‘We’ve suffered for a long time’: Nottingham Forest enter new era at last

Forest finally ended their 23-year exile from the Premier League with victory in the play-off final

Nottingham Forest celebrate their victory in the play-off final (Getty)

Joe Worrall’s voice cracked as the local lad turned leader tried to put a lifetime’s hurt into perspective. The club captain at 25, raised a short drive from the stadium that became a palace of the past, few recognised the gravity of Nottingham Forest’s belated return to the Premier League quite like him. “We’ve been s****,” was his eventual assessment of the years of frustration and yearning.

Worrall wiped away the tears as that all changed on Sunday at Wembley. Forest’s top-flight exile is finally over and the relief of older generations who’ve grieved for too long was as palpable as the ecstasy of the sons and daughters who’ve only known false dawns. The burden of Forest’s glories past is giving way to a new chapter and legacy at last.

“We don’t mind suffering,” Worrall said, even if it was hardly optional during a frantic final half-hour in which Forest clung on for dear life and Huddersfield were controversially denied two penalties. “I’ve seen a lot of good people come and go, who have all added to this football club. I’ll forget names if I attempt to name everyone, but we’ve been really good value this season and I’m just so proud, especially for the manager.”