Steve Cooper is refusing to get carried away at Nottingham Forest despite seeing his side make it 13 points from five games with a 2-1 win over Blackpool.
While he played down their prospects of exchanging what had looked like being a relegation fight under Chris Hughton for a play-off push Cooper wants his players to be obsessed with maintaining their recent run of form.
Forest head to Bristol City on Tuesday before Fulham visit on the following Sunday and will hope to extend their unbeaten run, which began with victory at Huddersfield under interim manager Steven Reid, following Hughton’s departure last month.
“I am not looking that far ahead, it would be foolish to do that. Only a few weeks ago it was the other end of the table, wasn’t it?,” said Cooper, when asked about the potential for a play-off push, with Forest having gone from rock bottom to six points off the top six in a matter of weeks.
“But what I can say is that I am really enjoying working with the boys; I enjoy being here for the fans because the atmosphere was brilliant and it was really important that we won the game.”
Forest’s first home win of the season in the Championship was earned by goals from Brennan Johnson and Lewis Grabban, either side of a strike from Jerry Yates, who equalised just after half-time following a defensive mix-up.
“We were definitely good for it – we should probably have made it more comfortable than we did. There were times when we made harder work of things than we should have done. The game was there to be won,” said Cooper.
“Their goal was not coming, it was self-inflicted. But we responded to it in great fashion. We should have scored more goals than we did. But I liked how we saw the game out, tactically, regardless of that.
“But we will look at Bristol City and Fulham and ways to build on what has gone before. You do not look back, you always look forward – that is how you get stronger. There will be ups and downs, we know that. But we are obsessed with keeping this going.”
Blackpool had been in good form themselves prior to this, taking 10 points from their previous four outings. Boss Neil Critchley wants to see a response from his players again.
“We did not do enough. We had quite a lot of the ball but we did not do enough with it,” he said.
“We have bounced back well from defeat previously this season and we will have to do it again.
“We have to show more bravery and courage in our play, as much as anything else. There was a great atmosphere here and it was only when that died down a little bit that we started to play with a little more confidence.
“If we had shown that more, if we had done that from the start, I think this was a game where there was something in it for us.
“We were disappointed in the first goal, although we had a good spell at the end of the first half. And we were bright again at the start of the second, we got the goal and you then start to think that you have the momentum to push on.
“They were much more dangerous on the counter-attack, which is when they created their best opportunities. The second goal involved a bit of luck as the cross was deflected and fell nicely for them.”
