Draw at Hudds seals cup progress

On this day in Nottingham Forest history in 1989 Forest advance past Huddersfield Town on away goals in the League Cup.

Cup runs and campaigns

Famous cup run

Goal scorer Nigel Clough, pictured July 2009. Image: Chris Barnes / CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Nottingham Forest drew 3-3 away to Huddersfield Town in the League Cup and advanced on away goals after the tie finished 4-4 on aggregate.

The first leg at the City Ground had finished 1-1, so Forest’s three goals at Leeds Road became decisive. Tommy Gaynor, Gary Crosby and Nigel Clough scored for Forest, while Craig Maskell scored twice for Huddersfield and Mike Cecere also found the net for the home side.

Gaynor later recalled the first Forest goal as one of his favourites for the club. He collected the ball from Steve Sutton near the left-back area, ran the length of the pitch and smashed it home.

The scoreline made the evening unusually open for a Brian Clough cup side. Forest were used to being associated with control and defensive authority, but this tie became a test of nerve as much as quality.

The away goals rule gave the night its edge. Forest did not win at Huddersfield, but the three goals on the road were enough to carry them through after the two matches could not separate the teams on aggregate.

The 3-3 draw became an early step in a cup run that ended with Forest lifting the League Cup again. They went on to beat Oldham Athletic 1-0 at Wembley in April 1990.