Brennan Johnson strike earns Nottingham Forest a draw at Derby

Posted Saturday, August 28, 2021 by PA

Brennan Johnson eased some of the pressure on Chris Hughton with a late strike that earned Nottingham Forest a 1-1 draw at rivals Derby.

Forest were heading for a fifth league defeat until Brennan fired home eight minutes from the end.

Hughton’s team had been second best after Tom Lawrence gave Derby an early lead but improved in the second half to secure their first point of the season.

Forest were boosted by the return of Joe Worrall but their defence was breached after 11 minutes to the delight of the Derby fans.

Derby escaped when Lyle Taylor failed to punish a poor back pass and minutes later they broke quickly to catch Forest with a Craig Forsyth ball over the top which Lawrence brought down before firing low past Brice Samba from just inside the area.

That cranked up the noise levels inside the stadium and Samba was relieved to see a Ravel Morrison shot go wide after a deflection left him wrong-footed.

Derby threatened again when Forsyth fired over from a corner in the 24th minute and Samba had to dive full length to push away a Lawrence shot three minutes later.

Apart from that early Taylor chance, Forest had created little despite some decent periods of possession and Derby had strong claims for a handball in the area turned down by referee Tim Robinson in the 40th minute.

Forest won a corner in added time which Derby easily cleared which summed up a poor first half for the visitors.

They started the second with more purpose but Derby caught them on the break in the 49th minute with Lawrence forcing Samba into another diving save after he was picked out by Kamil Jozwiak.

Forest countered swiftly two minutes later with Taylor playing Johnson in on the right but his low cross-shot went wide.

It at least provided some encouragement for the visiting fans and Gaeten Bong lifted them again on the hour with a cross that Curtis Davies just got to with Taylor waiting to pounce.

Morrison tested Samba from distance in the 64th minute but Forest were dominating possession although Kelle Roos had yet to make a save.

Derby still looked more threatening going forward and Jozwiak fired just wide before Forest finally tested Roos who clawed the ball away after Lewis Grabben flicked on a cross.

But Roos was beaten in the 82nd minute when Johnson lashed in a shot from just inside the box after Derby failed to clear a cross.

Derby finished strongly but Forest held on for a draw that they deserved on the strength of the second-half performance.