Q – How long have you been following Forest and what was your first game?
I’ve been a fan for just over 20 years now, i was a late starter as far as football support goes with my family being County fans that was the only team they would take me too, it was truly horrific, they took me to my 1st County game when I was 6, it rained, they got hammered 3 – 1 (I think it was against Grimsby in the Cup on a cold wet Tuesday night) while over the river Sir Brian was busy winning the European Cup, it was never going any other way then, I was a closet Forest fan but had to wait another 9 years before i could afford to go to a game on my own. It was a league cup tie against QPR that we won 5 – 2 (Lee Chapman scored 4 & Clough the other) & there was no looking back. It seems odd now, but what i remember most about that day wasn’t the goals, the win or even the atmosphere at the game, I remember the bus trip home with my new Forest friends, that feeling of belonging that you only get when celebrating something that matters to you all.
Q – What are your most memorable moments as a Forest fan? Good and Bad.
There have been so many highs & lows over the years it’s hard to put them in order of best to worst. I think the most memorable moments for me are probably the 1 – 7 away win at Sheffield Wednesday which was the greatest football match I’ve ever seen, we were simply unplayable that day & would have taken any team apart, as for those awful moments, I’m a Forest fan, there are too many to mention, the biggest is probably the Cup Final defeat to Tottenham in 91, I was convinced it was our turn & the first time I’d ever had that despair. The play off defeats are also high on the list, not so much because we lost out on promotion, it’s the finality of it, each time you’re convinced you’re going to Wembley but then to lose in the semi-final means that’s it, it’s over, your season comes crashing to a premature end and there is absolutely nothing you can do about it, you go home, sulk, kick the dog & then wait 3 months for it all to start again.
Q – Since you have been following Forest, what would your best eleven be? And who is your all time favourite player?
You could put one hell of a squad together couldn’t you, Mark Crossley, Brian Laws, Stuart Pearce, Des Walker, Michael Dawson, Roy Keane, Lars Bohinen, Andy Reid, Steve Stone, Teddy Sheringham & Stan Colleymore. My all time favorite player is without doubt Stuart Pearce, in fact I would describe him as the greatest living Englishman, Colleymore though is the most talented player I’ve ever seen, truly astonishing.
Q – In your opinion, what is the best goal you have seen Forest score?
We’ve scored some spectacular ones over the years, the one that stands out for me was Lars Bohinen’s goal away at Spurs in 94 under Frank Clark, we won 4- 1 in the end, but Bohinen’s was amazing, he picked up the ball on the left, shrugged off a couple of defenders, ran across the box 25 yards out & just chipped it over the keeper into the top corner, search for it on you tube because my words can’t do it justice.
Q – Best and worst away ground visited?
I’m going to fly in the face of common sense here & say best away ground I’ve visited is Huish Park, yep, the Yeovil one, there’s just something about standing shoulder to shoulder with your fellow fan that modern football misses out on, it reignited my love of football at the time, for comfort I’d say City Of Manchester & for atmosphere St James’ Park. The worst ground I’ve visited was Bell vue, thankfully it no longer exists, they also had terracing, but seemed to lack any sense in when to stop selling tickets, it’s one thing standing shoulder to shoulder, it’s something completely different worrying that people will get crushed.
Q – What are your thoughts on the proposed new stadium?
When you walk up the City Ground for a night match, when the flood lights are on, the moonlight hits the stadium & you see that bright reflection in the Trent, those are sights you don’t see in football anymore, I’ll miss that sight terribly, it almost brings a tear to my eye if I’m honest when i think we’ll lose that. I don’t agree with those who say we’ll lose our history though, history doesn’t end because you move & there is no stopping progress, it’ll be sad to lose the old girl but if it’s in the long term benefit of NFFC they i suppose i’m for it (I’ll continue with the questions when I’ve composed myself)
Q- Which player(s) would you like to see us sign this summer(realistically)?
Ok, the crying is over, I get the impression there are more tears to come from this question though. With Forest’s history of not being able to let go of a transfer target, i expect to see us go in for Pratley, Shorey and most probably Best as well. Whether Shorey fits in with the realistic tag remains to be seen but I’d be reasonably happy with those three. Just for the love of God, get us a left back!. I’d like to see St Ledger or Wheater brought in to bolster our defence & Maynard in attack, we may not have enough cash for all of them though.
Q – All seater stadia. Good thing, or a bad thing?
See favourite stadia question. From a health & safety aspect i can see why it’s a good thing, I can’t help but feel the issue with safety id more to do with the amount of tickets you sell more than whether the fans are vertical or not. I’d certainly welcome a standing area now, whether my legs would appreciate it are another matter.
Q – What are your thoughts on how Forest did last season and how did it compare to your expectations?
I predicted we’d finish 5th, so a play off place fell in with my prediction but it was so much better than i thought it would be, some of the football has been simply fantastic, but I can’t help this nagging thought in the back of my mind telling me it could have been so much better. When all is said & done though, we’ve made amazing progress this season.
Q – What are your expectations for next season in the Championship?
I expect the club to bring in a left back, I expect the board to be serious about promotion (don’t snigger!) and i expect Billy to be happy with his lot in life, I don’t ask much do I. I really don’t want to let my expectations get ahead of me, but all you want to see as a fan is progress and progress from finishing 3rd is finishing 2nd or better. Having said that, i expect we’ll finish in the top 6 again but the higher the better, another play off disaster may well finish me off. Did you hear that Forest? finishing lower than 2nd could see you lose a loyal fan through bringing forward his expiry date, just bare it mind eh.
Q – What League position will Forest occupy at the end of the 2010/11 season?
I think we’ll do it, the teams coming down from the Premiership are not as strong as Newcastle & West Brom were and while teams like Reading, Middlesbrough & Ipswich may make more of a challenge along with Norwich, Leeds and the play off teams that stay down, we’re already way ahead of them, if we can strengthen enough to stay ahead of the rest, we’ll finish in the top 2, 1st would be nice, no pressure lads.
Q – What’s your opinion of Billy Davies and what he’s done at NFFC, since his arrival?
Jesus Christ, there’s a loaded question. The fact he’s turned us from relegation candidates to promotion challenges in 18 months is little short of a miracle, i think what has pleased me the most has been the style of football he’s created, it’s been breath taking at times. I give him 7 out of 10 this season, would have been 8 if he’d kept his gob shut.
Q- Acquisitions Panel. Good thing or bad?
It’s a good thing without doubt, over the past 5 or 6 years we’ve made some appalling decisions on player recruitment and although the odd one will always slip through the net, this has brought an end to the donkey after donkey conveyor belt of talentless muppets we’ve had in recent years. I think they need someone there to push them though, getting a bargain is nice, but sometimes if you want/need a player you have to pay more than his value to convince his current club to sell, or maybe someone could just sit them down & explain the basic laws of supply & demand.
Q – Where do you sit/stand at the City Ground?
I sit in T3, smack bang in the middle, it’s a bit of a compromise really, I’d like the atmosphere of A Block & the view from the Brian Clough stand, but as you can’t have both I find Trent End to be the closest.
Q – Name the celebrity you would most like to bang.
I’m not allowed to answer, Sarah’s watching, she was on the news once giving gifts to orphans, can i have her? She’s gone, I could do some nasty things to Isla Fisher.
Many thanks to Galaxy42 for taking the time out to answer the questions. If you would like to take part in the Fan Interview, you can find a copy of the questions HERE. Just email the answers to forest@vitalfootball.co.uk.
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