paul Williams now takes charge for the run in. He's a Freedman recruit of course but looks to have some promising and progressive ideas learned under the tutelage of Mauricio Pochettino at Southampton and has a small amount of experience at Brentford. He seems a bright prospect, which means he'll have no chance of getting the nod full time. Quite how he's supposed to impress is anyone's guess. Not getting our trousers unceremoniously pulled down at Hull and Derby would be a start. Good luck with that.
The Freedman regime didn't just include Williams of course. You doubt that the wise old words of Lennie Lawrence will be heard around the training ground for much longer and Dougie clearly had contacts in France and Spain who dug up some decent transfer targets. He'd also just recruited a 'head of sport science' from Charlton and, most frustratingly of all, had lined up a striker to try to fill the goalscoring void in his team. Little else symbolises the ridiculousness of the situation better than sanctioning the loan deal of a striker and then sacking a manager before he gets the chance to use him on the pitch.
If it's not Williams, then who next? This is, after all, a hotseat turned down by Neil Warnock. The same Neil Warnock that fancied the Rotherham job (and I genuinely mean no disrespect to Rotherham there). Most managers would probably need a minimum of two seasons to gain promotion - and that's if everything goes in their favour - yet it's highly unlikely that anyone appointed will get two years. In that sense it's a near-impossible job.
Perhaps most frustratingly of all is the situation regarding the running of the club. I'm under no illusions that operating a Championship football club is easy but Fawaz is clearly struggling. He has the money and the ambition but he badly needs someone to run the 'business' on his behalf. So far he hasn't shown willing to let anyone do that.
It's highly likely that the 'Fawaz out' ranks will be bolstered by Freedman's sacking. Yet even that makes me nervous. If he does decide to pack his bags but asks for as much as a third of the £67million-plus he is owed in loans to be paid back, then the club's future is in jeopardy. This club - supposedly celebrating a 150th anniversary - has been had many firsts in its history, being the first big name to fold is too horrific to contemplate.
The feeling towards the owner could well turn even more sour in the coming week. By taking this course of action Fawaz has put himself in the spotlight. If we lose heavily at Derby he'll undoubtedly bear the brunt of the fans' ire. Is he ready for that? Given that he seems unable to ignore people on Twitter I fear not. Those fans willing to go along with him before aren't likely to stand up for him too strongly either. It could turn ugly.
Just a final thought: is anyone really that confident we'll come out of the embargo in the summer? Our track record in delivering paperwork, meeting deadlines and working around FFP isn't great, to put it mildly, and I'm not counting my chickens that it'll happen.
Monday, 7 March 2016
Dougie needs a goal...in more ways than one
Dougie Freedman needs a goal. I don't just mean in the ball in the back of the net sense either although, actually, some of those would be nice too after just two in the last seven games.
What the Glasgow gaffer desperately needs right now is a sense of purpose. The current campaign is in severe danger of ending in ignominy and games against Preston, Sheffield Wednesday, D**by and Hull offer little respite in a tough March.
When the Freedman honeymoon ended last season - and the over-zealous talk of the play-offs was silenced - the wheels came off. Defeat against soon-to-be-promoted Norwich City started a run of eight games which saw six defeats and two draws.
A similar run now - further out from the end of the season - could undo the hard work Dougie has done to start to 'build from the back' and forge his side under the shadow of the FFP embargo.
But arresting the slide and avoiding 'going through the motions' are easier said than done. The manager tried to be more attacking in his outlook at Portman Road but, after spurning chances in the first half, the result was a sadly predictable 1-0 defeat.
Yet it'd be sad if Saturday is the end of the road for 'Action Dougie'. With the play-offs and relegation zone both a decent distance away now has to be the time to experiment...and not just to counter the critics of Freedman's normally cautious style.
In the next 11 games I'd like to answer at least some of the following ten questions:
*Is Dimitar Evtimov a good enough back-up to Dorus De Vries?
*Can Jorge Grant cope with the hustle and bustle of a Championship midfield?
*What type of midfielder is Robert Tesche and is he worth keeping in the summer?
*Can Tyler Walker make the step up?
*Is Deimantas Petravicius ready to make the matchday squad?
*Can Ben Osborn play in the middle?
*Is Oliver Burke ready to be a regular starter?
*Do we want to try to keep any of the loanees?
*Where is Chris Cohen going to be best utilised?
*Can Britt Assombalonga be the same play post-injury?
A productive final 11 games will answer a fair few of those questions and save us an awful lot of time and effort in the summer and beyond. The biggest gripe I had last season was that we continued to waste game time on the ineffective Chuba Akpom and the likes of Mo Barrow when we could and should have taken stock of other options.
If Dougie were to experiment, give some young players a chance - gradually and not all at once - and learn some important lessons for next season I'd be happy. In some respects these games are a golden opportunity, the chance to start next season early and build some momentum.
My main worry is that the fear of poor results might cause him to be more cautious. If he loses games by experimenting Fawaz's trigger finger might get twitchy again. The trouble is, if he bows to that pressure - and his critics - he might well end up taking the 'worst of both worlds' option. Toughing out a few draws and 1-0 wins might save him his job and earn him the right to carry on next season, but should he try this and fail he'll get even more stick and be even more likely to get the bullet.
To be fair to Dougie he's ridden out a few mini storms so far this season (the transfer window, the home game against the Sheep) so he'll be used to this feeling. If he's brave he deserves our patience and support to see off this one too (not least because we are a club that, lest we forget, were turned down by Neil Warnock not so long ago).
For inspiration Freedman need look to the south coast. Chris Hughton's dour, shot-shy Brighton side finished with a mere 47 points and 44 goals last season. The Seagulls kept faith with their boss and have gone from strength to strength. They can now look back on last season as the important building blocks for their play-off push.
If Dougie can set and achieve a positive goal between now and the end of the season he should back himself to follow suit. I sincerely hope he does.
What the Glasgow gaffer desperately needs right now is a sense of purpose. The current campaign is in severe danger of ending in ignominy and games against Preston, Sheffield Wednesday, D**by and Hull offer little respite in a tough March.
When the Freedman honeymoon ended last season - and the over-zealous talk of the play-offs was silenced - the wheels came off. Defeat against soon-to-be-promoted Norwich City started a run of eight games which saw six defeats and two draws.
A similar run now - further out from the end of the season - could undo the hard work Dougie has done to start to 'build from the back' and forge his side under the shadow of the FFP embargo.
But arresting the slide and avoiding 'going through the motions' are easier said than done. The manager tried to be more attacking in his outlook at Portman Road but, after spurning chances in the first half, the result was a sadly predictable 1-0 defeat.
Dougie Freedman says #NFFC have 'spirit and togetherness' to recover from their recent run. https://t.co/nHBNUN5lDm pic.twitter.com/gBhAmhO3b1— Nottingham Forest FC (@Official_NFFC) March 7, 2016
Yet it'd be sad if Saturday is the end of the road for 'Action Dougie'. With the play-offs and relegation zone both a decent distance away now has to be the time to experiment...and not just to counter the critics of Freedman's normally cautious style.
In the next 11 games I'd like to answer at least some of the following ten questions:
*Is Dimitar Evtimov a good enough back-up to Dorus De Vries?
*Can Jorge Grant cope with the hustle and bustle of a Championship midfield?
*What type of midfielder is Robert Tesche and is he worth keeping in the summer?
*Can Tyler Walker make the step up?
*Is Deimantas Petravicius ready to make the matchday squad?
*Can Ben Osborn play in the middle?
*Is Oliver Burke ready to be a regular starter?
*Do we want to try to keep any of the loanees?
*Where is Chris Cohen going to be best utilised?
*Can Britt Assombalonga be the same play post-injury?
A productive final 11 games will answer a fair few of those questions and save us an awful lot of time and effort in the summer and beyond. The biggest gripe I had last season was that we continued to waste game time on the ineffective Chuba Akpom and the likes of Mo Barrow when we could and should have taken stock of other options.
If Dougie were to experiment, give some young players a chance - gradually and not all at once - and learn some important lessons for next season I'd be happy. In some respects these games are a golden opportunity, the chance to start next season early and build some momentum.
My main worry is that the fear of poor results might cause him to be more cautious. If he loses games by experimenting Fawaz's trigger finger might get twitchy again. The trouble is, if he bows to that pressure - and his critics - he might well end up taking the 'worst of both worlds' option. Toughing out a few draws and 1-0 wins might save him his job and earn him the right to carry on next season, but should he try this and fail he'll get even more stick and be even more likely to get the bullet.
To be fair to Dougie he's ridden out a few mini storms so far this season (the transfer window, the home game against the Sheep) so he'll be used to this feeling. If he's brave he deserves our patience and support to see off this one too (not least because we are a club that, lest we forget, were turned down by Neil Warnock not so long ago).
For inspiration Freedman need look to the south coast. Chris Hughton's dour, shot-shy Brighton side finished with a mere 47 points and 44 goals last season. The Seagulls kept faith with their boss and have gone from strength to strength. They can now look back on last season as the important building blocks for their play-off push.
If Dougie can set and achieve a positive goal between now and the end of the season he should back himself to follow suit. I sincerely hope he does.
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