Head coach Steve Cooper said the continued backing from Nottingham Forest fans “meant everything” to him, as his team brought an end to their five-match losing streak.
Amid a poor run of form, and during a period when his job was under threat, Reds supporters have got behind the Welshman. And a packed-out City Ground helped get the players over the line to earn a 1-1 draw with Aston Villa on Monday night.
Cooper got a standing ovation and a terrific reception when he walked out the tunnel and headed towards the dugout before kick-off, with the crowd making clear their delight at his new contract. They sang his name after the final whistle, too.
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There might not have been any fist-pumps, as Emmanuel Dennis’ header was cancelled out by an Ashley Young strike. But Forest did show signs of progress, and Cooper thanked the fans for sticking with them.
“It meant everything, if I am being honest,” he said of the show of affection. “It just makes me want to do so well for them.
“I am not a massive lover of personal attention. I know there has been some stuff, with the contract and things like that - and that’s why I wasn’t particularly into any fanfare or pictures or anything like that. I just wanted to get on with my work, because the situation the club is in - being back in the Premier League - is far more important than any one person.
“The worst thing, for me, about the Leicester game last week was that the supporters would have been hurting inside, yet they made the noise that they did and showed me and the team the support they did. I couldn’t get that out of my mind for a while.
“I said to the players before the game that these supporters are incredible. What they have given us at this moment is something that makes us want to give something back.
“They were brilliant again. They helped us a lot, from start to finish.
“We are really grateful, because we need it. We need them.
“On the personal stuff, nobody will ever know what that means. It means everything.”
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