Nottingham Forest 0 - 0 Brighton & Hove Albion

Lunchtime: Our usual posse were gathered in its entirety for pre-match drinks, pondering over today's fixture and the impact it was likely to have on our rapidly fading promotion prospects, and based on that, the likelihood of us renewing our season tickets this summer.

Teatime: Those feelings of doubt are once again well founded after yet another disappointing and frustrating game, which had nil-nil written all over it long before the half-time whistle.

Let's just tot them up then. I make that eight goal-less draws this season (nine if you include the cup game at Chester), and out of the last six games I've attended - Swansea, Millwall, Swindon, Walsall and Brighton (all Home) and Crewe (Away); plus the televised Carlisle game, I've seen us score a paltry four goals. It's not rocket science to work out this is not promotion form, and if it comes to that it's not even play-off form either. I'm getting fed up with paying £25 a time just for driving over 200 miles to see us firing blanks and generally failing to win games like five of the above mentioned, which we could (and should) have done. And still Calderwood talks it up with the oh-so-predictable 'taking the positives' which is starting to sound even more like a scratched record than the feelings of despair witten in these reports.

Today's game represents the third of the last four in which I've seen us totally dominate for well over half the game, and it is tempting for me to copy/paste extracts from the Crewe, Carlisle and Walsall games which more or less constitute today's proceedings. Apart from the fourth minute when Nicky Forster (who's given us problems in the past - with Reading if I remember rightly) missed from close range after Wilson was dispossessed and the ball went skidding across the goal when Smudge failed to grab hold of it, we looked pretty comfortable at the back and even looked like creating a few good chances. Most notably after ten minutes when Commons powered through and forced a good save from Kuipers, and soon afterwards when some good work by Bennett and Tyson helped Thornhill go very close.

What was not so good was our propensity to give the ball away very cheaply, especially in midfield. Commons and Cohen were particular culprits, but more often there was hardly anyone in support whenever we pressed forward. It probably took all of an hour of wasted effort to learn not to pump long high balls upfield or switching from left to right. Not just because there is a distinct lack of ball control among the squad, but the blustery conditions could always be relied upon to send any long-range pass off course. When will we ever learn?

Worse still was our tendency to waste set-piece opportunities, with free kicks taken too quickly and corners resulting in the ball ending up either back in our half or plucked effortlessly out of the air by Kuipers - the third excellent visiting keeper to visit City Ground inside a month.

Nonetheless, it was fair to say that Forest were certainly the better side for at least the first hour - another recurring theme of late. Throwing everything but the kitchen sink at them, and going so close more than once, even during the second half when we began to come apart at the seams and lose shape. Even Big Wes - today notching up his 200th first team start - got on the end of a Commons free kick with an effort sound enough to at least test Kuipers yet again. But yet again we lacked that killer touch, and the only time it looked like we were going to break that duck was ten minutes from time when McGugan (on for Thornhill) powered forward and seemingly out of nowhere unleashed a thunderbolt from a fair distance which finally beat Kuipers, only to be denied by the woodwork which sent the ball across the goalmouth and to the right of the other post to safety. A fraction of an inch would have been all it required for McGugan's shot to go in, and for a much-needed win, but the fans rising in anticipation were quickly subdued once more as if someone had pulled the plug on the record player, and the mood became increasingly frosty right up until the final whistle, which was greeted with the inevitable booing.

What else can I say? The drive out of Nottingham was as frustrating as ever whilst listening to Calderwood's vain attempt to slant the situation to such an extent that finally convinced me that if he decided to quit football he'd make a pretty credible politician, at least by today's standards which - from my standpoint at least - ain't saying all that much. And as Grant Holt being the latest striker to depart from Trentside for my neck of the woods (although not necessarily a huge loss given his pretty woeful form of late) we hear news of an imminent replacement in.....hmm.....obvious, innt? I know that cover for Smudge has been a little bit on the thin side, but (and with respect to) Konstandopolopodopolis is gonna help our strike force how, exactly, Colin?

Oh, and just to turn the knife the hosts of our next two games inch further out of sight, making the reportedly good performance at Sixfields on Good Friday seem totally worthless now. When I bought my ticket for the visit to Brunton Park back in October for the original scheduled fixture this was a head-to head first-plays-second encounter, and even our form back then would at least have given Carlisle and their impressive home record a good run for their money. Now, almost five months later and the game still to be played, is it really any wonder I don't fancy us getting anything out of the game when it finally goes ahead? At least we won't have the humiliation of Scott Dobie popping up to put one past Smudge, and although I was no fan of his, you can see exactly what he was driving at, bemoaning how we just can't seem to gel as a team - just eleven individuals on the pitch.

I can only keep fings crossed for the trip to The Keepmoat on Friday. Not that I'll be there myself, finances dictate only limited away coverage these days, which will resume next Tuesday at Brunton Park.

And we still need to get a result - just to keep in the running for the play-offs. Unlike the Premiership in which the Champions League places are all but sewn up with a quarter of the season still to run, the promotion stakes in both The Championship and League One are such that promotion (via the play-offs at least) is still mathematically possible for teams as low as tenth place.

We have to yield wins again starting NOW, especially at home. And that's just to ensure that (heaven forbid!) we don't miss out on the play-offs altogether.

Ref Watch: N S Miller - Had very selective vision, and it took Gary Hart two swipes in rapid succession at Tyson before he was finally booked, and was ultimately lucky still to be on the pitch by half time, thus confirming the inconsistency shown by today's man in black.

Entertainment Value: Some good end-to-end football early on, but this went into sharp decline before half time. And in any case, I rarely find goal-less draws entertaining. 4/10

Atmosphere: Totally lacking. The only noise created today came from the visiting fans at various intervals, and from the home fans when we had corners attacking the Trent End.

Highlights: Another first half of attacking football and McGugan going close near the end; there was plenty of individual effort from just about everybody at one time or other but.........

Lowlights: There was too much dithering or trying to be clever when in possession; passing instead of shooting, even within the box; lack of support by the far post when going forward - all the usual ingredients of a frustrating unproductive afternoon.

Stinker: Commons was in his show-off mode once again - with embarrassing results.

Stormer: No-one really stood out today.