Tottenham Hotspur 1-1 Nottingham Forest
The FA Cup, Fifth Round
20 February 2005
White Hart Lane

Championship strugglers Nottingham Forest pulled off a shock in The FA Cup Fifth Round as they earned a replay against Spurs with an admirably determined display at White Hart Lane.

The home side looked to be in control of the match when Forest's debutant keeper Colin Doyle dropped Jermain Defoe's free-kick into his own net just before half-time.

However they were thankful for a mix-up between Ledley King and Paul Robinson which allowed Gareth Taylor to tap into an empty net.

The 19-year-old Doyle then made amends when he pulled off a good stops from England international Defoe, Mido and Robbie Keane.

Tottenham dominated possession early on, playing some stylish football but poor errors in defence which meant that the best chances fell to Forest, who could have taken the lead on at least two separate occasions.

Alan Rogers and Kris Commons both failed to beat Paul Robinson when through on the England international and those two chances seemed to galvanise Spurs who immediately started to come forward.

Prompted by the midfield fulcrum Michael Carrick, they went close through Michael Brown, whose 32nd minute effort was tipped round the post by Coyle.

Tottenham got even closer a few moments later when Brown again hit an effort at goal but this time was denied by the woodwork.

The goal finally came just before half-time after Wes Morgan's foul on Defoe gave Spurs a free-kick 20 yards out. Defoe got up to take the set piece himself and the his shot went through Doyle's hands and over the line.

However the tie will go to a replay at the City Ground after another defensive error gave Forest a chance which they simply had to take.

A mix-up between King and Robinson allowed Gareth Taylor to get to the ball ahead them both and slide the ball home.

Both sides had chances in the game's closing changes and though Forest performed better than their league position would suggest they were capable of, a draw was probably the fair result.

After the match Tottenham boss Martin Jol said: "Thimothee Atouba, Reto Ziegler and Stephen Kelly were below par. Atouba takes lots of risks - one day you love him, today was different.

"If you play a lower division side you need a bit of brilliance, a lot of concentration and good service.

"But the service was getting worse and worse. At the end they could have scored a second, so credit to them."

Nottingham Forest manager Gary Megson was understandably delighted with his side's gutsy display. "Colin Doyle made a mistake but he showed a strength of character you might not expect in a 19-year-old," he said.

"In the quality of chances we had, we could have won. That has been the story of my season at Forest over the last few weeks. We don't turn enough chances into goals, hence we are where we are."