Despite coming so close to play-off glory, there was little optimism be found among the Forest faithful over the summer as player after player left the club, but very few came the other way. Adam Gray was the first to predict a grim short-term future: "What does 2003/04 hold for Nottingham Forest? Sadly, not as much as most fans will be expecting. Despite having one of the most talented young squads in the First Division, without the first team stars who have left us, I think we will struggle to emulate last season."
Alex Campbell tried to restore some hope, reassuring us that: "This squad in its current state is still better than the side that began last season. The dire, dour and depressing bunch of pessimistic buffoons that succumbed to the effortless offerings of Portsmouth on August 10, 2002 have given way to a characteristic, never-say-die, and ultimately optimistic army of talented professionals, that have (over the course of the past twelve months) experienced almost every emotion that can be enjoyed and detested in football."
A few good results prompted a bit more optimism, as Carl Blackborow said cautiously:
"The friendlies have been coming good for Forest. I know they're only friendlies but is there anybody else out there impressed and a little buoyed by our 6-1 demolition of Rushden and
Diamonds?"But as the season got underway, results were inconsistent and it became clear that new players were needed. Unfortunately Paul Hart was struggling to get the funds he needed and went public, criticising the chairman for not putting up the cash. At the time, Alex Walker commented: "If the money has not already been promised, Hart must continue to put pressure on the board until he gets the resources he needs to complete his job, for the good of the team. If he does not take up the fight, then Forest's future does not look bright."
It seemed to work, and Hart was allowed to sign Gareth Taylor for £500,000 and bring in Stephen McPhail on loan from Leeds. Ivan Murfin was shocked: "Two signings in two days - what's the world coming to? I guess certain members of the board sat in their ivory tower and could no longer bear the embarrassment, the pictures on the wall behind and the ghosts of past years emphasising what Forest is all about."
It had been a difficult start to the season, but by the middle of the season Forest seemed to have found some form with four straight wins taking them to the top end of the table. Andrew Brookes noted in his report of the Sheffield United game: "Forest looked impressive today but must follow this up by creating a string of results, as too often last season they followed these performances up with away defeats. We must also get over the huge loss left by David Johnson, possibly by looking at a new signing."
His warning proved valid as the wheels started to fall apart with a defeat to lowly Crewe and a poor draw against Tranmere Rovers in the League Cup. David Johnson's absence with a broken leg was starting to tell, and with a big game against Derby on the horizon, Forest needed to be at their best. The Rambling Red pleaded:
"Let's all try and recreate the atmosphere and emotion present last March, a night to truly remember - fingers crossed for a repeat performance. Having had a peek at the forthcoming fixtures, I can see an excellent opportunity to cement our lofty
position."Sadly the game turned out to be a huge let-down, with the sheep holding Forest to a draw. Alex Walker reflected on last season's results against Derby and suggested that we could build on this result like last season: "By the time we next play Derby, we will have a better idea of how our season is panning out. And by March 20 we must have hit top gear if we want another March 19."
However, Forest did not build and positive results began to come less frequently. With it came a growing wave of criticism for the manager. Carl Blackborow decided to stick up for Hart and praised his work at the club so far. "As for those that boo the team off of the pitch," he fumed, "get behind them, not at them. We all get frustrated, but the players are more likely to respond to our backing, not our barracking."
Adam Gray, reflecting on a troubled month in which the only bright spot with a 6-0 drubbing of a poor Wimbledon side, said: "It is enough to make your blood boil. Although October wasn't a complete disaster, there are still so many unanswered questions - especially when it comes down to our small, inexperienced squad." But Forest suffered more injuries and they were not to get another win until February.
Alex Walker laid the blame squarely at the door of the manager for not standing up to the chairman: "Hart has been notably down-trodden over recent weeks. He may be feeling sorry for himself and disgruntled at the backlash he is receiving from the fans. 'It's not my fault,' he pleads after yet another defeat. But he must know deep down that it is his fault because he didn't stand up for himself when he had the chance. Now he must suffer the consequences in silence."
Others attempted to stay positive. TrickyMatt wrote: "Trying to remain optimistic is difficult, but I urge you all to do give it a try. Remember last season when Wolves were in a similar position to us at this time of the season and the Molineux faithful were calling for Dave Jones' head? Well there are a lot of games to be played and I am nowhere near giving up yet."
At the time, despite rapidly losing his grip on Forest's fortunes, Paul Hart was the subject of much speculation regarding the vacant Leeds United job. Alastiar Gunn suggested that it might not be the best move for him to make:
"My advice to Hart is to stick with the job he has and wait for an opportunity worth taking to arise. Pardew still may not last the season with West Ham and some exiting opportunities could crop up in the summer when someone like Leicester or Bolton gets
relegated."As it later transpired, Hart was interviewed for the position but never received an offer, so stuck with the Reds. But the supporters were becoming increasingly despairing at what was happening to the club. In a move that stunned most, Forest sold top-scorer Marlon Harewood and replaced him with Gillingham's Marlon King. Alex Walker wasn't impressed: "We can still chant 'Marlon, Marlon' at games. We still only have two fit strikers in the team. Doubts still hang over the manager's commitment to the club and his relationship with the board. So has anything changed this week? Well, we're £450,000 down for a start. And we've replaced a player with 12 goals this season with one who has only scored five. Did they think we wouldn't notice?"
Summing up another performance in which Forest dropped more points and slid further down the league, Carl Blackborow wrote: "Frustrating is not the word to sum up this season. Crucifying is more the word."
In December, with the debates raging about Hart's position as manager, LTLF put it to the test and staged the 'Trial of Paul Hart'. Running over five days, we staged a mock trial with witness statements from Nigel Doughty, Brian Clough, Jack Lester and many others. At the end, readers were invited to vote on the manager's fate. Perhaps surprisingly, Hart was found not guilty of the charges brought against him by 64% of the jurors.
This was in contrast to some of the articles appearing on the site at the time, with a number of writers calling for his head. Ivan Murfin wrote: "We thank you, Paul, for a wonderful season last time round, but in my opinion, it is you who are to blame for the demise of Nottingham Forest and it is with everlasting hope that you will now do your best to help the club find its feet, in the way only you can… Bon voyage, Mr Hart."
Ludo Wallace concurred: "Hart is surely on borrowed time now - the fans are rapidly loosing patience, his relationship with Doughty appears to have gone completely and his heart seems to be no longer in the job."
Only Alan Fisher came to the manager's defence:
"It is so easy to be critical when there's no way on Earth any of your theories or hypotheses can ever be rigorously tested. Hell, I know a few line-ups and formations I'd like to try - but I respect the fact that somebody who (a) knows football a hell of a lot better than me and (b) knows the players a hell of a lot better than me knows what's likely to
work."Now into the new year and with the transfer window open, Forest fans had another thing to worry about - would the club be able to resist the big money offers for its top players? Carl Blackborow was very concerned: "If Doughty cashes in on Andy Reid then we might as well kiss goodbye to our fading hopes of saving the season … without Sir Andy Reid, we can look forward to welcoming Colchester United, Mansfield Town and more than likely Derby again next year."
Forest were now dangerously close to the relegation zone and the pressure was building on the club to find a solution. Alex Walker said: "Something has got to be done. It is no longer good enough to take comfort in the thought that we're better than Derby, because we're not. Through trial and error (mostly error, admittedly), our sheep-bothering neighbours have been trying everything they can to avoid relegation. Forest have done nothing."
Adam Gray looked to the players to put more effort in and get us out of trouble: "Marlon King and Gareth Taylor have been pathetic this month. In fact, ever since we bought them. If they can get us into the competitive position that Mr Doughty keeps gabbing on about, then I'm a Chinaman. They cannot use the 'no service' excuse either. It gets there, but you will never beat a First Division defence from the far post or from the 18-yard line."
After a home defeat to Coventry City, the boss had had his last chance and was sacked by the board. Alan Fisher summed his feelings on the matter by saying: "I'm terribly sad to see the end of Paul Hart, particularly on such a sour note, and I wish him all the very best of luck for the future. For the record, I think he was harshly dealt with and manufactured into a scapegoat"
Matt Comley, however, welcomed the sacking as was looking forward to the new manager coming in: "Following the completely justified sacking of Paul Hart by chairman Nigel Doughty, and the subsequent appointment of Joe Kinnear, there's is a buzz around the club not felt for a long time."
Daniel Hawkins was impressed by Kinnear's early impact at the club.
"He brought in new players and produced fighting
performances," he wrote as Forest finally got a win at home to Bradford. Alan Fisher added his own view:
"The euphoria felt as Gareth Taylor headed into the top corner at the Trent End was something we've not experienced the like of since Johnno scored at Bramall Lane in the playoffs - and well, let's hope this time it leads to something a bit
better!"With a new manager and new players arriving, things were starting to turn around when another disaster struck the club as they failed to make a payment on the out-standing Trent End loan, something which put the City Ground itself at risk. While other sites displayed a knee-jerk reaction against Nottingham City Council, LTLF was invited to a meeting where they explained their totally-justifiable decision to force the club to pay up.
Alex Walker reported: "As far as the crisis surrounding the Trent End debts goes, the ball is firmly in Forest's court. They have two more days to meet the £200,000 payment they reneged on two weeks ago or the council will have no option but to pursue the matter in the courts - a course of action that could see the club's current lease of the City Ground put under threat. However, the council see this as a last resort and both parties are keen to negotiate a settlement."
In the end the club did the right thing and paid the money they owed on the deadline. Those media outlets who had talked of the club being kicked out of City Ground were proved guilty of severe over-reaction and scaremongering.
With Forest now finding a bit of form under Joe Kinnear, optimism was back in Nottingham and demand for Forest's crucial clash away at Derby County was massive. Sadly for many who made the effort to join the early-morning queue outside the ticket office, thousands were unable to get tickets for the match owing to half of the tickets being given to postal applications. Carl Blackborow wrote: "It's my bet that there was some Forest fans in the queue who were left empty handed that have been to all the games this season, home and away. If they were angry, then they have every right to be."
In response to the poor organisation and unfair policy by the club, LTLF penned a letter to chief executive Mark Arthur asking him to review the policy so it would reward the most loyal fans. Despite many people signing the letter, the club has, predictably, not responded. However, LTLF intends to continue campaigning so that supporters who put the most time, effort and money into following the side are able to get tickets to the best games.
However, even those who were able to get tickets were left disappointed by the performance at Pride Park later that month. Forest were embarrassed by a 4-2 defeat. TrickyMatt wrote:
"Roughly one year ago, I penned an article describing the elation of our 3-0 destruction of Derby County at the City Ground. One year on, I am tempted to erase all memory of last Saturday, but that's not what being a football fan is about. It is only fair that a chronicle one of my worst experiences as a Red in the 16 years I have been watching
them."Alan Fisher was later to write of the game: "The fact that we can bounce back from that and catapult ourselves to safety with a string of six games unbeaten gives me a great sense of optimism for the future." It certainly seems that after that match, things really picked up for the Reds' season.
Kinnear signed Paul Evans from Bradford and Paul Gerrard on loan from Everton and both proved instant successes. Daniel Hawkins wrote of Gerrard: "I can't remember such a commanding keeper in a Forest shirt. Calm on the ball, constantly shouting at defenders, class oozes out of this keeper and we must pull out all stops to sign him."
Evans was also singled out for praise by a number of contributors. Tony described him as "the bargain of the season! He has added some much-needed bite and steel to the midfield and I foresee him being a key man in our promotion push next season."
The season drew to an end and Joe Kinnear had proved himself by keeping the Reds up. His reward was a one-year contract. Alex Walker commented that this was a very positive step: "Kinnear will not sit idly by and let the club sell his best players and not provide the resources to replace them, as Hart did. He will come out and let the world know the wrongs that are happening and what he wants done about it."
Despite what was a pretty dreadful campaign for Reds fans, by the end spirits were high. Neil Heath summed up many people's feelings by saying:
"It's been an emotionally draining season - I never slept so well as after we assured our survival at Ipswich - and during bad times moments of joy are
amplified."Most supporters were already looking forward to next year, Alex Campbell included: "We've now got a gaffer that actually does do what he wants to do. I'm not getting ahead of myself this time, but I'm confident enough to make at least one promise: next season's Nottingham Forest will be very different to the one that finished this and it's going to be yet another 'rollercoaster ride'."
Alan Fisher added: "It's hard to come to the City Ground these days and not feel at least a twinge of genuine optimism for the future - and that speaks volumes for the mood change that has happened of late at Trentside. Let's hope we're not set for further disappointments."
Needless to say, LTLF will continue to offer this high level of criticism of the football club next season - quality that has made us the number one unofficial Forest site available. Thanks go to all the writers without whom this would not have been possible.