I THOUGHT it a great game but cartoonist colleague Terry Challis disagreed. He thought it was more like basketball than football, because of the high-scoring nature of the contest.

I remember travelling up to Nottingham, sitting in the back of his camper in those days before lap-tops and writing It's Just A Thought column.

Watford had come under fire, having beaten Spurs that autumn in 1982 and one critic said they behaved like "mad dogs" on the pitch.

I made out what I thought was a "case for canine defence", expressing surprise that the Hornets could be criticised for their philosophy of ceaseless attacking football.

So after a curry at the local tandoori by the theatre, we made our way to the ground and watched a classic, toe-to-toe slugging match, packed full of goalmouth incident.

Unlike Jeff Powell of the Daily Mail's Venables-for-Pope campaign and other acolytes, Brian Clough, the Forest manager, was very complimentary.

He was not one for after-match press conferences in those days, but he did go straight into Watford's dressing room and enthuse over the spirit and football Watford played.

"He was very complimentary," said Taylor. "He said he would love to manage the team."

Clough, whose side was very much a footballing outfit, continued to praise Watford throughout their First Division career and, strangely enough, Merseyside clubs and their fans were also positive about the Hornets.

From The Watford Observer, November 12, 1982.

KEITH Burkinshaw and the Fleet Street Brigade should have been at the City ground on Wednesday night and see what "up and under", "kick and rush", "first-time touch football", English-style is all about.

Nottingham Forest showed Watford the way home as they bundled them out of the Football League Milk Cup in a ten-goal thriller, which, if repeated a sufficient number of times throughout a season, would bring the stay-away fans stampeding out of their sitting rooms.

Forest succeeded where Tottenham and their like failed. They played four forwards and showed a willingness to fight, chase back and sweat in midfield on an attack-conscious night of competitive and barn-storming football.

Watford's unhappy record in the City of Nottingham continues. But Watford's loss is football's gain as the Hornets fell to their biggest defeat, ironically since their glory, glory season of the Cliff Holton-inspired 1959-60 campaign when they fell 8-1 at Crystal Palace.

And if you are to beat the Southamptons and Sunderlands by basketball scores, you have to be prepared to take similar drubbing in your stride.

And somehow there is a greater degree of satisfaction from returning from the City ground after this defeat than there was after the controversial and disappointing 2-0 setback on the same ground earlier this season.

If Watford were naive then they were naive when they touched their previous heights because they attacked from start to finish, never attempted to close down in any area of the pitch but found themselves out-fought and out-attacked by an inventive Forest side which used the long ball to great effect.

Gary Birtles opened a barnstorming first half when he screwed a shot across the face of the goal from Ian Bowyer's cross.

Then Blissett seized on to a backpass and shot over to complete a hectic first minute. The pace never abated. From a Gunn cross, Hodge got in a header which Sherwood saved well and, at the other end, Taylor fired wide from Callaghan's pass and later Callaghan brought the goalkeeper to a smart save.

Forest should have taken the lead when Wallace broke clear on the right and played the ball inside to Birtles whose shot was blocked by Sims and Rice before Sherwood parried clear.

But it was Watford who took the lead after 11 minutes with the simplest of goals. Bolton pumped the ball upfield, Barnes flicked it on and Jenkins was left running free to forcefully side-foot a shot past the Forest goalkeeper.

Proctor curled an angled drive wide of the goal and Blissett set Callaghan free on the right only for the winger to shoot prematurely and without confidence.

Sherwood saved from Birtles but, in the 24th minute, a half-cleared short corner found Willy Young on the edge of the box and his looping header entered the goal under the angle.

Watford came extremely close to going ahead again when Bolton fired in a free kick which Hans Van Breukelen stopped more in an effort to save himself from being hurt and the rebound was scrambled clear.

The game swung Forest's way with a fine left-wing movement as Watford too often failed to pick up the supporting man as defenders converged to thwart the threat of Robertson.

Birtles and Robertson combined to put in Hodge and his low, driven cross found Proctor who made no mistake from close range.

After Jenkins had a goal disallowed for a foul, Jackett had a shot charged down the line and Taylor put the rebound over the bar. But in the light of the week's controversy, it was ironic that in the 39th minute Forest should cement their lead via the big boot down the centre.

Birtles harassed Sims into error and drove the ball past Sherwood. Jackett had a shot well saved as Watford sought to pick up the pieces and in the 45th minute they looked likely to set themselves up for a great second-half when a Barnes' free kick found the lofty figure of Jenkins to head past the Forest goalkeeper.

But, as we waited the half time whistle, another long clearance down the centre found Hodge with Birtles free and neither Bolton nor Rostron could stop the former England striker from scoring and leaving Watford with the problem of a 4-2 half-time scoreline.

Both teams walked off to a standing ovation but there were still more thrills to come in the second half. One felt that if Watford could pull a quick goal back then Forest's brittle defence may have showed signs of panic.

But it was Watford on the receiving end as they reshuffled their line up dropping back Jackett into defence, Barnes into midfield and bringing on David Johnson on the left flank - all at the expense of Steve Sims who had been troubled by a knee injury since the tenth minute.

Wallace went through the middle and shot wide; Bolton cleared off the lie from Bowyer in the sort of goalmouth scramble in which TV pundits delight and then Sherwood saved from another flying header from Wallace before watching the same striker nod a further header wide.

And in the 65th minute Forest made it 5-2 via Bowyer from Birtles' back header. But again Watford bounced back when in the 66th minute, Blissett eeled his way in to the Forest defence and from the rebound off the goalkeeper Taylor hammered home into the roof of the net.

In the 71st minute, Barnes twice had shots blocked when it seemed easier to score but a header from Mark Proctor following Robertson's cross sufficiently sealed Watford's fate.

Sherwood was superb in tipping over from Wallace as Watford were repeatedly caught open at the back as they pressed forward unavailingly against determined opponents. A low drive across the face of the goal by Robertson spun off the heels of Kenny Jackett and deflected past Sherwood to put Forest in seventh heaven.

Again the game closed to a standing ovation as fans stood thrilled by this reincarnation of 50's style football played in pouring rain. Memories of the days of Ramsey and his successive clones were lost in a whirlwind of entertaining and productive soccer.