Here are your Nottingham Forest morning headlines on Wednesday, April 20, 2022.
Striker stance
Nottingham Forest boss Steve Cooper reiterated his "next man up" mantra as he confirmed striker Keinan Davis is expected to miss the remainder of the regular season.
The Aston Villa loanee was forced off with a hamstring problem in last week’s 1-0 defeat at Luton Town. It is an injury which is set to sideline him for about four to five weeks, although Cooper remained coy on whether he could return in time for the play-offs, should the Reds secure a top-six finish.
Forest were also without fellow front man Lewis Grabban against West Bromwich Albion, with the club captain absent due to illness. But January signing Sam Surridge seized the opportunity as he made his first league start in the Garibaldi.
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Albion apology
Taylor Gardner-Hickman "will apologise" if a ball kicked into the City Ground crowd by the West Bromwich Albion midfielder did hit somebody during the match against Nottingham Forest.
The 20-year-old was introduced as a first-half substitute soon after Albion were reduced to ten men as Steve Bruce moved to two banks of four. Ten minutes after being introduced, though, Gardner-Hickman was booked after booting the ball into the crowd moments after being penalised for a tackle on Forest 's Philip Zinckernagel.
The move was clearly out of frustration six minutes before half-time and sparked a minor fracas between both sets of players on the far side of the pitch. After the game Bruce moved to defend the Baggies youngster, insisting that there was no malicious intent behind the action and apologised on the player's behalf.
Did he mean it?
Jack Colback was the talk of the City Ground and beyond after scoring a spectacular goal as Nottingham Forest swept aside West Bromwich Albion 4-0 on Easter Monday.
The Reds cruised into a dominant position after Darnell Furlong had collected a second yellow card in only the 17th minute, following up a foul on Philip Zinckernagel by handling a James Garner shot in the area. Brennan Johnson converted the penalty and Ryan Yates added another with a 23rd-minute header, before Colback hit a spectacular volley from the tightest of angles, wide on the left. But was it intended as a shot or a cross?
Sam Surridge completed the scoring in the third minute of added time, as Forest took a firmer grip on their position in the play-off places. Colback's unlikely stunner dominated much of the post-match discussion, with Reds boss Steve Cooper saying: “Jack said that he tried it… brilliant.
Cup final details
The date and ticket details have been confirmed for Nottingham Forest's FA Youth Cup final showdown with Manchester United.
The young Reds will take on United at Old Trafford for the prestigious trophy on Wednesday, May 11 (7.30pm kick-off). Tickets for the final are priced at just £1 and available directly from Man United. Supporters will need to create an account on the host club's ticket site and use the code 1105FAYC/FOREST-FINAL .
Forest have been given an initial allocation of 680 tickets, situated in block E230. The Reds say additional tickets will be made available dependent on demand, while adding: "Please note that no tickets for this fixture will be available via the Nottingham Forest Ticket Office."
