Today I'm going back 44 years to 1977 and Leeds United's First Division fixture against newly promoted Nottingham Forest. The game was notable for the return of Brian Clough to Elland Road following his infamous 44 day spell in charge of Leeds in 1974 and was also only the third football match that I ever went to.
After his dismissal by Leeds United, Clough had a little over three months out of the game before his appointment at the City Ground, Nottingham. It was to prove to be one of the most astute managerial appointments that the game has ever seen as, under Clough, Forest went on to become European Champions (twice!) during a spell of success that they are unlikely to ever see again. When Clough arrived at Forest, a number of players who would go on to have outstanding careers were already there and these included Ian Bowyer, John Robertson, Martin O'Neill, Viv Anderson and Tony Woodcock but nobody could have foreseen what was to come. When Clough joined in January 1975, Forest were 13th in the Second Division and they would go on to finish a lowly 16th that season. The following season, Clough's first full season in charge, Forest didn't do much better finishing in 8th place. Probably the key factor in the transformation of Forest (aka "the Tricky Trees") was the appointment of Assistant Manager Peter Taylor in the summer of 1976, reuniting the managerial partnership that had been so successful at Derby County. The following season Forest were promoted, scraping home in the third and final automtic promotion spot after Bolton Wanderers failed to capitalise on their three games in hand after Forest's season had finished. Famously, Forest learned of their promotion en route to Majorca when Bolton lost at home to Wolves and therefore could no longer catch Forest.
Nobody predicted what was to come the following season. Newly promoted Forest lost only three of their first 16 games, the last of which was today's featured match. It was to be the last League game that Forest would lose that season and was their last defeat before embarking on a record-breaking 42 match unbeaten run which was finally surpassed by Arsenal in 2004. Ray Hankin scored the all-important winner for Leeds United that day and I will never forget the crowd chanting "Cloughie, Cloughie, Shut your mouth!" as Forest succumbed to what proved to be a rare defeat. Clough would go on to have the last laugh.
Forest won the title that season by seven points (in the days of only two points for a win) and became the last team to win the top-flight title after promotion the previous season. It's hard to imagine such an achievement ever happening again (it would be the equivalent of Brentford winning the Premier League this season!). The following season, Forest were Champions of Europe beating Malmo 1-0 in the 1979 European Cup Final and Clough's status as a modern day legend was secure. Leeds finished the 1977/8 season in a distant eighth position and one wonders what would have happened if Leeds United's board had backed Clough rather than their ageing star players back in 1974?
CRB Match No. 3
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