Andy Munro on Blues’ draw with Nottingham Forest.
The match against Forest was never going to be easy because while their home form, like Blues, has been less than scintillating, their away form, also like Blues, has been impressive. Add to that, a side managed by Billy Davies whose grudging mentality would make Scrooge look like Father Christmas and it was never going to be a walk in the park.
The match day itself fell on one of the biggest shopping days of the year and, as I endeavoured in vain to park near the ground well over an hour before kick-off, I sensed something felt different. Was it a spillover from the Bull Ring shoppers? Or had the Blues just been re-promoted to the Premier League? In fact it was the lure of match day tickets priced at £10 adults and kids for a quid which had tempted out legions of previously absentee Bluenoses who had obviously decided that Blues were a more attractive proposition than the Bull Ring. As a longstanding season ticket holder, to be honest I have no time for other season ticket holders who think that these offers are unfair. One of the main reasons that I go and watch live footie is for the atmosphere and, this time it was like the old days with some magnificent renditions of Keep Right On drowning out the substantial contingent of Forest fans.
This atmosphere certainly seemed to inspire the players as they played some superb football and, if Ziggy had justified even a tenth of his wages, he would have been on the scoresheet. The back line were, once again, magnificent while Caddis and Burke were irresistible down the right flank. Let’s hope we are not stripped of our last remaining assets in the transfer window by a Nottingham Forest or a Leicester City! Adeymi was colossal in the middle of the park with Ollie Lee playing a supporting role and doing himself no harm in terms of future selection. Up front, the upwardly mobile Jesse Linguard had one of those games when you could see what Man Ure see in him.
If I were to be critical, our foot went off the gas in the second half for 20 minutes before we re-established our authority. Shinnie again represents a bit of an enigma, showing classy touches but drifting in and out of the game. In fact, my plea to Lee Clark would be that we’re getting there (if more by default than deliberation) but can we please have our Shane Ferguson back?
In terms of subs made, Demarai Gray came on and, as a young and normally very impressive performer, had what could be described as a mare. However, he didn’t deserve the stick that he received from some muppets in the Tilton. On the subject of muppets, Darius Henderson’s tackle and reaction on Robbo was stupid, especially given the personality of the injured party.
Certainly it was a game when we deserved all the points but I suppose at least we didn’t lose. If I had a couple of wishes in the transfer window, once an exciting time instead of one to dread, it would be to keep hold of all our players apart from satisfying the need to lose one loanee in the shape of the highly unimpressive Aaron McLean.