Late 1974 in Nottingham felt stagnant both outside and inside local venues. A petition collected hundreds of signatures asking Nottingham Forest to appoint Brian Clough and was presented to the club. Brian Clough became manager on January 6, 1975. Forest lay 13th in Division Two, had suffered a local defeat, and faced potential sales of promising players such as Tony Woodcock. Midfielders Martin O'Neill and John Robertson were on the transfer list. The City Ground remained a ramshackle stadium with only one modern stand after a 1968 fire. Clough's arrival triggered a rapid club transformation over the following years.
Things were moving somewhat slowly in Nottingham, as 1974 dissolved into 1975. Not just outside, where pit smoke still spiked the air, but inside the Palais nightclub. A 1920s revolving dancefloor moved the various perms, flares and star-jumpers past your table at a rather stately pace as the disc jockey played the maudlin, chugging Billy, Don't Be A Hero by local group Paper Lace.
13th in Division Two, Forest's Christmas present to their fans had been a 2-0 home defeat to local rivals Notts County. Promising striker Tony Woodcock was about to be sold on to Lincoln City. Disenchanted midfielders Martin O'Neill and John Robertson were on the transfer list. The players could do well one week, but they couldn't keep it up, said manager Allan Brown. It was like something inbred in the club.
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