Forest's Reid proves his worth

Nottingham Forest 1 Ipswich 1

Joe Kinnear, the Nottingham Forest manager, could only lament the fact that Andy Reid's future is out of his hands after the Irishman turned in another eye-catching performance as his side shared the honours with Ipswich at the City Ground.

Joe Kinnear, the Nottingham Forest manager, could only lament the fact that Andy Reid's future is out of his hands after the Irishman turned in another eye-catching performance as his side shared the honours with Ipswich at the City Ground.

Charlton's manager Alan Curbishley was at the ground, while representatives from Tottenham, Bolton and Manchester City were also taking a closer look.

A first-half strike from Paul Evans appeared to put Forest on course for a deserved Championship victory, but they were denied by Darren Bent's predatory raid after the break.

Reid's volley against the bar was the nearest Forest came to snatching a winner as they dominated the second half.

Kinnear was at a loss to explain how his side failed to collect their first win of the season, but it was Reid's future which dominated his thoughts.

"I would like to keep him permanently, but unfortunately it is not up to me," he said. "The chairman has struck a deal, and if someone comes up with £5m he goes.

"We have scouts from Manchester United, Liverpool and Arsenal coming here ­ and they are also looking at him.

"For £5m someone is going to get a hell of a player, and if I were a Premiership manager the first thing I would do is sign him up on a five-year contract."

The Ipswich manager, Joe Royle, breathed a sigh of relief after his side maintained their unbeaten start through a combination of Kelvin Davis's goalkeeping and Forest's wasteful finishing.

"I am delighted with a point because in the second half we didn't play," said Royle. "Having said that, not many teams will come to Forest and win. I suppose their season hinges on whether they can keep Andy Reid."

Although Royle was frustrated by his side's inability to hold the ball in attack, he felt the match officials did little to help. "We were denied a clear penalty for a foul on Darren Bent that was just the way it was going to go all night."

Nottingham Forest (4-4-2) : Gerrard; Louis-Jean, Hjelde, Doig, Rogers; Impey, Jess (James, 90), Evans, Reid; Taylor, Johnson. Substitutes not used: King, Roche (gk), Perch, Gardner.

Ipswich Town (4-4-2) : Davis; Richards, De Vos, Diallo, Naylor; Miller, Dinning, Westlake, Horlock; Bent, Kuqi (Bowditch, 84). Substitutes not used: Wilnis, Counago, Price (gk), Mitchell.

Referee: A Kaye (W Yorkshire).