Dawson Worrall & Watson

[Kylos247]

To be fair to lolley he had been playing with a broken toe I believe. He seems a needs a good game, I.e. blues or villa always shows up against them. He will come good again.

[the jock]

for me it looks like lolley doesnt have the pace to beat fullbacks on the outside. he cuts in all the time and i think teams have figured that out. games like west brom he was totally in the fullbacks pocket.

[Jean_claude_killy]

Lolley is doing fine.

There are two things to bear in mind with Joe:

1. He is now expected to contribute defensively which impacted on his game at first.

2. Our width comes from the full backs; this means he has to drift in to give Cash the space to overlap.

You would expect things to go wrong from time to time; that's all that is happening.

[optimistic_red]

Article published in Athletic.

Joe Lolley:
“In terms of captains, Watson and Michael Dawson are the best two I have had since I have been playing. They are brilliant around the dressing room. It is a shame that they are both so old, because it means they are not going to be around forever!

“Sometimes managers have different opinions and different ways of playing — different positions and different roles in the side can suit different players. The position that Ben has been playing this season has suited him down to a tee. He fits into how we set up and how we want to play. It has been perfect for him and the team.

Aitor Karanka and Martin O’Neill used Watson only sporadically, with Jack Colback the preferred option. But while many were debating whether Forest would sign Colback from Newcastle for a third time, Lamouchi immediately regarded Watson as an integral figure, as the head coach found his footing in his new role during a pre-season training camp in Spain.

The arrival of Sow was hugely influenced by Jose Anigo, the head of international recruitment at Forest — who also had a big part in the arrival of Brice Samba. But Lamouchi was also an advocate of Sow’s signing.

“I agree that, when they (Sow and Watson) play together, we have a bit of extra quality in midfield,” Lamouchi tells The Athletic. “Beyond that, Joe Worrall and Ben Watson have played every Championship game. We are in February. We have a young man and an old man — but they are both so important for us.”

Perhaps because of Sow’s injury issue, Lamouchi is keen to highlight the importance of the 34-year-old Watson and 23-year-old Worrall, the two players who have started every single Championship game for Forest.

“For me, Ben is not doing well — the word is amazing,” adds Lamouchi. “He is an amazing player. He is my brain on the pitch. With my players, I am not afraid about the words I use — perhaps because I am not English, so I can make some mistakes. But I always just want to be honest with them. What Ben is doing now is just amazing.

“Watson has such a big brain, he can play like that without any problem. He is fantastic. He is unbelievable without the ball and fantastic with it. He has a quality of pass, he is very clever and he is always in a good position. He gives balance to the team. Joe Worrall, while playing not in his best position (as a left-sided central defender) is doing very well. He does not get any stupid yellow cards. He stays on his feet when he defends. He does not make stupid mistakes. He scores goals.

“He can improve, because he loves to be a Forest player. The club is lucky to have players like them; players like Cashy, Worrall, Yates, Watson, Dawson — they all love to be Forest players.”

[Strawberry Avenger]

Immortal words.

SA.

[PsychoStanleyStone]

Beautiful, i probably hated Ben Watson for a while as well as Karanka a bit of fallout from the 10 signings and none of it was working out for a few months, but, now, i absolutely adore everything Ben Watson does, from the mascots and photo's and stuff at the start of the game to every decision, every situation, the usually aggressive but sometimes passive (usually when the other guy looks in alot of pain), the snarling in the face to laughing in the faces, he just seems to of totally nailed it, that up and under against leeds which bounced very high and hung there until Lolley arrived to set up Tyler or that 'tackle' v Luton, the guy is totally exceptional, Sorry Ben you are rapidly becoming 1 of my all time heroes.

We got a band of brothers now with the first 11, all battle hardened characters, i trust them all

[Alf]

Brill stuff, thanks for posting.

Watson will get my POTS vote this year. What a top bloke

[Paplane]

Brill stuff, thanks for posting.

Watson will get my POTS vote this year. What a top bloke

Its really difficult this year. Watson briiliant yes, but what about Grabbans contribution? And Cash has been playing at a top level. Hes one of the best players in the league. Then theres Samba....

[Tricky]

Brill stuff, thanks for posting.

Watson will get my POTS vote this year. What a top bloke

Its really difficult this year. Watson briiliant yes, but what about Grabbans contribution? And Cash has been playing at a top level. Hes one of the best players in the league. Then theres Samba....

I think this deserves a thread of its own, or is it too early yet?

[Strawberry Avenger]

Sow already has my vote for player of the season. That Forest have sat twice in the top 6 have coincided with him being in the team each time.

Forest swirled down to 9th without him. And they're wobbling in the last couple of games without him as well.

But an honour mention will go to players initially written off in their respective positions. Watson. A true redemption story. Cash? Enthusiasm. Play with a smile. And that flying tackle...that's how you do it my san. Pearce would have been proud of that one.

SA.

[Maltared]

Sow already has my vote for player of the season.  That Forest have sat twice in the top 6 have coincided with him being in the team each time.

Forest swirled down to 9th without him.  And they're wobbling in the last couple of games without him as well.

But an honour mention will go to players initially written off in their respective positions.  Watson.  A true redemption story.  Cash?  Enthusiasm.  Play with a smile.  And that flying tackle...that's how you do it my san.  Pearce would have been proud of that one.

SA.

I think its Sow with the others that made us so strong... Sow on his own wouldn't have done it ... the team needs the input of a strong back line nd a midfield with Sow in it to work. We were unlucky that Sow is such a sick note...he might be outstanding when on thd pitch but he is missing too many games for my liking now .. we experienced this before, nd other teams too, doesn't matter how good the player is but you cannot tie your hope with someone that until 24 hours before kick off you dont know if he is playing or not .... Maradona, Messi nd Ronzldo played more regularly...nd were targeted game after game...

[Tricky]

Sow already has my vote for player of the season.  That Forest have sat twice in the top 6 have coincided with him being in the team each time.

Forest swirled down to 9th without him.  And they're wobbling in the last couple of games without him as well.

But an honour mention will go to players initially written off in their respective positions.  Watson.  A true redemption story.  Cash?  Enthusiasm.  Play with a smile.  And that flying tackle...that's how you do it my san.  Pearce would have been proud of that one.

SA.

Sadly, I can't agree that a player that has missed so many games through injury gets POTS. The fact that Watson, Worrall, Cash and co have still been out there battling during his lay offs is, IMO a bit of a discredit to their efforts, should Sow get the award. This isn't a slight on Sow, from my perspective, as he really can be the difference between a win and a loss, but for me, a player has to be consistent throughout the season to be POTS, not missing every other game through injury.

For me, it is down to two candidates and I would be happy if the award was awarded to joint winners in Watson and Cashy.