The best part? It ain’t over yet. There’s more to come. Nottingham Forest are making sure of that.
More magic moments. More goals. And, hopefully, more fist-pumps. And at the end of it all? Well, that script is still being written.
But whatever happens, it’s already been one heck of a ride. It’s just that, on this form, you wouldn’t rule anything out.
Read more: Cooper sends clear message as Forest go third in Championship table
Read more: How the Reds rated against Birmingham
What seemed laughable back in September is now achievable. What seemed improbable only a few weeks ago is now possible. Daring to dream is now a reality for a fanbase starved of success.
It’s not just a top-six finish which could be within the Reds’ grasp. All of a sudden, an automatic promotion contest many had assumed was already done and dusted suddenly got a little more interesting.
A perfect week of three wins from three after returning from the international break has catapulted Forest into third. Six points is the gap to Bournemouth in second, with that rearranged meeting between the teams on the south coast still to come. Seven games to play.
The City Ground is alive with possibilities. It’s electric.
Steve Cooper’s side didn’t even hit top gear as they convincingly saw off Birmingham City, 2-0. At the end of a three-game week, they still have plenty in reserve. This side still has more to give - and so does this season.
Davis dazzles
In his pre-match press conference, Keinan Davis spoke about how he is “loving life” on loan with the Reds. It shows in his performances. He was outstanding against the Blues.
The visitors simply had no way of stopping him. He bullied them throughout. The Aston Villa loanee’s confidence has just grown and grown since he made the move in January. It was a terrific goal to set the hosts on their way.
Good work by Philip Zinckernagel and Brennan Johnson teed him up. But the finish was all Davis’ work. He powered forward and fired into the far bottom corner from an incredibly-tight angle. He seemed to revel in celebrating in front of the away fans, too.
Lewis Grabban and Sam Surridge are waiting in the wings to force their way into the starting XI. At the moment, however, Davis has almost become undroppable. It’s not just that he’s shown he can score goals, it’s his all-round play which makes him so dangerous.
With performances like that, thoughts inevitably turn to the front man’s future. He’s bound to be catching a few eyes - whatever stance Villa take in the summer. Forest will already know, though, that he will be a difficult man to replace.
No way through
Saturday saw a second successive shut-out for a back line which is giving opposition teams very little to work with. Birmingham had a spell of possession around the half-hour mark, when the Reds allowed them back into the game, but they still didn’t create too many chances.
Brice Samba had a fairly comfortable afternoon. Just the odd routine save to make.
Tobias Figueiredo again deserves plenty of credit. He’s not put a foot wrong since slotting in for the injured Steve Cook. One particular tackle he made in the second half was superb.
Jack Colback, too, has been a warrior at left wing-back, playing out of position. The talk beforehand from some opposition pundits was that the Blues would see Forest’s left flank as an area to exploit. If that was the case, it never happened. Colback was as solid as ever.
Likewise, Joe Worrall and Scott McKenna. The latter, deservedly, got his own chant when he wrapped up the win with a header late on.
“You’ll never beat McKenna” rang out around the stands. The centre-back joked afterwards, however, that “it wasn’t exactly true” as he “let a few people past as soon as they started singing it”.
Bags of belief
Cooper’s only gripe - if you can call it that - after the full-time whistle was that his team didn’t score a few more goals. It wouldn’t have been an unfair reflection of the game if they had.
They put together some positive moves and got into promising areas. James Garner went close in the first half, while Davis and Ryan Yates forced saves after the break. Lolley, Grabban and Surridge all looked lively when they came on, too - that’s quite the attacking arsenal to be able to call upon.
Regardless, this team are flying at the moment. There’s a clear sense of unity in what they are trying to achieve. Everyone is on-side.
Five league wins on the spin. Ten unbeaten in the Championship. That’s a phenomenal run. Achieving consistency is the target for any club. The Reds have had it in the last few weeks, even with the fortnight’s international break in there.
But the challenge is to keep it going. To build on what they have already done. That was the manager’s immediate focus once this one was over with.
Bournemouth might not be catchable. It might prove too big a gap to close. It won’t be for the want of trying on Forest’s part if it is, though. Even just to be thinking that second spot might be a possibility is incredible.
Sensational support
There wasn’t a seat to be had on Saturday. Both general admission and hospitality places had sold out. The place was packed to the rafters.
Mull of Kintyre was goosebump-inducing again. And there was another brilliant pre-match display by Forza Garibaldi, with pertinent words from Oasis’ Acquiesce on a banner in the Brian Clough Stand. It read: “Because we need each other we believe in one another.” The connection between fans and the team keeps getting stronger.
A week which saw Blackpool blitzed, the Under-18s reach the FA Youth Cup final for the first time in the club’s history and two solid first-team victories on the banks of the Trent could prove to be an important one come May. The week which changed everything? To be continued…
