Nottingham Forest v Brighton and Hove Albion: How Gerry Ryan played a blinder

Which is appropriate because the scorer of the decisive goal had to be talked out of leaving a guide dog in the manager’s office in the days before the game.

Gerry Ryan was questioning boss Alan Mullery’s eyesight in the lead up to the match after being left out of the side What followed was one of the most memorable goals and results in the club’s history.

It was also one of four dramatic wins which will inspire Albion fans, if not necessarily players, as they go to the City Ground hoping for a result to lift spirits after the anti-climax against Newcastle.

Injury time winners from Steve Sidwell, pictured below, and Leo Ulloa at Forest in the last four seasons have given Albion fantastic memories.

Exciting as they were, they did not ultimately help the club reach the Premier League.

By contrast, Adam Virgo’s header from a Darren Currie corner in the early weeks of 2004-05 helped Albion towards survival, something they clinched with another Virgo goal on the final day.

But the most celebrated result by the Trent dates back to November 1979. That was the day Ryan’s finish through the mud kick-started a drive to safety by Albion, who were in their first top-flight season and finding life very tough.

Graham Moseley kept them in front by saving a penalty from John Robertson.

“Miracles can still happen,” read the headline in the Evening Argus as the European champions were toppled at their seemingly invincible home ground.

Ryan, who scored after 12 minutes, recalled: “We played Arsenal just before that in the League Cup and Alan Mullery dropped me and someone else.

“I was seriously thinking about putting a guide dog, a nice Labrador, in his office. I thought I did all right the week before and then he dropped me. Somebody persuaded me not to do it but I was really fuming.

“We got hammered in the game I was left out for. He brought me back in for the game against Forest at the weekend.

“It was a great win. They hadn’t lost at home for 59 games. That was nearly three seasons.”

So was it a miracle? “Absolutely,” replied the former Republic of Ireland international.

Gerry Ryan scores his famous winner

“It was one of those games where you went there thinking that you were going to get hammered – and most people were by Forest.

“They had John Robertson on the left and no one used to get hold of him. They had those animals at the back, big Kenny Burns and Larry Lloyd. Viv Anderson was at right-back, Colin Barrett left-back.

“I remember every goal but the bigger games would always get something going in me.

“The normal game against someone like Grimsby away wouldn’t do it for me. I wasn’t the type who played brilliant every time. I used to want to play in the big games and Forest was a big game.”

Moseley, like Ryan, was a former Derby favourite denying the old enemy. The keeper took expert advice to deny Robertson from the spot.

Moseley told The Argus: “John Robertson very rarely missed.

“Mark Lawrenson whispered in my ear as outfield players do, not understanding the intricacies of trying to save a penalty, but I took his advice on this occasion, dived and managed to save it.

Graham Moseley at the Amex recently

“It was such an important game for us. We were down at the bottom getting very few points. It was a turning point as it turned out.

“We held out for a 1-0 win and started to pick up from there. Half a dozen or so games later, we actually came out of the relegation zone.”

It was heroic stuff from an Albion side bolstered by new signing Peter Suddaby from Blackpool.

But Moseley said: “A lot of luck was involved. When you look at the chasm, it was bottom of the league and lacking in confidence away to a team who were at the top and had just won the European Cup.

“I’d put that down as a home banker every time on the coupon.

“It was hard work, good luck and a lot of organisation.”

Those qualities tend to be present in abundance in Chris Hughton’s teams. It is not always enough, as was proved on Tuesday but a win would be timely ahead of the later kick-off between Newcastle, top of the league, and Huddersfield, top of the current form standings.

Albion need a match-winner to play the role of Ulloa, Sidwell, Virgo or, of course, Ryan. And it doesn’t matter how ugly a goal is. Newcastle proved that at the Amex.

“Mine wasn’t pretty,” Ryan said. “The ball seemed to stop in the mud about 12 yards out and Peter Shilton started coming out.

“I just tried to keep it down. I went for his legs. It went under him. I think it went under his right side. It doesn’t look great but I knew what I was doing.”