WHEN ANDREW Fitton sought a replacement for Maurice Malpas in December 2008 he went through a number of high-profile names and came close to securing one of the more feted ones than the man in question would care to admit.

Having spoken to the likes of Steve Cotterill, Ian Holloway, Gary Speed and Dave Hockaday, Town thought they had secured a deal to bring Colin Calderwood back to the club as manager.

Calderwood told the Advertiser contact between himself and Town in 2008 was made between his agent and the club, but Fitton has a different story.

“We went for Calderwood and it is stupidity you can’t believe behind the reason that didn’t happen,” he explains.

“I had the conversation with the chairman at Nottingham Forest 10 days before they fired him.

“We were trying to create an elegant thing, because obviously he was under pressure at Forest and we were allowed to talk to him, but it couldn’t get in the press.

“We met with him at a hotel in Oxfordshire and thought we could fashion a deal where he could move from there and they could pay him a small amount of compensation and last minute doubt (Forest chairman Nigel Doughty) says no.

“I got back from a Leyton Orient game, where we had just appointed Danny, Danny wasn’t even there I don’t think. (David Byrne) was in charge for the Orient game and we won.

“I don’t know whether it was a lunch time kick off, but I drove back to my house in London and as I walked in through the door there was a phone call from Colin Calderwood’s agent asking ‘is it too late?’ As Forest had sacked him.”