Nottingham Forest 2015/16 Season
League Position: 16th (2014/15: 14th)
Average league attendance: 19,675 (2014/15: 22,629)
Top league goalscorer: Nelson Oliveira (9)
Just 43 league goals all season tells the story of the 2015/16 Sky Bet Championship campaign for Nottingham Forest as their fans, once again, had to settle for a mid-table finish in the second tier.
Manager Dougie Freedman was appointed at the end of the previous season and in the summer took the chance to bring in news faces like Matthew Mills [Bolton Wanderers], Jamie Ward [Derby County] and Nelson Oliveira [SL Benfica]. Greg Halford and Danny Collins [Rotherham United] were among the players that left on free transfers. The biggest departure from the playing staff was Michail Antonio, who left to join West Ham United.
A mixed start to the season had Forest in with a shout of pushing on for the top six, but a run of bad results put their Scottish boss under pressure. Future Bees boss Dean Smith managed to beat them 4-3 with Walsall in the First Round of the Capital One Cup. League defeats to Bristol City, Preston North End and Sheffield Wednesday without scoring a single goal had the Reds looking over their shoulders. Following a 2-1 loss to 10-man Brentford at Griffin park, Canos and Hofmann the scorers, results began to improve. They went more than two months unbeaten from December to early February, going into the final 16 games in the table's top ten.
Their second transfer window was a quiet one, with just two additions in the shape of Bojan Jokic [Villarreal] and Gary Gardner [Aston Villa] on loan deals. The most concerning part about the end of the window, became the form on the pitch. The team slumped to just one win in six games, with the rest ending in defeat, which saw Freedman leave the role of manager in mid-March. Former Brentford coach Paul Williams, who had helped take charge of The Bees when Lee Carsley became interim Head Coach, was appointed until the end of the season.
Results continued to tumble, along with the team itself slipping to 20th in the table with only five matches remaining. Two wins and three draws saved them from a battle with the bottom three, although they ended the campaign just six points clear of Rotherham United in 21st.
The City Ground Nottingham NG2 5FJ Click here for directions to The City Ground
The Manager
Forest parted company with former Brentford coach Paul Williams at the end of the season and are still searching for a permanent replacement.
The First Meeting
6 February 1909, FA Cup Second Round - Nottingham Forest 1 Brentford 0 Brentford XI: McIver; Rhodes, Ewing, Badger, Jay, Richards, Ryalls, Sugden, McKenzie, Connelly, Buxton After beating Gainsborough Trinity in the First Round, The Bees suffered a narrow defeat on their first trip to Forest.
The Last Meeting
2 April 2016, Sky Bet Championship - Nottingham Forest 0 Brentford 3 Brentford XI: Button; Colin, Dean, Barbet, Bidwell; McCormack, Yennaris; Woods, Judge, Saunders; Rodriguez A tight first half is followed by domination from Brentford. Lasse Vibe, Nico Yennaris and Sergi Canos strike for all three points. To make matters worse, Forest have Eric Lichaj sent off after 77 minutes, scuppering any hopes of a recovery.
Head to Head
Brentford wins: 8 Draws: 8 Forest wins: 9