David Platt's Nottingham Forest gate-crashed the Division One play-off zone with a thrilling victory at Sheffield United today.

Goals from Christian Edwards, Andy Johnson and David Johnson took Platt's men above Neil Warnock's Blades and put them in position for a late promotion assault.

But the Blades almost checked their charge with a stirring late recovery after Shaun Murphy reduced the arrears with a 75th-minute header.

And things could have been different had Francis Benali not made a desperate goalline clearance at 2-1 10 minutes from time to deny Murphy his second as Forest lived on their nerves.

Bramall Lane's biggest crowd of the season - 25,673 - had watched in horror as the visitors snatched the lead after just three minutes.

Edwards took advantage of non-existent marking in the box to stoop low to meet David Johnson's long throw and knock the ball to goalkeeper Simon Tracey's right.

Andy Johnson doubled the lead by finishing off a brilliantly worked move after 65 minutes, smashing home from eight yards after Stern John had headed back Chris Bart-Williams' corner from the left.

The Blades, who lost Georges Santos after just five minutes with concussion after a head clash, looked to have blown their chances of a late escape when Bobby Ford hit the crossbar with his 78th-minute penalty after Tony Vaughan had fouled new signing Carl Asaba.

But captain Murphy made it an anxious finish for Platt's side when he headed home from Kozluk's precision right-wing ball.

Forest were only able to breath a sigh of relief after the breathless affair when David Johnson whacked home the third three minutes from time after a brilliant drag-back and cross from David Prutton.

The Blades ultimately paid a heavy price for a scrappy display in which they failed to take advantage of a succession of free-kicks and corners given away by the jittery Forest rearguard.

Carl Asaba, making his debut after his move from Gillingham yesterday, was for the most part a forlorn figure up front despite the constant threat posed by Paul Devlin.

But Asaba could have made himself an instant hero to the home fans when he pounced on a bad back pass after 20 minutes and poked his shot past Dave Beasant but inches wide of goal.

And Devlin had United's best chance of the first period in injury time when he ran at the Forest defence before lashing a 25-yard effort which Beasant brilliantly tipped over.

It was Forest, though, who seemed to possess the cutting edge in a crashing opening period which kept referee Roger Pearson busy.

The breakneck speed continued after the break with tempers permanently threatening to boil over, a state of affairs hardly conducive to total football. But it was Forest's nerve which looked better equipped to hold out.

Bart-Williams - constantly barracked due to his Sheffield Wednesday connections - was at the heart of most of their moves after the break.

And when he set up his team's second it seemed Platt's side had wrapped up the points but Murphy's goal sparked the home side belatedly into life and set up the stirring finish to a hectic match.

Teams:

Sheff Utd: Tracey, Kozluk, Murphy, Uhlenbeek, Ullathorne, Devlin, Brown, Santos (Montgomery 8), Ford, Kelly (D'Jaffo 73), Asaba, Montgomery (Suffo 66).

Subs Not Used: Woodward, Talia.

Booked: Ullathorne, Brown.

Goals: Murphy 73.

Nottm Forest: Beasant, Scimeca, Edwards (Hjelde 46), Vaughan, Benali, Jones, Prutton, Andy Johnson, Bart-Williams, David Johnson (Harewood 89), John (Gray 71).

Subs Not Used: Freeman, Roche.

Booked: John, Andy Johnson, Jones, Prutton.

Goals: Edwards 3, Andy Johnson 65, David Johnson 87.

Att: 25,673

Ref: R Pearson (Peterlee).