lost that loving feeling

To say the past few weeks have been eventful is a contender for understatement of the year. The calm before the storm was broken by the EGM which proceeded a torrent of news, not all of which was good.

In fact, the loss of two of our top players coming just days after a terrible defeat to a poor Portsmouth side might well seem like a total disaster for the club. Last Wednesday was another nail in the coffin of our play-off hopes and has led to some calling into question the progress that the players and management are making.

To then sell Stern John - perhaps the one player who could have finished off Pompey had he been playing - and Jermaine Jenas - the club’s hottest young property - doesn’t really send out a message of ambition on behalf of the club.

Before that there was the collapse of the Bothroyd-Harewood loan deal as we learnt of a Football League transfer embargo, and the ever present debt that looms over the City Ground like the threatening February clouds.

And this is the curse of being a football fan. No matter how bad your club gets, you must stick through it. Spare a thought for Chesterfield fans who, on the eve of their monumental take-over, were subjected to a hostile counter-bid from a mystery group. Spare a thought for Wimbledon fans who, after years of humiliation and relegation, could now see their club taken away from them in search of streets paved with gold in Milton Keynes.

But as clubs go, Forest have it pretty bad. Not least because our dramatic fall from grace makes us a great example of a club in peril for the press to pick up and band around like there’s no tomorrow. ‘Cash-strapped Forest’ are the national case study for football debt and it’s no wonder some fans are reaching the latter stages of manic depression when the only coverage the Reds get is negative.

And because we are cursed, we must somehow learn to live with it. We certainly can’t ignore it due to the huge level of attention we get at the moment. And I’m sure none of us would consider giving up the Reds for a more healthy pursuit. So we have to stick with it. But what can we do to prevent us all going mad?

Well, I find it useful to look for the positives. And they are there, even if you have to look very hard to find them. For instance, although for a side that has struggled for goals all season, selling the top scorer and most creative midfielder is perhaps not the best way to progress, it does mean we are able to clear at least £5m off the debt with transfer fees, not to mention the cuts in the wage bill.

Along with Doughty’s investment of £5m, that means Forest made £10m profit in the space of 7 days. This slashes the borrowings in half. Now although we are still very much in the red, I wonder how many other clubs would be able to raise that much money in so short a time. I don’t think Derby and Leicester could when they have to pay off their own inevitable debts next year.

Not only have we put a huge dent in the debt, the team haven’t suffered that much as a result of this activity. Sure, SJ’s goals will be missed, but the chances were he would be off in the summer anyway for nothing. Whatever we got for him, no matter how low the figure actually was, it has got to be better than losing him for nothing all for sake of 3 more months of service that would not only be futile in any attempt to move up the league, but that would have cost us a small fortune in goal bonuses.

As for JJ, his departure could actually be a good thing for the team. He was looking pretty tired recently, not showing the brilliance he had at the start of the season. And he has left a nice hole in the team which can be filled by either Reid or Bopp - both of which are hardly short of talent themselves.

Of course £5m is a very good price for an 18-year-old, and despite the calls of ‘lack of ambition’ that were bound to follow this sale, we have raised enough money to not only keep the academy going, but to keep hold of the remaining youngsters for the foreseeable future. Now that’s ambition.

So you see, sometimes this curse isn’t bad at all. You can at least learn to live with it, in the knowledge that one day we will have shifted this blasted debt and eventually our young players will be experienced internationals and sooner or later the manager will strike the right balance between attractive play and effectiveness.

And of course, days like last Saturday make it all worth it. By not going mad, by fighting and surviving the curse, we get to see a thoroughly enjoyable win and send Carlton Palmer a step closer to the job centre.

The reason I have written this article is to try and persuade people to take the time to look for the positives. Otherwise you will get dragged down by the negative and fall victim of the curse. What this clubs needs now more than anything is support. The players and the management need to feel that we are behind them. It is no good for us all to wallow in self-pity so we must remain positive and use our energy more productively. In the same way those who had enough faith and hope to follow the team to Stockport on Saturday were rewarded, so we all will be if we get behind the club in this difficult time.

Chin up!