CarlingNet - No 1 for Match Reports

Nottm Forest v Everton 28/10/96 8.00

Nottm Forest            (0) 0 Everton                 (1) 1 FT
                              Short 5

Everton plunged Nottingham Forest deeper into crisis with a comfortable 1-0 win at a rain-swept City Ground.

Forest's brittle confidence was shattered when Craig Short headed Everton in front from Andy Hinchcliffe's fifth-minute corner and Joe Royle's men never looked in danger of not chalking up a third successive Premiership win.

Andrei Kanchelskis wasted a late chance to rub salt into Forest's wounds with a glaring miss, but Everton were still able to savour a first away win of the season that lifted them seven places to eighth in the Premiership.

Third-from-bottom Forest were desperate to claim their first home league win of the season at the sixth attempt.

Instead they slumped to another demoralising defeat that leaves them without a win from their last 10 Premiership matches a dismal run stretching back to the opening day of the season when they were 3-0 winners at Coventry.

Forest made two changes from the side which had crashed 4-1 at West Ham in the Coca-Cola Cup with Des Lyttle and Steve Chettle recalled in place of Steve Blatherwick and Chris Bart-Williams.

Skipper Stuart Pearce had not recovered from a back strain and Kevin Campbell missed his 10th successive game having suffered an ankle injury playing in the reserves after finally shrugging off his hamstring problem.

Everton were without Duncan Ferguson, who was completing a two-match suspension, but welcomed back skipper Dave Watson for his first match since the season opener against Newcastle at the expense of John Ebbrell.

Royle's men were playing their first match in 16 days because of the postponement of the Merseyside derby, but they quickly blew away the cobwebs to seize the initiative.

Hinchcliffe's trademark inswinging corner on five minutes found Short unchallenged inside the six-yard box and he powered a downward header past goalkeeper Mark Crossley to fire Everton ahead.

Forest, already suffering from a crisis of confidence, looked suitably deflated for the remainder of the half but Everton failed to build on their lead.

Michael Branch squandered their best opening on 25 minutes, robbing a hesitant Steve Chettle and bursting into the Forest penalty area only to wastefully fire into the side-netting.

Forest's only threat of the half came from Jason Lee, who headed narrowly wide when Dave Phillips' driven free-kick found him unmarked beyond the far post.

Everton looked the more likely scorers as the second half unfolded. Crossley had to dive to his right to parry Gary Speed's 20-yard drive and Graham Stuart was narrowly off target with a diving header from Hinchcliffe's cross.

Forest were suffering from the type of misunderstandings you expect of players lacking confidence, but Neville Southall was called into action on 69 minutes to tip over Dean Saunders' looping header from Lyttle's right-wing cross.

Kanchelskis ought to have wrapped up victory 11 minutes from time when he raced clear of Forest's flat-footed defence, but the Russian winger tried to take the ball round Crossley and the keeper snatched the ball from his feet.