Leicester City F.C.–Nottingham Forest F.C. rivalry

Leicester City–Nottingham Forest rivalry

Other names	East Midlands derby
Locale	Leicester/Nottingham (England)
Teams	Leicester City, Nottingham Forest
First meeting	9 February 1901
Latest meeting	19 Feb 2014
Statistics
Meetings total	104
Most wins	40 (Leicester)
Largest victory	Nottm Forest 12-0 Leicester Fosse (City Ground, Nottingham; 21 April 1909)

The fixture between Nottingham Forest and Leicester City is a football rivalry played between the two East Midlands clubs, often referred to as an East Midlands derby.^[1][2] There have been a total of 104 meetings dating back to 1901.^[3]

Notable games

Comparative chart of yearly league table positions of City and Forest.

One match which remains Leicester City's worst defeat and Nottingham Forest's record league win is the 12-0 result at the City Ground on 21 April 1909, when Leicester were known as Leicester Fosse. The performance by Fosse players was so appalling that The Football League ordered an enquiry, although no further action was taken after it turned out several of the already relegated Leicester side were hungover from a player's wedding the night before.^[4]

On 18 September 2007, Nottingham Forest were given a 'free goal' by Leicester City in a League Cup match at the City Ground.^[5] It was a rescheduled match after their original meeting on 28 August, which Forest were leading 1-0, was abandoned due to Leicester player Clive Clarke collapsing in the dressing room at half-time.^[6] Leicester nonetheless won the match 3-2.^[7]

To date, there have been nine hat-tricks recorded in fixtures between the two clubs, of which seven are from Nottingham Forest. Of the seven, three of those hat-tricks came from the 12-0 mauling of Leicester Fosse in 1909.^[4] Forest's most recent hat-trick against Leicester was from Robert Earnshaw in December 2009.^[8] In November 1948, Don Revie became the first Leicester player to score a hat-trick against Forest,^[9] a feat matched by Jermaine Beckford in a 4-0 FA Cup win on 17 January 2012.^[10]

The most notable game between the sides in recent history happened on 4 May 2013, the final day of the 2012-13 Football League Championship season, with both sides in with a chance of making the promotion play-offs with a win, Forest took an early lead through Simon Cox, although the game finished 2-2 at half time, a scoreline that remained until late into injury time when Anthony Knockaert gave Leicester a famous first league win at the City Ground since 1972, sending Leicester into the play-offs.^[5]

Honours, head to head, and statistics

Honours

Team	League	FA Cup	League Cup	European Cup/ UEFA Champions League	Top-flight seasons	Premier League seasons	Total trophies
Leicester City	1	0	3	0	48	11	4
Nottingham Forest	1	2	4	2	56	6	9
Total	2	2	7	2	104	17	13

Head-to-head

The below table demonstrates the competitive results between the two sides (not indicative of titles won).^[11]

Competition	Leicester City wins	Draws	Nottingham Forest wins
League	38	24	36
FA Cup	1	1	1
League Cup	1	1	1
Total	40	26	38

Crossing the divide

Players

Peter Shilton established himself as one of the top goalkeepers in the country at Leicester City before enjoying European success with Nottingham Forest.^[12]

Martin O'Neill played for Nottingham Forest and was manager of Leicester City.

The list below shows transfer dates and fees, where known.

Leicester City then Nottingham Forest

• Andy Impey - May 2004 Free transfer

The following played for one or more teams before moving to Nottingham Forest:

• Matt Mills - Played for Bolton Wanderers in between
• Matty Fryatt - Played for Hull City and Sheffield Wednesday in between
• Lee Peltier - Played for Forest on loan from Leeds
• Jack Hobbs - Played for Hull City in between
• Neil Lennon - Played for Celtic in between
• John Curtis - Played for Portsmouth in between
• Peter Shilton - Played for Stoke City in between

Nottingham Forest then Leicester City

• Wes Morgan - January 2012 £1,000,000
• Paul Konchesky - July 2011 Undisclosed amount - Played for Forest on loan from Liverpool, then joined Leicester at the end of the loan spell
• Gareth Williams - July 2004 £500,000
• Riccardo Scimeca - June 2003 Free transfer
• Nicky Summerbee - August 2002 Free transfer
• Alan Rogers - November 2001 £300,000 - Returned to Forest in 2004
• Kjetil Osvold - April 1987 Loan transfer

The following played for one or more teams before moving to Leicester City:

• Matthew Upson - Played for six different clubs in between
• Andy Johnson - Played for West Bromwich Albion in between
• Stan Collymore - Played for Liverpool and Aston Villa in between
• Phil Gilchrist - Played for Middlesbrough, Hartlepool United and Oxford United in between
• Garry Parker - Played for Aston Villa in between, also had a spell as caretaker manager at Leicester

Managers

• Rob Kelly - Played for and managed Leicester, later caretaker manager of Forest on three separate occasions
• Billy Davies - Played briefly for Leicester, before going on to manage Nottingham Forest on two separate spells (also managed Derby County)
• Gary Megson - Played for and managed Forest, later managed Leicester
• Steve Beaglehole - Reserve team coach for Forest, briefly joint caretaker manager at Leicester
• Micky Adams - Assistant, and briefly caretaker manager at Forest, later managed Leicester
• Dave Bassett - Managed Forest, and was later manager, Director of football, and caretaker manager at Leicester
• Martin O'Neill - Played for Forest, played and managed several other clubs before managing Leicester
• David Pleat - Played for Forest, later managed Leicester
• Matt Gillies - Leicester City's longest serving manager, later went on to manage Forest

Game list

  Leicester City/Fosse win   Nottingham Forest win   Draw

Date	Competition	Stadium	Score	Leicester City Scorers	Nottingham Forest Scorers	Att.	Ref
Leicester promoted to Premier League 2013-14
19 Feb 2014	Championship	City Ground	2-2	Vardy, Mahrez; (Konchesky sent off)	Paterson, Reid	24,808	[13]
9 Nov 2013	Championship	King Power Stadium	0-2		Cox, Mackie	30,416	[14]
4 May 2013	Championship	City Ground	2-3	James, King, Knockaert	Cox, Ward	28,646	[15]
10 Nov 2012	Championship	King Power Stadium	2-2	Ward (Og), Nugent	Guedioura, Cox (pen)	24,793	[16]
27 Mar 2012	Championship	King Power Stadium	0-0			23,412	[17]
17 Jan 2012	FA Cup 3rd Rnd Replay	King Power Stadium	4-0	Boateng (Og), Beckford (3)		16,210	[10]
7 Jan 2012	FA Cup	City Ground	0-0			18,477	[18]
20 Aug 2011	Championship	City Ground	2-2	Nugent, Fernandes; (Schmeichel sent off)	McGugan (pen), Boateng	24,426	[19]
22 Apr 2011	Championship	City Ground	3-2	Oakley, Vassell	Tudgay, Earnshaw, McKenna	24,217	[14]
29 Nov 2010	Championship	Walkers Stadium	1-0	King		24,659	[20]
27 Feb 2010	Championship	Walkers Stadium	3-0	Berner, Gallagher, King		31,759	[21]
5 Dec 2009	Championship	City Ground	5-1	Waghorn (pen)	Earnshaw (3), Anderson, Adebola	28,626	[8]
Leicester promoted to Championship 2008-09
Leicester relegated to League One 2007-08
Nottingham Forest promoted to Championship 2007-08
18 Sept 2007	League Cup 1st Rnd	City Ground	2-3	Sheehan, Stearman, Clemence	Smith, Tyson	28,626	[7]
Nottingham Forest relegated to League One 2004-05
5 Mar 2005	Championship	Walkers Stadium	0-1		Taylor	27,277	[22]
17 Dec 2004	Championship	City Ground	1-1	Connolly	Dawson	21,415	[1]
Leicester relegated to Championship 2003-04
Leicester promoted to Premier League 2002-03
8 Apr 2003	First Division	Walkers Stadium	1-0	Wright		32,065	[23]
26 Oct 2002	First Division	City Ground	2-2	Deane, Dickov	Johnson (pen), Lester	29,497	[24]
Leicester relegated to First Division 2001-02
Nottingham Forest relegated to First Division 1998-99
16 May 1999	Premier League	City Ground	1-0		Bart-Williams	25,353	[25]
12 Dec 1998	Premier League	Filbert Street	3-1	Heskey, Elliott, Guppy	van Hooijdonk; (van Hooijdonk sent off)	20,891	[26]
Nottingham Forest promoted to Premier League 1997-98
Nottingham Forest relegated to First Division 1996-97
28 Dec 1996	Premier League	Filbert Street	2-2	Heskey, Izzet	Clough, Cooper	20,833	[27]
7 Sept 1996	Premier League	City Ground	0-0			24,105	[28]
Leicester promoted to Premier League 1995-96
Leicester relegated to First Division 1994-95
11 Mar 1995	Premier League	Filbert Street	2-4	Draper, Lowe	Collymore, Lee, Pearce, Woan	20,423	[29]
27 Aug 1994	Premier League	City Ground	1-0		Collymore	21,601	[30]
Leicester City promoted to Premier League 1993-94[nb 1]
Nottingham Forest promoted to Premier League 1993-94
6 Feb 1994	First Division	City Ground	4-0	(Hill sent off)	Gemmill (2), Glover, Woan	26,616	[31]
24 Oct 1993	First Division	Filbert Street	1-0	Speedie		17,624	[32]
Nottingham Forest relegated to First Division 1992-93
14 Dec 1988	League Cup 4th Rnd Replay	City Ground	2-1	Groves	Clough, Chapman		[33]
30 Nov 1988	League Cup	Filbert Street	0-0				[34]
Leicester City relegated to Second Division 1986-87
22 Mar 1987	First Division	City Ground	2-1		Carr, Clough		[3]
11 Oct 1986	First Division	Filbert Street	3-1	McAllister (2), Smith	Birtles		[3]
22 Mar 1986	First Division	City Ground	4-3	Smith (2), Sealy	Bowyer, Carr, Clough (2)		[3]
8 Sept 1985	First Division	Filbert Street	0-3		Webb, Davenport, Rice		[3]
27 April 1985	First Division	Filbert Street	1-0	Lineker			[3]
25 Nov 1984	First Division	City Ground	2-1	Banks	Davenport (2), (1 pen)		[35]
5 May 1984	First Division	Filbert Street	2-1	Lynex, Lineker	Davenport		[3]
4 Dec 1983	First Division	City Ground	3-2	Jones, Smith	Bowyer, Thijssen, Walsh		[3]
Leicester City promoted to First Division 1982-83
Leicester City relegated to Second Division 1980-81
28 Feb 1981	First Division	Filbert Street	1-1	Lynex	Walsh		[3]
20 Sept 1980	First Division	City Ground	5-0		Gray, Birtles (2), Robertson		[3]
Leicester City promoted to First Division 1979-80
Leicester City relegated to Second Division 1977-78
14 Mar 1978	First Division	City Ground	1-0		Robertson		[36]
24 Sept 1977	First Division	Filbert Street	0-3		O'Neill, Woodcock, Robertson		[36]
Nottingham Forest promoted to First Division 1976-77
Nottingham Forest relegated to Second Division 1971-72
22 Jan 1972	First Division	City Ground	1-2	Weller, Birchenall			[37]
18 Aug 1971	First Division	Filbert Street	2-1	Brown, O'Kane (og)			[38]
Leicester City promoted to First Division 1970-71
Leicester City relegated to Second Division 1968-69
1 Mar 1958	First Division	City Ground	3-1				[3]
19 Oct 1957	First Division	Filbert Street	3-1				[3]
Leicester City promoted to First Division 1956-57
Nottingham Forest promoted to First Division 1956-57
30 Mar 1957	Second Division	City Ground	1-2	McNeill
17 Nov 1956	Second Division	Filbert Street	0-0				[3]
Leicester City relegated to Second Division 1954-55
Leicester City promoted to First Division 1953-54
Nottingham Forest promoted to Second Division 1950-51
Nottingham Forest relegated to Third Division South 1948-49
9 Apr 1949	Second Division	City Ground	2-1				[39]
13 Nov 1948	Second Division	Filbert Street	4-2	Revie (3)			[40]
No competitive football was played between 1939 and 1946 due to World War II
Leicester promoted to First Division 1936-37
Leicester relegated to Second Division 1934-35
Leicester promoted to First Division 1924-25
Nottingham Forest relegated to Second Division 1924-25
Nottingham Forest promoted to First Division 1921-22
In 1915, competitive football was abandoned in Britain owing to World War I
20 Feb 1915	Second Division	City Ground	1-3				[41]
17 Oct 1914	Second Division	Filbert Street	3-1				[42]
11 Sept 1913	Second Division	Filbert Street	5-1				[9]
3 Sept 1913	Second Division	City Ground	1-3				[43]
28 Dec 1912	Second Division	City Ground	4-2				[44]
7 Sept 1912	Second Division	Filbert Street	3-1				[45]
29 Feb 1912	Second Division	Filbert Street	1-1				[46]
16 Sept 1911	Second Division	City Ground	4-1				[47]
Nottingham Forest relegated to Second Division 1910-11
Leicester relegated to Second Division 1908-09
21 Apr 1909	First Division	City Ground	12-0		Spouncer (3), Hooper (3), West (3)		[48]
7 Nov 1908	First Division	Filbert Street	0-3				[49]
Leicester promoted to First Division 1907-08
Nottingham Forest promoted to First Division 1906-07
20 Apr 1907	Second Division	Filbert Street	1-2				[50]
15 Dec 1906	Second Division	City Ground	2-1				[51]
9 Feb 1901	FA Cup	City Ground	5-1				[9]

Hooliganism and crowd trouble

In 1977, an incident described as "trouble" broke out after a match between Leicester and Forest. Eighteen people were arrested in connection with the incident.^[52]

Incidents of throwing of objects and racist chanting from Nottingham Forest fans towards Leicester fans have also been observed in recent years. Reports of racist chanting^[53] and items being thrown at Alan Rogers during a 2-2 draw between the clubs in 2002.^[24] Most recently during an FA Cup tie in January 2012, which resulted in eleven arrests.^[54][55]

Following a derby clash on 4 May 2013, six Forest fans were arrested after Leicester won the game and a play-off place in the 91st minute of play.^[56]

Prior to Leicester and Forest's 2-2 draw on 19 February 2014, a Nottingham Forest fan was arrested for tweeting racist abuse at Leicester fans.^[57]

See also

• East Midlands derby
• M69 derby
• Derby – Leicester rivalry

Notes

1. The 22 clubs of the Football League First Division broke away to form the Premier League in 1992; with the remaining divisions of the Football League renumbered accordingly.

References

1. "Nottm Forest 1 - 1 Leicester". LCFC.com. 2004-12-17. Retrieved 2010-03-22.
2. "Gallagher "Delighted" With Award". lcfc.com. Leicester City F.C. 2010-03-06. Archived from the original on 2012-06-12. Retrieved 2010-03-22.
3. "Head-to-Head - Leicester City FC". leicestercity-mad.co.uk. Foxes Mad. Retrieved 2010-03-22.
4. Anglesey, Steve (2009-10-27). "Leicester in La Manga-style high jinx and match-fixing shock". MirrorFootball. Trinity Mirror. Retrieved 2010-03-22.
5. "Forest given 'free goal' by Foxes". BBC Sport. 2007-09-18. Retrieved 2010-03-22.
6. "Clarke collapse ends Forest tie". BBC Sport. 2007-08-28. Retrieved 2010-03-22.
7. "Nottm Forest 3-2 Leicester". BBC Sport. 2007-09-18. Retrieved 2010-03-22.
8. "Nottm Forest 5 - 1 Leicester". BBC Sport. 2009-12-05. Retrieved 2009-12-06.
9. "Head To Head: Nottingham Forest". LCFC.com. 2007-08-27. Retrieved 2010-03-22.
10. Phillips, Owen (2012-01-17). "Leicester 4 - 0 Nott'm Forest". BBC Sport. Retrieved 2012-01-20.
11. "Bet on Leicester vs Nottm Forest | Soccer Base". www.soccerbase.com. Retrieved 2016-08-22.
12. "Peter Shilton". lcfc.com. Leicester City F.C. 2007-09-10. Retrieved 2010-03-23.
13. "Championship: Leaders Leicester draw 2-2 at Nottingham Forest". Sky Sports. British Sky Broadcasting. 2014-02-19. Retrieved 2014-02-20.
14. "Leicester 0 Nottingham Forest 2: Cox and Mackie strike to earn victory over rivals". Daily Mail. 2013-11-09. Retrieved 2013-11-09.
15. Phillips, Owen (2013-05-04). "Nott'm Forest 2-3 Leicester". BBC Sport. Retrieved 2013-05-04.
16. "Leicester 2 - 2 Nott'm Forest". BBC Sport. 2012-11-10. Retrieved 2012-11-10.
17. "Leicester 0 - 0 Nott'm Forest". BBC Sport. 2012-03-27. Retrieved 2012-03-28.
18. "Nott'm Forest 0 - 0 Leicester". BBC Sport. 2012-01-07. Retrieved 2012-01-20.
19. "Nott'm Forest 2 - 2 Leicester". BBC Sport. 2011-08-20. Retrieved 2011-08-20.
20. "Leicester 1 - 0 Nottm Forest". BBC Sport. 2010-11-29. Retrieved 2010-11-30.
21. "Leicester 3 - 0 Nottm Forest". BBC Sport. 2010-02-27. Retrieved 2010-02-28.
22. "Leicester 0-1 Nottm Forest". LCFC.com. 2007-08-27. Retrieved 2010-03-22.
23. "Leicester 1 - 0 Nottm Forest". LCFC.com. 2003-04-08. Retrieved 2010-03-22.
24. Barnes, Stuart (2002-10-27). "Adams' late agony". The Observer. Retrieved 2013-05-28.
25. Staniforth, Tommy (1999-05-17). "Forest's final flourish". The Independent. Retrieved 2013-05-28.
26. "Memorable Matches: City 3 Forest 1". LCFC.com. 2010-02-24. Retrieved 2010-03-22.
27. "Leicester 2-2 Nottm Forest". Soccerbase. Retrieved 2010-03-22.
28. "Nottm Forest 0-0 Leicester". Soccerbase. Retrieved 2010-03-22.
29. "Leicester 2-4 Nottm Forest". Soccerbase. Retrieved 2010-03-22.
30. "Nottm Forest 1-0 Leicester (1994)". Soccerbase. Retrieved 2010-03-22.
31. Culley, Jon (1994-02-07). "Gemmill's goals lead Forest out of the woods: Leicester swept aside". The Independent. Retrieved 2013-05-28.
32. "Leicester 1-0 Nottm Forest". Soccerbase. Retrieved 2010-03-22.
33. "Nottm Forest 2-1 Leicester (1988)". Soccerbase. Retrieved 2010-03-22.
34. "Head To Head: Nottm Forest". Soccerbase. Retrieved 2007-08-27.
35. "Arsenal beaten". The Herald. Glasgow. 1984-11-26. Back page. Retrieved 2014-06-20.
36. 1977-1978, Bridport Red, retrieved 2010-03-27
37. "Head To Head: Leicester v Forest". LCFC.com. 2004-12-17. Retrieved 2010-03-23.
38. "Leicester 2-1 Nottm Forest". Soccerbase. Retrieved 2010-03-26.
39. "Nottm Forest 2-1 Leicester". Soccerbase. Retrieved 2010-03-22.
40. "Leicester 4-2 Nottm Forest". Soccerbase. Retrieved 2010-03-22.
41. "Nottm Forest 1-3 Leicester (1915)". Soccerbase. Retrieved 2010-03-22.
42. "Leicester 3-1 Nottm Forest (1914)". Soccerbase. Retrieved 2010-03-22.
43. "Nottm Forest 1-3 Leicester". Soccerbase. Retrieved 2010-03-22.
44. "Nottm Forest 4-2 Leicester". Soccerbase. Retrieved 2010-03-22.
45. "Leicester 3-1 Nottm Forest". Soccerbase. Retrieved 2010-03-22.
46. "Leicester 1-1 Nottm Forest". Soccerbase. Retrieved 2010-03-22.
47. "Nottm Forest 4-1 Leicester". Soccerbase. Retrieved 2010-03-22.
48. "Nottm Forest 12-0 Leicester". Soccerbase. Retrieved 2010-03-22.
49. "Leicester 0-3 Nottm Forest". Soccerbase. Retrieved 2010-03-22.
50. "Leicester 1-2 Nottm Forest". Soccerbase. Retrieved 2010-03-22.
51. "Nottm Forest 2-1 Leicester (1906)". Soccerbase. Retrieved 2010-03-22.
52. "87 arrested at soccer riot". The Modesto Bee. Associated Press. 1977-09-25. Retrieved 2013-01-21.
53. "Forest in racism claim". BBC Sport. British Broadcasting Corporation. 2002-10-30. Retrieved 2013-05-28.
54. "CCTV viewed in racist football chant probe". Leicester Mercury. 2012-01-11. Retrieved 2013-05-03.
55. "Police launch chant probe". Sky Sports. British Sky Broadcasting. 2012-01-10. Retrieved 2013-05-03.
56. "Nottingham Forest v Leicester: Police praise fans". BBC News. British Broadcasting Corporation. 2013-05-03. Retrieved 2013-05-05.
57. Mack, Tom (2014-02-20). "Arrest over alleged racist tweet sent before Nottingham Forest v Leicester City match". leicestermercury.co.uk. Leicester Mercury. Retrieved 2014-02-20.