Latest News

BIRTHDAY SURPRISE FOR GRANTHAM BRANCH CHAIRMAN

19 November 2019



Grantham branch Chairman Bob Taylor with Chris Cohen and his famous black book.

 

The Grantham branch of Nottingham Forest Supporters Club had a very special surprise for their Chairman Bob Taylor earlier this month to celebrate his 80^th birthday. Trevor Hall from the Grantham branch tells us more.

Around 100 Forest fans old and new, most of them featuring somewhere in Bob’s famous Black Book, turned up in secret on the occasion of his 80^th Birthday, to surprise Nottingham Forest Supporters Club’s Grantham Branch chairman Bob Taylor after November’s committee meeting.  Bob has been Chairman of the Branch and responsible for running all of the home and away coaches for around 40 years. ‘Bob’s Bus’ as it is known far and wide, even features several times in the novel ‘FAN’ written by former branch member and author Danny Rhodes.

Bob is held in great affection by hundreds, if not thousands of current and former branch members, and a few tales were told of his escapades following Forest, including one about him being interviewed by MI5 after a Forest European game in Berlin.

Former Forest captain Chris Cohen came along to present Bob with a certificate that will see a plaque dedicated to him from ‘Bob’s Bus’, attached to the Forest Anniversary Wall later this year.  The committee also arranged a cake for him decorated with the Forest logo and words from the popular Forest song, “Far Have I Travelled, Much Have I Seen”.

Bob was visibly moved, and was amazed that so many had come just for him, and stated that he had no idea of the surprise in store for him.

Bob still runs the coaches every week, and long may it continue... Happy Birthday Bob.

We would like to join the Grantham branch in wishing Bob a happy birthday from all of us at Nottingham Forest Supporters Club. If you would like to travel to a game with any of our branches which offer coach travel, go to the Coach Travel section of our website.

DERBY DAY AT THE BOAT CLUB

5 November 2019

2019 NOTTINGHAM FOREST POPPY PIN BADGES

25 October 2019

With Remembrance Day just over 2 weeks away, tomorrow's home game against Reading is the perfect time to pick up your 2019 Nottingham Forest poppy pin badge.

The Boat Club will be one of a number of locations around the ground which will be selling this years Nottingham Forest poppy pin badge, with all profits going to the Royal British Legion. They are priced at £3 each and are a perfect way to show your support for the football club and the Royal British Legion which does so much fantastic work to support our serving and retired members of the British armed forces.

The Boat Club will, as always, be open from Midday until kick off. Located on Trentside, close to the Trent End Stand.

MANSFIELD WALKING FC COMPLETE ITALIAN JOB

18 October 2019



The complete squad from Mansfield Senior Reds before they flew back from Italy.

The Mansfield Branch of the Nottingham Forest Supporters Club have been running a successful walking football team for a number of years. Branch Secretary Peter Mitchell gives us an update on their recent activities.

Mansfield Senior Reds Walking Football Club are the Torneo Maestro Italiano Over 65 Champions (Italian Masters Tournament Over 65 Champions) having recently competed at Peschiera Del Garda on the banks of Lake Garda in Northern Italy.
 
The Over 65 tournament was competed for on a 6-a-side basis with two days of competition, played on a league basis. The Reds came out on top having competed with opponents from the UK & Italy.  
 
The first day saw Mansfield Senior Reds win all their 4 fixtures, (1-0, 4-0, 3-0, 3-0)this gave them a strong lead  going into finals day where they faced 4 more games and by winning 2 and drawing 2 of them (5-0, 0-0, 3-0, 0-0) they clinched the title, with an unbeaten record. 
 
Full record:- Played 8, Won 6, drawn 2, Lost 0, For 19, Against 0, Points 20! The goals were shared between Steve Birkin 6 (2 pens), Steve Haynes 5, Geoff West 5 and Andy Kowalski 3.
 
It was a fantastic achievement to go through the entire competition and all 8 games without conceding a goal and was a testament of this veteran team’s commitment and work rate      
 
The Reds entered another team in that same age group & they just fell short of making the runners up spot. Tom McAlinden netted 6 goals (3 pens), with Jez Healy getting the other. They also competed in the Over 50’s section where the Reds record wasn’t a true reflection of the side’s efforts, losing a number of games that could have gone either way. Darron Hall scored an outstanding 10 goals with a real ‘golden boot’ contribution, Steve Ward and Steve Elliott both weighed in getting a goal each.

Congratulations go to the Mansfield Walking Football Team on another successful tournament, we look forward to hearing about your clubs future activities.
 

CHAMPS & CHUMPS COMPETITION

16 October 2019
 

September 2019 

Kathleen Sudbury from the Chester branch



October 2019 

David Fossey from the London branch

2019 NOTTINGHAM FOREST SUPPORTERS CLUB AGM

14 September 2019


 

The AGM of Nottingham Forest Supporters Club will be held on Saturday, 5th October 2019, before our home game with Brentford which takes place later that afternoon.

It will be held at The City Ground’s Castle Club, formerly called the Pitch Diner, in the Trent End Stand. Doors will open at 10am for a 10:30am start. We realise this is an earlier start from previous years, which will be an inconvenience for members from further afield, but unfortunately the football club need the room vacated by Midday for match day corporate clients.

There is a lift available to the Castle Club from the main entrance and the meeting will take approximately 1 hour. All members are invited to attend, but please remember to bring your membership card on the day as it must be shown to gain entry.

Although this is yet to be confirmed, representatives from the football club have been invited to the meeting, so we are hoping for a good attendance on the day.
 

CHAMPS & CHUMPS COMPETITION

27 August 2019

 

MANSFIELD BRANCH WALKING FOOTBALL TEAM

15 August 2019


 

The Mansfield Branch of the Nottingham Forest Supporters Club have been running a successful walking football team for a number of years. Branch Secretary Peter Mitchell gives us an update on their recent activities.
 
Mansfield Senior Reds are an Over 50’s Walking Football Club formed through the Mansfield Branch. They are the current Mansfield Sports Recognition Awards ‘Team of the Year.’
 
They recently travelled to Lincoln to play in an ‘Open Age’ Walking football Tournament to raise funds for a Lincolnshire Cardiac Rehab Charity. The 8 teams entered were split into two groups, with each side scheduled to play all the teams in their group, followed by a final against their opposite number from the other group.
 
First up MSR played the host team Ruston Rebels and came out on top 2-0 with goals from Shaun Hird and Darron Hall. The second game was a close encounter with Welton Wanderers, and it took a classy individual goal from Mel Pullen to ensure a 1-0 win. Needing a point to qualify for the 1^st place final MSR were heading for that draw when Darron Hall worked an opening, powerfully firing across the keeper into the net. The 1-0 win ensured MSR were in the 1^st place final, with 3 wins from 3 games, 4 goals scored and an unblemished defensive record.
 
All the matches were close and hard fought with plenty of good football.
 
In the final MSR met up with Charles James Old Boy’s, who had won their group with 2 wins and a draw. Again, there was little between the teams in a physical encounter. MSR were put under pressure for the first time in the Tournament and found themselves trailing as they went into the latter stages of the game thanks to a superb strike arrowed into the top corner. MSR were struggling to get into their passing game, but equalised late on when Shaun Hird struck to take the final into a penalty shoot-out.
 
The penalty shoot-out had strict rules in force for steps before striking the ball and these were rigidly enforced by the referee in the 3 player shoot-out. MSR chose to go first with their first two attempts disallowed and Steve Birkin scoring the third. In response the OB’s, missed the target with one, had a second disallowed and Pete Mitchell saved the third. So MSR took home the silverware with a 1-0 score line.
 
The day was also about raising funds & MSR were also happy to assist in donating & helping to raise around £2,000 on the day for the Cardiac Rehab charity.
 
The next adventure for this veteran team is a trip to Lake Garda in Italy where they will be wearing the ‘garibaldi’ in tournaments in the Over 50 and Over 65 age groups.
 
Congratulations to Mansfield Senior Reds on another successful tournament, and for raising so much money for a good cause. We also wish you good luck in your tournament in Italy and look forward to hearing how you get on.

THE STUDY CENTRE ON MATCH DAYS

12 August 2019

Nottingham Forest Supporters Club members are reminded that The Study Centre at the City Ground is available for members to meet in before home games once again this season.

As always the ever popular Boat Club will be open for every home match serving a wide selection of alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks, but for those members who would like a quieter place to meet before games The Study Centre will have a room available exclusively for our members to meet up in.

The Study Centre is located in The Peter Taylor Stand car park and is available to use 2 hours before kick off for each home match this season.
 

 

---

PRE-SEASON MATCHES AT THE BOAT CLUB

15 July 2019
 

 
 

This Friday evening will see the first of two home pre-season matches for Nottingham Forest when they take on Crystal Palace, with a 7.45pm kick off. Seven days later they will be back at the City Ground to face La Liga team Real Sociedad, and The Boat Club will be open from 5.30pm until kick off for both of these games for supporters club members, and non-members, to meet up before the match.

The Boat Club is fully licensed, offering a good selection of alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks, and we also run regular competitions and raffles for signed Forest memorabilia throughout the season. During the league season we open from midday before 3pm kick off's and 5.30pm for evening matches. Children are welcome and, for a £1 entrance fee, non members and away fans.

We look forward to seeing you there throughout the season.

 

 

---

FOOTBALL TO AMSTERDAM CHARITY BIKE RIDE


4 July 2019
 

Dave Marmion, right, in the London Velodrome.

Earlier this year we told you about Dave Marmion from the Royal Children Branch who, with many other Forest fans, was cycling from London to Amsterdam in aid of Prostate Cancer UK in the charities Football to Amsterdam bike ride.

We caught up with Dave last week to find out how it went, and how much you helped him raise.

First of all congratulations on completing the ride, apart from it being for a fantastic cause, what made you want to take up the challenge in the first place?

Initially, I wanted to do something to get a bit fitter and I didn’t really know much about Prostate Cancer. When you start to learn more about the disease, it really does hit home how terrible, but preventable it is. In the UK 1 in 8 men are diagnosed with Prostate Cancer and one man dies every 45 minutes. That’s two men during a football match! 

The sense of pride in knowing you’re raising awareness was something that really drove me on. 

There was a minimum sponsorship requirement of £1200 but I managed to raise over £3300, which was incredible. It’s amazing how generous people are. 
 
How much training did you do beforehand?

I was a complete novice, I didn’t even own a bike and I’d not ridden for well over 15 years. 

I started training in January and managed to get one ride a week in initially. Within three months I was consistently able to ride 20-30 miles without needing to stop. The most I managed to ride in one go was 51 miles. 
 
Was the ride as hard as you imagined it to be?

In parts yes but as a whole, surprisingly not! My legs never let me down, but the weather was the worst part. For most of day one we had torrential rain and riding through the Essex countryside being hammered by the wind and rain wasn’t much fun. 
 
The second day in the Netherlands was a mix bag of weather. We had 40 kph winds, heavy rain and then glorious sunshine. The ride itself was really nice over there, lots of nice flat roads to ride along the coast and canals from the Hook of Holland to Amsterdam. 
 
The ride was 140 miles over two days and is broken up in to 20/30 mile stages. If you can ride 20/30 miles without needing to stop, then it’s very achievable. 

Were there many other Forest fans taking part?

I was the only one doing the London route but there were eight that did the Barnsley route. They were riding as part of Team Dear North (along with another 12 riders in the team) and they managed to raise an incredible £36,000 between them. I met these guys at the last game of the season and they really helped me to prepare for the ride by offering some tips. 
 

 Dave with ex England international Paul Parker.
 

There were a number of famous faces that joined you for the trip to Amsterdam, did you get chance to meet any of them?

I did, I got talking to ex England and Man United player Paul Parker during the ride and we had a few beers together in the evening. He was a great guy and had us in stitches with his stories about his playing days. 

There was also Viv Anderson who was doing the ride from Barnsley for the fourth time, Titus Bramble and the guys from the Undr The Cosh Podcast - John Parkin and the two Chris Brown’s. 

We had a great night out in Amsterdam with the Undr The Cosh boys and this is what’s great about this ride, everyone goes through it together and the sense of togetherness is great. There was no snobbishness from any of them. Dancing on tables with your shirts off really helps encourage that.... 
 
Can people still donate now that you have completed the challenge?

Absolutely - the Just Giving Page is open until 7th July. 

https://www.justgiving.com/David-Marmion?utm_id=26
 
Finally, would you do it all again?!
 
Definitely - we’re planning next year to enter an NFFC team and already have a number of ex players keen to ride with us. We’re on the look out for representation from all areas of Forest fans - if anyone is interested in doing the ride next year, feel free to contact us on Twitter at @forest2dam to join the team. 
 
The only way we can raise awareness of Prostate Cancer is by talking about it. Events like this really help to start those conversations - the amount of people I knew who shared with me that they’d had Prostate Cancer or had been checked for it, who hadn’t shared this information before was a real eye opener. 
 
Following the ride one of my friends had said that as a result of me talking about Prostate Cancer it highlighted the symptoms to them and they went to the doctors to be checked out. There’s no better feeling that knowing you might have helped someone to catch something like that early. 
 
Congratulations to Dave, and every other rider who took part in this year’s event. We look forward to hearing how you get on in next years event.

 

---

2019-20 NOTTINGHAM FOREST SUPPORTERS CLUB

MEMBERSHIP IS NOW OPEN

26 June 2019
 

 

With the new season fast approaching, membership is now open for the 2019/20 season to join The Official Nottingham Forest Supporters Club. Renewal forms were sent out to all existing members towards the end of last season, but there are also plenty of other ways to sign up for the season ahead.

Membership of the Supporters Club for the upcoming season will entitle you to the following benefits;

• Nottingham Forest Supporters Club 2020 Diary (for all Adult memberships).
• Nottingham Forest Supporters Club 2019/20 Gloves (Under 21 & Junior memberships only).
• Nottingham Forest Supporters Club 2019/20 Enamel Badge.
• New Supporters Club Pen.
• New Supporters Club Bookmark.
• Use of the bar before home matches at the Boat Club, Trentside.
• Monthly £50 prize draw (August to April).
• Social events organised centrally and by some branches.
• Regular consultative forum meetings with NFFC.
• Supporters Club Executive Box made available to branches throughout the season.
• Arranged tours of the City Ground.
• Local Business Discounts (see our membership page for full details).

There are a number of ways you can join the Supporters Club, including via this website.

You can join online using the PayPal buttons on the membership page of this website, you do not need to join PayPal to pay in this way. When purchasing membership online please note that you must include which branch you would like to join, and the names of all of the members included in the application, in the boxes provided.

You can also join by post by downloading a membership form using the link below and forwarding it, with a cheque, to the branch secretary of the branch you would like to join. Membership is also available to purchase in The Boat Club before all home matches.

Nottingham Forest Supporters Club 2019 - 2020 Membership Form



 

---

SERBIAN BRANCH TAKE ON FANS TOURNAMENT CHALLENGE

18th June 2019

 

Earlier this month the Serbian Branch of Nottingham Forest Supporters Club took part in an annual fans tournament in there homeland against other supporters clubs from all over Serbia and beyond. Branch Secretary Milan Milenovic tells us how they got on.

The tournament was played on the 15th June 2019 in Niš, Serbia. It was 5th Annual International Fan Clubs Tournament where there were a record 12 team’s gathered for the event which were split into 4 groups of 3 teams, with 2 advancing from each group into the quarter finals of the competition.

We started our first match against our brotherhood fan team from Bulgaria, Newcastle, which we won 6-1. Next up was Serbian fan team Portsmouth and another 3-0 win. Our quarter final against Borussia Dortmund Serbian Fans was a fantastic win 7-1!

Then came our two toughest matches against fantastic opponents. The semi-final match against Millwall Serbian Fans finished in a penalty thriller after a 2-2 draw, and after penalties we progressed to the final with a 4-3 win! In an historic final match came the hardest test against the fantastic team of Burnley Bulgaria. The game finished 1-1 and another penalty shootout which we won 3-2 with a final magnificent save by our goalkeeper, and the cup was ours!

Southern Europe and the whole of the Balkans is red! I really hope that you will all understand how big this trophy is for us.  And one last thing, all the team captains voted for the best player of the tournament, which was won by our goalkeeper Bojan Panev.

Congratulations from all of us at Nottingham Forest Supporters Club on a fantastic tournament success for the Serbian Branch, we hope you manage to defend your title next year and keep flying the flag for Nottingham Forest.

 

---

SUPPORTERS CLUB GROUND REDEVELOPMENT

CONSULTATION

8th June 2019