Having despatched one of the East Midlands powerhouses at the weekend, BillytheBee catches up with a less than confident David Marples (@DavidMarples) of the Forest blog In The Top One (@InTheTopOne_) on the eve of Brentford’s 2nd encounter with a side from the A52 region to discusses Viv Anderson , Brian Clough and Robin Thicke’s pants.
Forest had a great start to the season but have struggled as of late. What do you make of your season?
First part, good. More recently, not so good. We weren’t really as good as our early results suggested and with the players we’ve got, we (hopefully) aren’t as bad as our current run indicates either.
You had a couple of ex Forest players put further misery on you at Huddersfield – both Joel Lynch and Grant Holt involved in scoring and setting up goals for them against you at the weekend.
The inevitable law of the ex. I’m just surprised that Lee Peltier didn’t bang one in for fun too and, although Radi Majewski was ineligible as part of his season-long loan to the Terriers, it really wouldn’t have surprised me if he’d have ambled on and struck a thunderbastard into the top corner.
As football fans, we’re all aware of this phenomenon but it really does seem that we suffer more than most. I am pleased to see that none of your current players have a Forest past.
Saturday against Huddersfield was very poor as you can read in our match report but unfortunately, it was a manifestation of our recent form. Having said that, we will snap out of our malaise soon. (We will. If I keep repeating it over and over, it will make it true).
Stuart Pearce took over from Billy Davies – his 2nd stint in charge of Forest. Some fans don’t seem to be too happy with him. Are they being a bit OTT?
He Who Shall Not Be Named. Admittedly, we did make it to the play-offs twice and had some good times under Him. However, he dragged the good name of the club through the mud and was a rude and odious man.
Naturally, we are all a little bit in love with Stuart Pearce: a genuine living legend around these parts, especially for those lucky enough to have grown up watching him play Trentside. The vast majority of fan realise that we need stability and that Pearce will do everything he can to build the club into a force again. Those who don’t realise this need to have a long hard look at themselves.
Fawaz Al-Hasawi isn’t shy in splashing the cash, spending £5.5m on Assombalonga. Money well spent?
It certainly raised an eyebrow, especially at this level. But this was the summer of Ross McCormack and £13. We also got money in from the sales of Jamaal Lascelles and Karl Darlow to Newcastle United (back with us on a season long loan). Furthermore, Pearce is in the process of clearing out a lot of dead wood and lightening the wage bill (does anyone want Djamel Abdoun? You can have him …. for a Kit-Kat).
Assombalonga was one of a number of new signings. He looks very dangerous and will occupy your defence with his tireless running. Goals have dried up recently for him but he’s always capable of producing one from very little.
Michail Antonio is an enigma wrapped up in a puzzle contained in a Rubik’s Cube: for 85 minutes, he looks incapable of controlling his own legs but for five minutes, he will proceed to tear down the flank and produce a Bergkampesque goal. Infuriating.
Chris Burke is capable of a blinding cross. Robert Tesche (German signed from Hamburg) is neat and tidy in midfield without really punishing the opposition. Jack Hunt is on loan from Crystal Palace and looked awesome to begin with but less so now. Lars Veldwijk might get chucked on to lumber around up front if we are chasing the game.
Michael Mancienne is smooth and tuned; until the last two games in which he’s been rough and off key.
That’s a lot of new players and cohesion takes time (unless you’re Southampton).
Spending that type of cash, surely the pressure is on Pearce to get you guys promoted this season.
And therein perhaps lies the problem. Unless we are in the top six, it’s seemingly not good enough and then we beat ourselves up about it as a club and as fans. Of course there’s pressure, especially given the amount of money spent but Pearce is starting from zero with pretty much a brand new squad.
What happens if you don’t go up? Derby fans reckon you will implode. They would say that though.
It pains me to say it but Derby County have been building well for a couple of season now and got the foundations right under Nigel Clough: they look set for promotion. The rivalry is intense and on occasions, downright nasty and genuinely unpleasant.
You had quite a deep rivalry with Sheffield United off the back of Nottingham miners not supporting the Miners’ Strike back in the 80s. Does that rivalry run deep or is it all about Derby now?
The rivalry between United and Forest is a more recent phenomenon and arose for a variety of reasons, explored in more detail in my blog here.
But as stated above, games against Derby seem to dominate each other’s seasons and a loss invariably means that a manager will lose their job. Yes, they’re that important and all encompassing.
Forest fans should keep an eye out for tricky Andre Gray up front – a £500k buy from Luton in summer. Tricky. Scored at the weekend against Derby. One for the future. We bought Jota from Celta Vigo in summer for £1.5m. He’s got silky skills and ran the show for the 2nd half revival against Derby. Douglas is tremendous in midfield when he’s on fire. And Toumani Diagouraga had a great game in the middle of the park against Derby breaking up everything in sight. Odubajo can also cause serious problems when making his runs from his newly acquired full back position. What Forest players should the Bees be looking out for on Wednesday?
Assombalonga is tidy and Mancienne (up until recently) has oozed class at the back. Henri Lansbury and Antonio will either play you off the park or run around anonymously. It depends.
Excuses klaxon: we are currently missing the heartbeat and spine of our team though injury: Jack Hobbs at the back, Andy Reid in the middle and the lovely Chris Cohen, recently ruled out for a season for the third time in his career. Tragic. We all genuinely love Chris Cohen, with a love that runs true and deep.
Here’s our made in Nottingham section
Robin Hood or Robin Thicke?
Robin Hood every time. None of that casual misogyny for us thanks. And certainly no striped trousers. Ever.
Viv Anderson or Nigel Clough?
Our Nigel. Regularly clattered, never moaned, brought others skillfully into play and scored loads of goals. We are quite fond of his dad in these parts too. You might have heard of him. He scored a bucket load of goals and won a trophy or two.
Kris Commons or Rob Earnshaw?
Earnshaw. The way he conducted the singing of the Forest fans after scoring the winner at the Ipro Stadium ensured he remains dear in our hearts. Kris who? He’s dead to us.
Lace Market or Bigg Market?
Lace. It’s frilly and pretty and not full of misbehaving Geordies.
Head to head, Forest as steaming ahead winning 9 games to the Bees’ 5 with 7 games drawn. Will the run continue???
I’m torn. Our confidence is on the floor at the moment: I fear bad things might happen. But the football fan is all of us is ruled by the heart and mine tells me that the bubble will be re-inflated at some stage. So, in that case, 2-2. Obviously.
Where do you recommend away fans hang out pre-match?
The most obvious place is ‘The Meadow Club’ which is part of Notts County’s ground. It’s just over the river from the City Ground. This is generally the only pub in the immediate vicinity of the ground that allows away fans in now.
The Larwood and Voce in West Bridgford has in the past been a place for away fans too. There’s always Hooters as you come out of the train station and head towards the ground. If you are have time, there are some excellent pubs in the city centre: Olde Trip To Jerusalem, The Castle (in Castle Street), Salutation Inn (on Hounds Gate), The Round House (in Royal Standard Place)’ and ‘Canal House’: housed in a listed building, serving Castle Rock beers.
We would like to take time out to thank David for taking time out to give us the lowdown on Forest. You can follow him on twitter (@DavidMarples) and check out In The Top One by clicking here.
BillytheBee
@billythebee99
You can catch up with the podcast between Derby, Forest and Brentford fans right here
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