"It's just a case of blending in his South American skills with our style of playing." Neto himself, who played for Salvador and Remanso in Brazil, seems to enjoy the English game "It is very good," he said before the training match. "But there is a lot of running."What, though, of the emotional side of things, the sensitive area which has caused so much trouble in Middlesbrough? Has Tuffley's star shown any signs of being temperamental? "None whatsoever," according to his manager.This could be because when he is not playing Neto has his mind on higher things, as a theology student at the Redcliffe Missionary Training Centre in Gloucester, where he is, in a most un-Emersonian way, delighted with the accommodation and the night-life. "The college rooms are very nice, and there is plenty to do in the evenings," he said. "We have film-shows and things." Bryan Robson, please note.The only aspect of life in Gloucester that Neto seems to find remotely troubling is all the interest that his arrival at Tuffley has stirred up in the local media "All these reporters.. it is a bit, um, nervousing And I think it is quite difficult for the other players. They are good footballers and just because I am the one Brazilian I get all the attention. But they are very nice and very funny and I want to be good friends with them."His colleagues actually take all the fuss in their stride, only lamenting that their visitors are gentlemen from the Independent on Sunday rather than lovelies from the Daily Sport.

And Doug Foxwell noted that the publicity can hardly do his little-trumpeted outfit any harm.Sadly, the hoo-ha is unlikely to last. Neto, who is 26, will be at college for three more years, but asked if he intended to play for Tuffley all that time he was elusive "I don't think so," he said in the end. "I hope to have trials, I hope that one day my chance will arise." Would he turn down a move to the Riverside Stadium? He laughed "Here I have none of the problems that Emerson has I am very happy to live in Gloucester. But would I rather play for Middlesbrough or Tuffley Rovers? That is difficult."Wherever he ends up, Neto will not forget his dynamic debut against Bishop's Cleeve. He just needs to work a little harder on his English football vernacular "It is amazing to think of it," he recalled "I played my first game, and I got a hot-trick.". The received wisdom that Nottingham Forest are too good to go down is dying a premature death this time. Four years ago, in Brian Clough's last-stand season, it survived until the penultimate Saturday, when a 2-0 home defeat against Sheffield United sealed Forest's fate.

Now, as Frank Clark's team languish at the foot of the Premiership with victory a distant late-summer memory, the feeling on the Trent End is not so much that the Reds are too good but that they need to get better - quickly. They may have been Uefa Cup quarter-finalists in March but at the City Ground tomorrow night they line up against this season's sole English representatives in the last eight, Newcastle United, with the lowest number of points in England's four professional divisions. Indeed, Forest are the only English club yet to reach double points - unless you include Berwick Rangers. They have, moreover, a worse record thus far than the Forest team that was ultimately not quite good enough to stay up four years ago. Clough's relegation-bound class of '92-'93 collected 10 points in their first 15 games and even a new-year revival, which yielded seven victories, failed to save them. Forest's solitary Premiership win this season, 3-0 at Coventry, dates back to the opening day.Gary Bannister, who led the Forest forward line throughout that vain relegation struggle four years ago, already fears the worst. "It's going to be very difficult for them," the former England Under-21 international said.

"They're in virtually the same position we were at this stage - and we were a really good team."We played some excellent football, and people kept saying we were too good to go down But we'd left ourselves with too much to do We'd lost too much ground early on. We sold Teddy Sheringham after the first few games and didn't replace him."The onus was on Bannister, stepping back into the top flight at 32 after a free transfer from West Bromwich, and on Nigel Clough, in an attacking support role, to come up with the goals. Eighteen between them was not enough to counter the goals leaked by a defence which missed the departed Des Walker and which lost the inspirational Stuart Pearce for four months.Clark has been confronted with similar problems this season, although his forwards have found it difficult enough to hit the target, let alone score. Thanks to the club's limbo status, in waiting for a take-over, he has also had no money to spend."It wasn't lack of money four years ago," Bannister said "Brian Clough was offered Stan Collymore for pounds 1.5m Looking back, obviously it would have been a good deal. We needed three or four players who could score."Critics said Clough's Forest also needed to change their naturally open style, to place the emphasis on manning the barricades at the back. "There was no way Brian was going to change his style," Bannister said.

"He believed in exciting people and it was great to play under him for that one season, despite what happened. I actually took a pay cut because I wanted to play for Brian Clough. I'd had the chance eight years before that and always regretted not taking it."It was perhaps no coincidence that Darlington reached the Third Division play-off final last season playing an open, passing game. Bannister was player-coach then and, having been forced by injury to hang up his boots in the summer, he returned last month to assist David Hodgson in his attempts to revive the Quakers again."Our aim is to play attractive football," Bannister said "I wouldn't coach any other way.". Joe O'Connor has scored over 200 goals in seven seasons with Hednesford Town of the GM Vauxhall Conference but few will have been as precious as his strike which won their FA Cup Second Round tie at Second Division Blackpool three minutes from time. Town's 2,000 travelling support were relishing the prospect of a replay back at Keys Park in the Midlands when O'Connor, a materials manager for a chemicals firm in his parallel universe, tapped in the rebound after Keith Russell's 20-yard shot hit the post.