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12 January, 1891

Goal nets first used

On this day in 1891 Brodie’s goal nets were trialled at Forest’s Town Ground.

Innovations and firsts

First use of innovations later adopted widely
Goal net.
Goal net. Image: Dan Gold, via Wikimedia Commons

Football goal nets took a major step towards acceptance when John Brodie’s invention was trialled at Forest’s Town Ground in Nottingham.

Goal nets were not invented by Forest - they were the work of John Alexander Brodie, a Liverpool engineer who patented the idea of attaching netting behind the goal to make scoring clearer. The innovation helped solve a simple but important problem: without nets, disputed goals could be difficult to judge, especially when shots passed quickly between or near the posts.

Goal net.
Goal net. Image: Dan Gold, via Wikimedia Commons

The trial took place during a North v South representative match at the Town Ground in Nottingham on 12 January 1891. Reports of the experiment described the “Brodie Nets” being tested, and the match gave the idea a public football stage. Forest’s role was therefore as host of an important trial, not as the inventor of the equipment.

The idea soon became part of the game’s normal landscape. Goal nets changed the look of football and helped officials, players and spectators see more clearly when the ball had crossed the line. For Forest, the Town Ground trial gave the club a small but notable connection to one of football’s lasting innovations.

Goal nets innovation

Sources

England Football Online; Everton FC Heritage Society; Liverpool Mercury records; Town Ground historical records

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JANUARY
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Notts County 0–2 Nottingham Forest
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Nottingham Forest 3–0 Blackburn
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Vitória SC 1–1 Nottingham Forest
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Portimonense 1–2 Nottingham Forest Sporting CP 4–1 Nottingham Forest
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Udinese 1–0 Nottingham Forest Barcelona 1–0 Nottingham Forest
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Nottingham Forest 2–1 Bayer Leverkusen
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Nottingham Forest 2–0 Stade Brestois 29
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Nottingham Forest 0–1 Leeds
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Nottingham Forest 0–2 Leeds
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Liverpool 2–2 Nottingham Forest
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Nottingham Forest 0–0 Tottenham
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Aston Villa 1–2 Nottingham Forest
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Nottingham Forest 0–1 Coventry
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Crystal Palace 14:00 Nottingham Forest
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Nottingham Forest 16:30 Arsenal
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Ipswich 20:00 Nottingham Forest
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Brentford 15:00 Nottingham Forest
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Nottingham Forest 17:30 Manchester City
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Bournemouth 15:00 Nottingham Forest
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Nottingham Forest 20:00 Chelsea
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Hull City 20:00 Nottingham Forest
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Nottingham Forest 15:00 Brighton
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Sunderland 15:00 Nottingham Forest
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Nottingham Forest 15:00 Everton
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Manchester United 16:30 Nottingham Forest
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Newcastle 19:30 Nottingham Forest
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Nottingham Forest 15:00 Fulham
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Nottingham Forest 19:30 Hull City
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Manchester City 15:00 Nottingham Forest
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Nottingham Forest 15:00 Bournemouth
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Chelsea 15:00 Nottingham Forest
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Nottingham Forest 15:00 Brentford
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Fulham 20:00 Nottingham Forest
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Nottingham Forest 15:00 Manchester United
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Everton 15:00 Nottingham Forest
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Nottingham Forest 20:00 Newcastle
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Tottenham 15:00 Nottingham Forest
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Nottingham Forest 15:00 Aston Villa
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Leeds 15:00 Nottingham Forest
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Nottingham Forest 15:00 Liverpool
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Nottingham Forest 15:00 Sunderland
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Brighton 15:00 Nottingham Forest
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Nottingham Forest 15:00 Crystal Palace
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Arsenal 15:00 Nottingham Forest
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Nottingham Forest 15:00 Ipswich
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Coventry 16:00 Nottingham Forest
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