Forest had held a hoodoo over us for a lengthy time but a semi final win at Worldnet and a league victory against an under strength team earlier in the season had helped turn the tide but they brought a full strength team up to play at Herringthorpe so it was sure to be a tough game. The first half was a tight affair with both teams trying to play nice football. We probably had the better of things as our defence held firm and we created one or two openings, with Burnsy coming close when he hit the post.
However, we did take the lead with about 35 minutes gone and of course it was Burnsy that got us the goal. The ball was fed to him on the edge of the area and he turned and drove the ball in to the bottom corner. At half time we were able to reflect on a decent performance and outline areas where we could improve but before we knew which way we were kicking in the second half we found ourselves pegged back to 1-1. A midfield run was not tracked and the Forest skipper ghosted in to the area before finishing well.
In recent seasons conceding so quickly after half time would have often seen us crumble but we are made of sterner stuff this year and we hit back very quickly. JV won a header and then the second ball before knocking the ball through to Burnsy who closed in on goal and finished with his usual aplomb. We began to totally dominate the game now and the defence were in total control whilst we had endless amounts of opportunity to further our lead.
Eventually it was Mr Versatile, Gilby that grabbed his second goal of the season when a long throw fell to him and he had no problems firing home to give us a two goal cushion. That knocked the wind out of the sails of Forest and although they were throwing men forward we stood strong at the back. The space was opening up for us and with Forest playing four up front we caught them out at the end when Burnsy crossed to an unmarked JV who finished neatly at the back post.
This was a great win for us and testament to how far we have come this season. With other teams dropping points around us and the departure of Millwall the league is ours for the taking and with performances like this, we can do it! Come on the boys!!