It was a typical end-of-season match in the sunshine at Craven Cottage as
Fulham and Forest fought out a 1-1 draw.
Jack Lester got the opener for Forest in the 20th minute and Fulham skipper
Chris Coleman equalised 10 minutes later.
A stranger would not have known which team had been promotion-hopefuls and
which team relegation-battlers for much of the season.
If anything Forest were the more positive and had more attempts at goal then
the Londoners.
Lester's fine run in the 11th minute could have given them an earlier lead but
Marlon Harewood, at the end of the move, hit the post.
Nine minutes later it was Andy Johnson who provided the run and the pass for
the unmarked Lester who slotted his shot wide of the diving Maik Taylor.
Coleman's equaliser was a header from an Eddie Lewis corner in the 30th
minute.
This was their first attempt at goal, although Forest defender John Terry had
tried to help them out in the 10th minute with a miss-hit clearance that almost
beat his goalkeeper Dave Beasant.
Fulham's acting manager Karlheinz Reidle had chosen himself in attack in
preference to Geoff Horsfield but his game ended in the 33rd minute when he was
stretchered off after falling awkwardly from a tackle by Dave Prutton.
Fulham might have taken the lead in the 37th minute when a fierce free-kick
from Bjarne Goldbaek was just tipped over the bar by Beasant.
An equally good shot from Andy Gray might have put the visitors ahead in the
42nd minute but Fulham's Taylor saved well.
The best chances in this second half fell to Forest, the best of them a header
from Harewood that brought a good save from Taylor.
Horsfield, who had a frustrating time since replacing Reidle, had a chance to
snatch a winner in the 86th minute but with only Beasant to beat he stabbed his
shot wide of the post.
Teams
Fulham: Taylor, Uhlenbeek, Melville, Coleman, Phelan, Finnan,
Goldbaek, Clark, Lewis, Hayles (Peschisolido 75),
Riedle (Horsfield 33).
Subs Not Used: Thompson, Symons, Ball.
Booked: Horsfield.
Goals: Coleman 30.
Nottm Forest: Beasant, Scimeca, Terry, Vaughan (Hjelde 57),
Rogers, Prutton, Bart-Williams, Johnson, Gray, Lester,
Harewood (John 71).
Subs Not Used: Crossley, Edds, Louis-Jean.
Goals: Lester 20.
Att: 12,696
Ref: R Oliver (Sutton Coldfield).
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