GOING UP - NOTTINGHAM FOREST
Thursday 10th July 2008
by Simon Skinner

Having looked at the three teams relegated from the Premier League we now turn our attention to the sides coming up to our division from League One. First up are runners up, Nottingham Forest.

Last Season: Forest wrapped up promotion on the final day of the season with a 3-2 home win against Yeovil, the team that had bombed them out in the play offs the season previous. They won their last four games but the promotion campaign was largely built around a tremendous home record, they were beaten just twice and conceded only thirteen goals. They held their nerve as the race to finish behind Swansea in the runners up spot went to the wire with three teams trying to get the dip at the line.

Transfers: Forest haven’t messed about this summer and they have already moved quickly to put together a top class strike force for the coming season. Rob Earnshaw has signed on from Derby for over £2.5m and he was joined this week by veteran Andy, apologies, Andrew Cole who of course took Rangers to bits last season at Burnley with a sparkling hat-trick at Loftus Road. Kris Commons has gone to Derby, Grant Holt has gone to Shrewsbury and Sammy Clingan has gone to Norwich. Frenchman Guy Moussi has also signed.  

The Manager: Colin Calderwood was a player I always despised for some reason and I can’t quite put my finger on why! Calderwood the manager had three years at Northampton before he ended up at Forest following the departure of Paul Parker’s favourite player, Gary Megson. He should have gained promotion in his first season but a wobble saw them drop into the play offs and then dumped out at the semi stage by Yeovil despite carrying good form into the knockout phase. As Holloway had done with Rangers when we were beaten in the play offs, Calderwood managed to keep them going and despite a poor start the season a brilliant late run saw them snatch promotion on a dramatic last day. 

The Ground: The City Ground is a classic football stadium and one that I always enjoy going to despite the fact that we rarely manage to get anything there. Away fans are behind the goal and with a vociferous pocket of home fans to the right it often makes for a spicy atmosphere.  

Last Time We Met: The last time the two sides met was at Loftus Road in April 2005 when an own goal from the quite awful John Curtis and a fine Marc Bircham strike sent the former two times European champions spiralling out of the Championship and into League One.  

QPR Connections: The most notable link between the clubs is Stanley Bowles who left Rangers for Forest in 1979 but never quite got along with Brian Clough and was shipped on to Orient fairly sharply. Others that have turned out for both clubs are Nigel Quashie, Gino Padula, Dave Needham and Chris Woods.