Notts County produced arguably the performance of their pre-season so far, drawing 2-2 with Premier League neighbours Nottingham Forest, with Luke Williams' side maybe feeling unlucky they couldn't get the result their performance deserved.
The newly-promoted side twice lead with goals from Sam Surridge on the stroke of half-time and an outstanding free-kick from Cafu had the red side of Nottingham celebrating potential bragging rights.
But twice the Magpies hit back, with Macauley Langstaff smashing the ball beyond Jordan Smith shortly after half-time, before Sam Austin capitalised on a mistake from the Forest 'keeper to finish smartly
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In a game that lacked any real quality in the first ten minutes, it was the Magpies who found the first opening. A misplaced pass in midfield found Jim O'Brien, who moved the ball onto Ruben Rodrigues to try his luck, only to be denied by the feet of Smith.
But for all of the Magpies' dominance, it was Forest who opened the scoring. Former Notts loanee Ryan Yates picked out an excellent ball over the top for Surridge, who curled a fine effort beyond the grasp of Sam Slocombe to put the Premier League side a goal up.
Despite going a goal down, the second half continued in the same fashion, but this time Notts were able to take their opportunities. Another mazy run from Rodrigues saw him slip through Langstaff in behind the Forest defence who then smashed the ball into the roof of the net.
But a moment of Premier League quality soon followed, with Cafu firing a stunning free-kick into the roof of the home net which even received applause from Notts supporters.
However, Notts heads did not go down and they were level just shy of the hour-mark. This time, Austin was able to capitalise on a mistake by Smith, taking his time before smashing the ball beyond two Forest defenders on the line.
The game continued in the same fashion, with chances falling to substitute Cedwyn Scott and Langstaff once again, but the home side were unable to find an opening and had to settle with a draw.
Williams' side travel to fellow National League side York City this Saturday for their final friendly outing, before their league opener against Maidenhead United at Meadow Lane.
Here's how Notts Live scored the players' performances against their Premier League neighbours this evening.
Sam Slocombe - 6
Was caught taking slightly too long on the ball on more than one occasion, and his kicking found the side-lines and the Forest players more often than those in black and white.
Kyle Cameron - 6
The whole of the Notts defence looked comfortable when under pressure, but Cameron was the pick of the bunch. A real captains performance and was able to bring his team high up the pitch with his bursts out of defence.
Aden Baldwin - 6
Again, solid and composed like the other three central defenders. His passing was often able to split the Forest midfield as Rodrigues would draw two or three players towards him, with Baldwin able to pick out that spare man on a number of occasions. Also made a terrific tackle late on to deny Mighten a certain goal-scoring opportunity.
Richard Brindley - 6
Was eager to help Nemane down the right-hand side, but was sometimes caught of position when Forest won the ball back and chose to go long to their pacey wide players.
Adam Chicksen - 7
Linked up well with the forward players, especially Rodrigues when he drifted out wide. Was comfortable in possession and defended admirably against Mighten, who barely had a kick for Forest.
Aaron Nemane - 6
Was tasked with marking the speedy Richie Lareya which he initially struggled with in the opening exchanges, but he was able to grow into the game and frustrate the Forest left-back as the game went on.
Ed Francis - 6
A solid performance in central midfield, with his delivery from set-pieces the highlight of his display, causing Forest problems in defence on more than one occasion.
Jim O'Brien - 6
It was a performance you would expect from the veteran midfielder. Calm and composed on the ball when Forest grew into the game, and was on hand for a couple of important challenges to get the Notts faithful in full voice.
Ruben Rodrigues - 8
Was at the heart of everything good that Notts produced. He was direct, incisive with his passing, and was able to draw in a number of Forest players which created space for the rest of the midfield as well as set piece opportunities. Produced an excellent assist for Langstaff too. None of the Forest players could get near him for the entirety of the match.
Sam Austin - 7
Was kept quiet during the first half, but managed to test Smith into making a smart save. Managed to grow into the game during the second period, and took his goal extremely well, keeping composed when it mattered and finishing with authority.
Macaulay Langstaff - 7
Worked extremely hard up front and was without reward in the first 45 minutes. But his tireless running was rewarded with a goal, finishing smartly beyond Smith. The Magpies number seven has looked extremely sharp during pre-season and could be a huge asset as the National League season grows closer.
SUBS:
Geraldo Bajrami - 6
Was kept quiet during his 25-minute cameo, but did cause the Forest defence a few problems with his aerial presence and won a number of headers to set Notts on their way.
Cedwyn Scott - 6
Almost made an instant impact after coming on, only for his effort to be smothered by Smith.
Liam Vincent - N/A
Joel Taylor - N/A
Kairo Mitchell - N/A
Toby Adebayo-Rowling - N/A
