A humiliating 3-1 defeat at home to arch rivals Derby County this afternoon consigned Nottingham Forest to their third lose in a week. There was not much for Reds supporters to be cheerful about come full-time – even the return of goal scorer Robert Earnshaw and the surprise inclusion of Paul Anderson in the starting eleven did little to restore faith in the Reds survival hopes.

It remains to be seen whether Davies will be able to bring in any recruits to help a depleted Reds squad in their fight for their Championship status but it is clear that players are needed and needed desperately.

Before the beginning of February Forest had been on an encouraging run of form which had moved them up the table and within sight of a mid-table position. However, a tough run of fixtures coupled with a crippling list of injuries has concluded with Forest picking up a grand total of zero points this month – and with a visit to promotion chasing Reading the next contest, hope of any points being picked up there is almost none.

Billy Davies knows the situation: he repeats it time and time again; and at the minute, the Forest players seem to be echoing his sentiments off the field, on it. Watching the dismal displays over the last few weeks, a fan feels that the players are agreeing with him: ‘We are not ready for this’, ‘All of our best players are injured, what can we do?’, ‘Poor us, we had to bring back Sinclair just to put on the bench’.

Nathan Tyson was quoted in the Evening Post prior to today’s derby game as saying that the Reds were desperate to avenge the defeat at the hands Derby County in the FA Cup a few weeks ago. He said that the antics of the Derby players after the full-time whistle, in particular those of scarf-waving Robbie Savage, had left a very bitter taste in the players mouths. Indeed, so bitter that for the second goal they allowed Savage to swing over a free kick to be nodded home with ease by Rob Hulse.

James Perch, who had perhaps been the most improved player this season after settling into the holding role position and being entrusted with the captains armband in recent weeks, has seemingly lost his head in the last few fixtures. After scoring a stupid own goal in midweek, he decided to reply to that in the best fashion possible. Perch conceded the penalty that put the game beyond doubt and the icing on the cake for the Rams. Kris Commons must be uncontrollable in his mirth.

Yes, Robert Earnshaw returned with a goal and Paul Anderson lasted the full 90 minutes; but the major concern lingering on the thoughts of the 25,000 Reds supporters who trolled miserably home this afternoon was that of an immediate return to League One.