Nottingham Forest have been receiving national appraisal following their classy and fitting tribute to fallen heroes prior to the match against Derby County on Saturday producing a stunning back drop in the Trent End during the minutes silence in their remembrance day clash.

The banner and backdrop was created by Forza Garibaldi who stated “this Armistice Day we are paying tribute to those men who played for Forest and fought in the world wars but also to all the fans of Forest that have served in the armed forces”.

But what it all meant was of significant value not just to the club and city but the region too. Here Copa90 explains below with the thanks to our Italian friends at Il Calcio Inglese the simple meaning of that magnificent wall of green and red.

The banner read “They played freely on the pitch. They fought for freedom off the field. So when you wear this shirt, remember what they did.” It largely related to five Nottingham Forest players who went to war and the colours of green and claret are those of the Sherwood Foresters, the Nottinghamshire regiment so poignont to inhabitants of the county along with those based in Derbyshire of which many have served.

The five players on the banner that stated “We Will Remember Them” were of Joe Mercer, Tom Peacock, George Hazard, Percy Ashton and William Fiske.

Joe Mercer was a midfielder and joined Forest in 1910 and shortly after joined the regiment in the Battalion of Footballers which at the time many athletes took part in. He survived the war but died in 1927 due to respiratory problems caused by the war.

Tom Peacock scored 57 goals in 109 appearances for Forest and fought in the Second World War as an RAF pilot before later becoming headmaster at St Edmunds Church of England school in Mansfield Woodhouse. Tom was an inside left who studied at Nottingham University before joining Forest making appearances between 1933 and 1945.

George Hazard was a young Nottingham Forest prospect enlisted while under the age of 18. He died in Flanders in 1915 and served the Sherwood Foresters before being able to realise his dream of debuting for his home town club’s first team despite him being one of the most promising talents.

Percy Ashton was a terrific goalkeeper who signed for Forest in 1930 from West Melton Excelsior making 179 appearances for the club before going to war, later signing for Grantham Road FC in 1945. He died aged 76 in 1985.

William Fiske like Ashton was a goalkeeper who signed for Forest from Blackpool in 1914 but before he could make his debut was called to arms. Two years later after being awarded brief honorary leave he managed to record five appearances for the club and died ‘reported missing’ in 1918 at the Third Battle of Aisne in Flanders.

Forza Garibaldi worked alongside creator Tim Godden who made the stunning remembrance banner and have a limited number of prints available to purchase at £15 with the proceeds being split. You can order a print here or you can donate money to Forza Garibaldi who are a self funded group that rely on the backing of fans to produce these magnificent large displays of work at the City Ground.

*Main image @NFFC the Trent End in full swing during the remembrance day match.