Forest are easy winners in the end

Last updated : 16 September 2003 By Tony Scholes

Delroy Facey - played well up front
Home defeats are fast becoming a common occurrence, tonight’s is the third this season and the eighth this year, and we really do need to start picking up points on a regular basis at the Turf.

Forest at home is usually a good game for us, they very rarely win here. In fact the last time they took maximum points at Burnley it was two points for a win and Brian Clough was in his early days as manager. Tonight though once in front they didn’t look as though there were going to lose.

Stan made two changes from the team that lost at Norwich. Dean West was ruled out to be replaced by Lee Roche whilst skipper Graham Branch lost his place in the starting eleven to be replaced by Ian Moore with David May taking over as captain.

Forest were in front as early as the seventh minute and needless to say Gareth Taylor was involved in the move. The ex-Claret, who received a warm ovation from the Burnley crowd before the game but was booed by some after a series of fouls, played the ball for Marlon Harewood who somehow beat goalkeeper Brian Jensen on his near post.

It was pretty poor goalkeeping to say the least and gave Forest, not the best of sides away from home, just the start they wanted.

The Clarets tried to get back into the game and we did have a couple of half chances but they came to nothing with shots hit well off target.

We did cause Forest some problems with both Mo Camara and Delroy Facey, and the loan man looked much better tonight, getting in promising situations down the left hand side but we were unable to put any real pressure on an under worked Forest defence.

Not as though ours had much to do and in fact the first half was pretty miserable stuff at times with little to get the crowd enthused leaving Turf Moor again morgue like for periods.

The nearest we did get to equalising came after a mix up in the Forest defence when central defender Michael Dawson made a mess of a back pass to Darren Ward. The ball just wouldn’t go for us though and they were eventually able to get it clear.

Ian Moore went down right on half time but his appeals for a penalty looked more in hope than anything else, he did appear to go down too easily.

Half time came and Forest were worth their lead and Stan made a tactical switch at half time bringing on Paul Weller for Lee Roche who had struggled in the first half.

The Clarets stormed forward in the early stages of the second half and we nearly drew level when a Weller effort hit the bar. There were more opportunities and twice the crowd were brought to their feet as Camara made surging runs down the left hand side.

Just after the hour there was a predictable moment and one that the Burnley fans have seen many times, Gareth Taylor was booked. Referee Alan Kaye made it clear to the player just why he was getting a yellow card by pointing to all the other areas on the field where he had been penalised. Forest gave away only eleven free kicks all night, as did Burnley, at least half of those were fouls by Taylor.

Burnley kept going forward but there was rarely a shot on goal as once again we looked like a side who wanted to walk the ball in and not surprisingly Forest broke away and wrapped it up on 76 minutes.

It all started with a Camara run that ended with the Burnley player injured and Forest were able to break down our left hand side. Harewood hit the angled ball in from right to left, the sort of ball we never seem to be able to deal with, and Andy Reid made no mistake as he controlled the ball in space and hammered home.

It was a deserved goal from Reid who was the game’s outstanding player on the night and a goal that almost certainly put the game out of our reach.

Indeed it was out of our reach and just six minutes later the expected Taylor goal made it 3-0. It was Camara’s mistake that allowed Harewood to find Taylor who only had to hit the shot on target to score.

Did we play badly or were Forest good? A bit of both I would suggest and there is no doubt that on the night they were head and shoulders better than us. In Reid and Harewood they had the best two players on the field and although they didn’t have that many chances they always looked the more likely side to get a shot on goal.

They disappoint at times with their tactics, the time wasting is very tedious but actively encouraged by Paul Hart from the touchline. But the evidence from tonight certainly suggests that Forest will be some places higher than the Clarets at the end of the season.

For us we need look no further than Delroy Facey when we select our Man of the Match. He has been very disappointing in his first two games and looked sluggish. Tonight he looked a different player altogether, showing the electric pace we know he has and looking so much better.

He got little support though as others were constantly just trying to thread balls through and Ian Moore who it was hoped would provide the support had an anonymous game.

But now we need to win on Saturday, we really do need to start winning home games. They are what bring the crowds in and so it is vital after another desperately disappointing attendance tonight.

The teams tonight were,

Burnley: Brian Jensen, Lee Roche (Paul Weller 45), David May, Andy Todd, Mo Camara, Ian Moore, Robbie Blake (Graham Branch 81), Tony Grant, Gareth Farrelly (Richard Chaplow 68), Luke Chadwick, Delroy Facey. Subs not used: Alan Moore, Matt O’Neill.

Nottm Forest: Darren Ward, Matthieu Louis-Jean, Michael Dawson, John Thompson, Wes Morgan, Gareth Williams, Danny Sonner, Stephen McPhail, Andy Reid, Marlon Harewood, Gareth Taylor. Subs not used: Barry Roche, Des Walker, Brynjar Gunnarsson, Michael Stewart, Eoin Jess.

Referee: Alan Kaye (Wakefield).