by Simon Hough
... our very own Roving Reporter!


At the half-way point of the season we find ourselves with an unbalanced squad, injuries mounting, unable to score, leaking goals and staring relegation to league 1. We have one of the most one-paced, boring and uninspiring teams in recent years. Cotterill is still working with McClaren’s back-room staff and players without any budget to do anything about it. The forthcoming transfer window represents the only way in which we can get our way out of this mess, but there are bound to be sacrifices we have to make.

One of his biggest challenges will be to either get the best from or get rid of McClaren’s signings who have brought very little to the club. We have an opportunity to change things around but we don’t possess many players with real value and our current position doesn’t lend itself to inflated valuations. Having said that, we could do a lot worse than clear out many of the under-performers who have got us into this position in the first place.

For a side in our perilous state, some of the performances this season have been disgraceful. Having been through the criticism of the board/managers etc., the players have escaped fairly lightly and it’s about time they took responsibility for some of the rubbish they have produced. Our once proud home record is now a distant memory with away performances only marginally better.

The likes of Chambers, Greening, Moussi, McGugan should be embarrassed at their contributions this season. In reserve, Derbyshire, Boateng, Findley and McGoldrick have had opportunities from the bench and generally done nothing to impress. Even our most consistent players like Camp and Gunter seem to have lost the desire to play for the club and as full internationals can’t be happy to hang around for long in the current position.

We used to be at our most dangerous when breaking up opposition’s attacks and then catching them effectively on the break. The speed and perceived threat of Tyson and Earnshaw left space for others to exploit as they would be doubly marked. The quality and balance of our midfield was often the difference between sides and gave us the edge to turn draws into wins. The loss of Cohen from midfield is one of the core reasons we are in this mess and makes McClaren’s decision to play him at left back even more ridiculous.

Looking through the options available, there are some tough choices ahead…

Camp still represents a much better option than the flapping Smith but certainly hasn’t reached the heights of previous seasons. There have been some horrendous errors in front of him and as a result he’s been left badly exposed. With January looming and being a current international, he unfortunately represents one of our most saleable assets at a time when he need his presence in goal. Making Smith first choice would only compound the uncertainty and confusion that currently exists in our defence. In reality, no one would blame him for wanting to better himself and play for a more organised club.

Gunter has been relatively poor this season, with spells where he’s been unable to get into the side and then having to fill in at right midfield. A number of goals were conceded due to his inability to prevent crosses from wide areas or failing to deal with crosses arriving from the other side. However, in recent games he’s started to rediscover some appetite for the game and getting forward to support the midfield. As with Camp, he’s one of the few players with genuine value and with Moloney in reserve, he might not be around for much longer.

Chambers has been nothing short of a disaster as captain this season. He’s been responsible for a large percentage of the individual defensive errors that have plagued this season. In no shape or form does he lead or inspire on the pitch and it’s a surprise that Cotterill hasn’t moved the captaincy elsewhere to allow him to concentrate on defending properly. Whilst it might be easy in hindsight, the decision to make him captain on the basis of only one decent season in a settled position was a very poor one. Unfortunately, he’s currently our only fit centre back and we’ll have to persist with him in the short term. However, with his contract expiring in the summer, he’s not going to have a saleable value for much longer.

Morgan has had a reasonable season has been around for ages but maybe it’s time for a change at centre back. The centre back partnership has never looked stable this season so maybe its time we brought in a short term experienced alternative and started again in the summer. As with Chambers, he’s out of contract soon and might have to be sold whilst he still retains some value.

Lynch has been one of the few bright points to this season and has shown moments of genuine promise playing in his preferred centre back position. He’s looked solid defensively and assured in possession in contrast to others around him. However, it’s the same old story with injuries. Just as he finds the form and opportunity to claim a regular place in the side, he’s quickly back on the treatment table. Another one out of contract but has done enough to justify offering him an extension.

Cunningham has added balance down the left hand side along with youthful enthusiasm without being outstanding. As with most young players, there’s been the occasional dip in form but he’s generally done a decent job. With the loan arrangement ending at the end of December, we can look forward to our bi-annual left back hunt starting again very soon.

Anderson has suffered a number of injuries this season but even when fit, he continues to frustrate. For a winger, he just isn’t effective enough and we need more than someone who can run around for ninety minutes. His crossing is below average; he lacks the talent or confidence to beat an opponent and doesn’t score enough goals for the side. At best, his work-rate adds defensive cover in front of the fullback but we’re desperate for inspiration going forward where he contributes little. For some reason, we’ve never seen the direct running/goal scoring winger that previously played for Swansea. Out of contract at the end of this season and hasn’t done enough to justify another one.

Reid clearly isn’t the same player we remember from years ago but at least shows a desire to play for the club. He was the only one fighting for the club during the Leeds embarrassment and in the end, his frustrations cost him the red card. With better alternatives in central midfield, we should be able to accommodate him down the left hand side, especially with a pacey left back behind him. He still remains one of the few creative players at the club and we have to find a regular starting place for him.

McGugan has been the biggest disappointment of the squad this season. At no stage has he come close to the excellent string of performances he used to produce on a weekly basis. Davies started to get the best out of him but this season he’s been in and out of the side and struggled to have any influence. When selected, his work-rate is nothing close to last season where he earned the praise he received; now he’s reverted back to showboating in a struggling side when we need effort more than ever. We previously used him on the left hand side of a midfield diamond and this worked well. However, we’ve tended to employ a standard flat midfield this season and too often he’s been stuck on the left touchline. When used with Greening in central midfield, they are simply too slow and lack the work-rate to compete in this league. Certainly has the potential to play at a higher level but maybe it’s time to sell and move on.

Greening’s arrival has been a disaster from the start and his 3 year contract contradicts everything about the current financial position at the club. He looks nothing like the dominating all-action midfielder from his West Brom days and instead has wandered through a number of games offering nothing that someone, much cheaper/younger, from a lower level could have. We badly need someone with energy; drive and commitment in central midfield (like McKenna’s first season) to get the side moving forward together. It looks unlikely than anyone will take him off our hands so we’re stuck with him for the next 2.5 years and we’ll have to find a midfield balance to get the best from him.

Moussi was always a Jekyll and Hyde performer for Forest but once fit, his performances tended to positively dictate how well the side would play. Our best runs over previous season would generally coincide with a fit Moussi controlling the midfield. This season the inconsistencies have been worse than ever, there’s no question about his ability to tackle and stop the opposition but his passing is so poor for a professional footballer. When on-form, he remains our best hope of winning midfield battles and is certainly someone we have to persevere with and get the best from.

Majewski has certainly shown promise at times this season but too often has been restricted to left wing positions which clearly don’t suit him. Still remains a luxury player at a time where we need to be showing some fight and it seems impossible to get both him and McGugan playing in the same side.

Boateng was favoured consistently by McClaren but hasn’t figured at all under Cotterill despite being fit again. He’s another player out of contract in the summer and unlikely to be here much longer.

McCleary has recently returned from injury and added some pace down the right hand side. However, if we’re relying on him to provide enough quality to stay in this league, it shows how far our standards have fallen. He’s out of contract in the summer but probably worth persevering with in the short term as he’s not going to be a high-earner.

Tudgay has worked tirelessly for the side but simply isn’t capable of scoring enough goals with the poor support provided by our midfield. With the technically superior Blackstock returning from injury, his appearances may be limited in future.

Findley has been a big disappointment after the promising cameos towards the end of last season. He’s often looked out of his depth and barely worth a place on the bench. However, it’s surely time to give him another run of games in the short term to at least introduce some extra pace to the side and try something different.

Miller provides the only genuine goal threat from our forward line and has been badly missed from the side due to injury. However, he doesn’t look much of a team player openly showing disapproval to team-mates on the pitch when he doesn’t get the service he expects. We badly need him fit and leading the line as soon as possible. However, like Greening, having signed him from the Premier League, he must be one of the top earners and it’s debatable whether we’re likely to see value for money from him.

Derbyshire has had limited performances from the bench and has done nothing to suggest that McClaren didn’t only buy him to add numbers to the squad.

It's going to be tough sorting through that mess but we've got to do something and getting value for money is going to be even harder. The success or failure of this exercise will determine which league we're in next season...

This defeat wasn’t down to bad luck or poor finishing, we simply lost out to a hungry Posh team showing all the work-rate, team-work commitment that is sadly lacking from our own players. Our statuesque midfield had no answer to the movement and pace of their midfield. In the end, we were lucky to escape with only a single goal defeat as they failed to make the most of a number of promising breaks.

During the early stages, we showed moments of promise down the right with McCleary especially prominent. One effort from the edge of the area needed a decent save and then McGugan’s effort saw a similar result. Things then disintegrated into the usual sub-standard performance. We left Boyd free just inside our area and he found the top corner with a curling effort that Camp had no chance with. Their goal lost all momentum within the side and half-time couldn’t come quickly enough.

The second half was a little better but generally more of the same ineffective stuff. McCleary was unlucky to narrowly miss one pull back and Blackstock had one cleared off the line. McCleary’s direct run and perfect chipped pass set McGugan free but his finish was poor. In reality, they created the better chances on the break and could easily have extended their lead without Camp's interventions.

MOTM McCleary was one of the few to come out of the game with any credit. He at least looked to take on his defender and try to make things happen for the team. The midfield looked very slow in comparison to our opponents, the forwards aren’t capable of creating chances for themselves and it’s only ever a matter of time before we concede.

Tags: Games Lost, MOTM Gareth McCleary

Despite looking badly out of form and lacking much confidence we somehow managed to recover twice from going behind, turn this game around and produce an amazing comeback in the last ten minutes. For long spells we looked poor but got ourselves level just before half-time and then went one better as the final time whistle approached.

Ipswich created very little but still took advantage of two needless set pieces we presented them. Both times, the defence was packed with red shirts but Collins showed more desire to take advantage of Bullard’s accurate delivery. Conceding goals of this type has been a regular story this season, remains a hangover from McClaren’s disastrous spell in charge but needs to be addressed as a priority. Apart from these basic errors, we looked reasonably solid at the back but it was a similar story at the other end as we struggled to put more than a couple of passes together.

In between, we scrambled an unlikely set piece equaliser ourselves. McGugan’s free kick was headed by an Ipswich defender in front of his own keeper and left Findley to hold off a challenge to poke home. Neither side had shown any quality going forward with Forest in particular hampered by a lack of service from midfield capable of defending first and attacking second.

We improved a little after the break but still there were too many mis-placed passes and a lack of confidence to carry the ball forward when there was a safe backwards pass available. Unfortunately, another one of McClaren's traits that will take time to eradicate from our style of play, something that causes us to play at walking pace and present little threat to the opposition.

Chambers was unlucky to see one bullet header cleared off the line from McGugan's corner but it was mostly speculative long range efforts without troubling their defence.

After their second, the game was drifting to another depressing home result, and fifth loss, until the introduction of Reid and Anderson added genuine width to the side. First Reid’s cross was flicked expertly across the keeper by Lynch to equalise and then as injury time approached and Ipswich settled for a point, Cunningham found space to cross, a defender flicked on and Tudgay re-adjusted himself to find the top corner with another pin-point header.

By removing the defensive Greening/Gunter, we finally got McGugan into the centre of midfield. McGugan has looked a poor imitation of himself this season, stuck out on the left wing and struggling to get involved. The combination of Moussi and Greening is very rarely going to provide enough quality going forwards and whilst it’s early days under Cotterill’s reign, hopefully this improvement will see more emphasis on attack instead of containing the opposition. Gunter works tirelessly down the right but when it matters, we need extra quality on the ball and his runs and better served coming from a deeper position, overlapping the midfield. Anderson provides as much defensive cover but offers more going forwards whilst Reid may leave us slightly exposed down the left but we don't have many other players with similar quality elsewhere in the squad.

Even without their goals, the real stand-out performers continue to be Lynch and MOTM Tudgay. Lynch is fully justifying his selection ahead of Chambers at centre back and on current form, it would be Morgan who should make way, if the captain is restored to his usual position. This would also allow Gunter to play in his proper position. He looks composed in possession and we finally appear to have found a footballing centre back to allow us to build from the back instead of letting Morgan chip the ball forward aimlessly. In recent seasons, his fitness has been the main question mark but this run of games, in his proper position, is proving what a good player he really is.

Despite seventy minutes of very little service, Tudgay could not have done any more for the side. Putting himself about, winning headers against much taller opposition and the last minute winner was perfect reward for his endeavours.On current form, he's probably our first choice forward and deserves a lot of credit for transforming his season around following the managerial change.

Another decent performance from Cunningham down the left hand side as well. He's looks comfortable within the side, has gained confidence in the past few games to start contributing at both ends. A number of runs from deep unfortunately didn't receive the through-ball they deserved but was still there when it mattered in the closing stages.

Tags: Games Won, MOTM Marcus Tudgay

Having seen their manager sacked, this was a chance for a reaction from the players and put on a determined performance with some fight. Unfortunately, it was business as usual with a thoroughly uninspiring display against a very poor Coventry side. The lack of fight and organisation was shocking at times and in the end the home side took the points simply because they wanted it more. We’ve gone so far backwards in 11 games, it’s some achievement. Well done to all concerned...

We started the same quite brightly with some neat moves down the right hand side but never genuinely looked like scoring. We should maybe have had a penalty when Miller was challenged when about to shoot but nothing given. The game then found it’s natural level between two struggling, out of form sides and dragged along until half time came along.

Coventry improved marginally in the second half, forced a few set pieces but it was still a surprise when they scored. The manner of the goal would come as no surprise to anyone who’s seen us this season. Camp punched instead of catching a corner, the next cross required a brilliant save to keep out but thirty seconds later a right wing cross and unchallenged header saw us behind.

Only in the latter stages did we create anything worthwhile but still couldn’t trouble their stand-in keeper despite a slight improvement from the likes of Majewski and Findley. Findley mis-directed a free, near post header and later on, took advantage of a defensive mistake, cut inside onto his right foot but leant back and put it aimlessly over the bar.

MOTM McGugan and Miller occasionally looked lively and at least tried, Majewski at least looks like a footballer and should be starting, Moussi put himself about and Tudgay worked hard but never in dangerous areas. Derbyshire and Greening continue to struggle and really haven't settled into the club so far.

The front three of Miller, Derbyshire and Tudgay swapped around again and again but simply didn’t work. Having Miller stood on the right wing was a complete waste of time, he has to played centrally to cause the opposition enough problems. As the game went on, he looked increasingly frustrated and being unable to get involved. The other two (like McGoldrick) rarely look like getting into enough goal-scoring positions which makes Findley the only realistic partner for Miller. I wouldn’t write off Derbyshire and Tudgay though until they’ve at least played a number of games at centre forward.

In order to protect the full backs and prevent crosses, we have to go back to playing with a 442 formation. Whilst he might not be the most productive of wingers, Anderson at least provided great defensive cover down the right hand side, which has been sorely missed this season. Unfortunately, the legacy of McClaren’s time in charge has left us with an unbalanced squad, full of central midfielders and badly lacking in pace, especially wingers. Until new players can be brought in then the only option is to use players out of position but that can’t be any worse than the current system.

At least Cotterill was there to witness this mess first hand and can surely be in no doubt what a mess he's taking over. It's time to go back to basics, do whatever is necessary to make us hard to beat and rely on some Miller magic and set pieces to pick up points. It's been some time since the players showed any pride and any improvement has to start with them.

Tags: Games Lost, MOTM Lewis McGugan

It was all going so well for an hour or so. Birmingham were on a poor run away from home, looked very poor up front and generally lacking in ideas. We created few chances but managed to get ourselves in front from a well worked corner, McGugan’s cross flicked on by Derbyshire and Miller couldn’t miss. Everything looked set for the first home win of the season until the second half substitutions. We replaced our best attacking options in MOTM Majewski and Miller with Greening and Findley and lost all momentum going forward. They, put two players up front and suddenly started to put pressure on our feeble defence. As soon as we conceded the first goal, the end result was all too predictable.

We gave the ball away in midfield, Moussi didn’t close down their player, who beat Camp, disappointingly, from distance. Shortly after we found ourselves behind, McGugan tried a fancy back-heel in their half, they raced past Hill down the right wing and from the pull back, the mis-hit shot bobbled into the bottom corner. It wasn’t a surprise when they rounded it off with a third but the manner of the goal said a lot about our players this season. An aimless through ball was mis-controlled by Chambers to allow their player to run clear and score, that was bad enough but to simply stand there and watch without running back, was unforgivable.

The decision for McClaren to leave wasn’t a surprise, you could tell that Radio Nottingham knew it was coming as they kept broadcasting well past their scheduled time. It just simply wasn’t working out for him in this league. The solid defence and backbone of the side in the past couple of seasons had disappeared and we’ve rarely been a high-scoring side that would have compensated for this. His signings have been uninspiring, with only Miller showing signs of genuine quality for this league.

Boateng was reasonable back-up when experience was needed within the squad and only really started games whilst Moussi gained fitness. If the re-signing of Moussi was ever a possibility then we should have exhausted that avenue before considering another option in that position. The signing of Greening has been the biggest disappointment where he seems nothing like the dynamic play-maker from a couple of years ago and seems to be playing well-within his true capabilities. This is in addition to the negative impact it's had on the likes of McGugan, who's often found himself left out of the side. The lack of quality and pace in wide areas has cost us badly even without the injuries to Anderson and McCleary and should have been resolved before the start of the season. Having identified a real talent in Verhoek to address this failing, for some reason we didn’t follow up with other alternatives and the problem never went away.

We've been woefully ill-prepared for this season, to the extent that McClaren never managed to decide on his best starting XI. Having filled the squad with a number of central midfielders, adding to McGugan, Cohen and Majewski already at the club, he could never possibly squeeze them all into a sensible line-up and performances suffered as a result. Reid hasn't looked like contributing to the side since his arrival, his lack of pace being exaggerated via the absence of a natural pacey left back and midfield colleagues equally as immobile. Having found what looked like a balanced line-up and decent performance against Wycombe, we then reverted back to type for the next league game and normal service was resumed. The early stages of this season were treated as an extension of pre-season in the vain hope that we would be able to suddenly find form. In reality, we've become increasingly desparate with the trademark switching of personnel and formations that tend to indicate a change of manager is on the horizon. We're lucky to have gained as many points as we have so far.

However, for all of McClaren's faults, there is simply no excuse for the level of performance we've seen from some of the established players at the club this season. The likes of Camp, Gunter and Chambers have performed well below the standards they have set for themselves previously at the club.

Camp used to be such an influential figure at the back, always vocal and making a number of impressive saves during games. This season he's very rarely made anything but routine saves and has regularly been beaten with efforts we would have expected him to save. Gunter has been at fault a number of times this season, either failing to prevent crosses from wide areas or getting beaten in the air by a more determined opponent. The composed defending and pacey runs from deep seem a thing of the past and found himself deservedly dropped. With the one paced midfield we've been left with, it was essential that we could rely on pace from full back but he's been sadly lacking.

Finally, the selection of Chambers as captain has been a disaster since the start of the season. Every week there's been yet another amateurish mistake as yet another simple pass slips under his foot and gives the opposition an unexpected chance on goal. We've got away with a few but it's almost a weekly occurrence now. The sight of him giving away the 3rd goal on Sunday and not even bothering to run back was about as low as it could get. Having gone from player of the season last time, he's barely worthy of selection in the reserves on current form. Lynch having looked much more competent in his rare chances at centre back.

The only players to emerge from this period with any credit are Lynch for a number of decent performances on the few times he's been selected. Both at centre and left back, he's been better than the alternatives we've seen. As long as he can stay fit, he could find himself having a important role this season. In a disjointed and muddled midfield, Majewski has looked lively throughout and generally the most likely to create something for the team. Having been largely overlooked last season, he's become one of the important players so far.

Tags: Games Lost, MOTM Raddi Majewski