Nottingham Forest are “dreaming” of more scenes like the one which greeted them before their crunch clash at Bournemouth in midweek.
Dozens of Reds fans waited outside the gates of the training ground to give the team an incredible send-off as they headed to the south coast for Tuesday night’s game. And midfielder Ryan Yates says that has given the squad a taste for more as they prepare for the play-offs.
Forest’s automatic promotion hopes were ended by the Cherries, leaving them having to navigate a different course in their bid to reach the Premier League. They have been backed in huge numbers home and away this season, though, with such support making a big difference, according to Yates.
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“It was amazing seeing all those people. You can’t really believe it. It’s never happened before. It was incredible,” said the 24-year-old.
“You want more of that. Touch wood, if we get promoted, we want a massive party, where the bus is going round. We want it to be even bigger and better.
“That’s what we’re dreaming of. But we know it’s the mini sacrifices we have to make every day to make that happen.
“It really is fine margins in football. It’s the smallest details, like the refereeing decisions the other night. Things like that send-off honestly really help.
“We have incredible supporters. It seems like the support is getting better and better. Little things like that really don’t go unnoticed by us. I think the fans know that as well.
“The manager has an amazing relationship with the fans, with the fist-pumps he does at the end of games when we win. It’s just great to see.
“We can’t take it for granted. We need to keep pushing and making sure the fans keep coming to watch us.”