Gareth Watts takes a leaf through a new book by Dave Marples' new book about more great goals seen at the World Famous City Ground...
Nottingham Forest has always been a club of contradictions: second-tier mainstays with two European stars on their chest. A noisy fanbase that makes high demands but, deep-down, have low expectations. We’re not northern enough for the swagger nor southern enough for the style. In one breath singing Paul McCartney’s worst song like our lives depended on it, in the next berating ‘scousers’. It’s a team from the posh part of an economically-deprived town.
Actually supporting this club can feel like the ultimate form of self-deprecation. Fans ask each other for scoreline predictions the way a therapist might ask about your childhood. As I write, we seem to have an equal chance of winning a major European trophy as we do getting relegated. Few would bet against both happening. And where other clubs adopt the iconography of the devil, the lion, or the cannon, we are the team of the tree and the river… steadfast yet flowing, a hot Garibaldi red, but actually kind of cool?
One way to come to terms with these juxtapositions is to drink as much as you can at the Vat & Fiddle and dash through the Meadows to the ground in time for kick off. Another is to read David Marples…
Surely soon to be known as the Bard of the Bridgford End, Marples’ musings are a still point in the turning world of Nottingham Forest: literate, unassuming, passionate but with perspective. With the historian’s eye for detail and the poet’s turn-of-phrase, his latest book The History Boys Part II: More Iconic Nottingham Forest Goals is dedicated to ‘anyone who obsessively follows a football club yet often wonders why’.
Marples beautifully captures the paradoxical feeling of something entirely predictable happening (Nottingham Forest, a professional football team, scoring a goal) being met with a sense of utter disbelief that any good fortune could befall us. What’s more, he achieves this jouissance via the most unexpected and circuitous routes.
For example, Des Walker’s goal versus Luton Town arrives via an exploration of the rift between Pearl Jam and Nirvana; the mythical planet Theia takes us to Nathan Tyson’s looping volley versus Man City; Lyle Taylor’s era-defining winner at Bristol City takes in Ben Folds, Butlin’s, David Hasselhoff and Michael Fish. All of this is exactly as it should be.
Those that read The History Boys Part I might not be surprised to learn that this collection cheekily includes a couple of own goals and even a save (I bet you can guess which one). What’s more outrageous is that it doesn’t even give a chapter to Jack Colback’s Van Basten-esque beauty against West Brom. Truly, we’re in the hands of a maverick.
But don’t let this put you off. Because, while much of the modern football economy is fuelled by rumours, agent antics and deliberately contrary hot takes, it’s reassuring to know that someone cares enough to write about how goals actually make you feel. It’s the antidote to Fabrizio Romano, sports washing and spread betting. It’s about a single moment that can make the following day, week or even year that bit more bearable.
And whether this season ends with wild celebrations on the streets of Istanbul or the Bournemouth gut-punch of relegation, we can rely on Marples to make sense of it all for us.
The History Boys Part II is available to buy now. For more information visit David Marple's Biosite.
We have a favour to ask
LeftLion is Nottingham’s meeting point for information about what’s going on in our city, from the established organisations to the grassroots. We want to keep what we do free to all to access, but increasingly we are relying on revenue from our readers to continue. Can you spare a few quid each month to support us?
