How 'that side' of Roy Keane is helping to bring the best out of Nottingham Forest

Matty Cash believes Roy Keane’s demanding, ‘honest’ approach is helping get more out of Nottingham Forest’s young players – including him.

The attacking midfielder says Keane brings the same ‘strong’ character to his coaching role as he did to the pitch when he was a player.

And, as Forest’s season reaches what they hope will prove to be a dramatic finale, in their remaining seven games, Cash believes Keane, along with boss Martin O’Neill, can have a big influence.

“He is a really good character; he is a really big influence around the training ground,” said Cash. “He is brilliant. He is very honest, but that is what you want from a coach.

Nottingham Forest Assistant Manager Roy Keane during the Premier League Cup match at the City Ground on Friday 15th March 2019 (Dan Westwell)

“He is always involved. People know how demanding he was a player; how tough he was.

“He brings that here now. We all know he has got that side to him and that brings out the best in the lads.

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“It helps the young lads like me, Yates and Arvin – he is strong with all of us.

“He is a very strong character and that is what we need to develop as a team.”

Cash says Keane has already helped to inspire a more committed approach to both attacking and defending set pieces.

“He is massive on us defending our box. When you have Roy shouting at you, you are going to step it up a little bit, aren’t you?” said Cash. “It is definitely a good thing.”

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That threat from set pieces came to the fore last weekend, as headers from Daryl Murphy and Molla Wague helped Forest bounce back from behind to claim a 2-1 win over Swansea.

Daryl Murphy heads back to look for a winner after netting a leveller. (@JMS Photography)

“We are finding a way to win games. We knew Murphy and Molla are good in the air and we have that threat now. We can defend set pieces and attack them as well,” said Cash. “I remember last season, when I don’t think we ever scored from them.

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“Now we work on it every day and the manager has high demands from set pieces.

“The lads are buying into that; we are focusing on that now – and it is paying off. We have 15 goals from set pieces this season and I hope there are a few more to come.”