Forest Green Rovers have had a troubled campaign in EFL League Two this year and as a result, they will be playing non-league football next season but how will they bounce back from such a huge setback?
As expected from a team that has been relegated to the Vanarama National League, the Green Devils have had issues defensively and have conceded too many goals.
At the start of the 23/24 campaign, Forest Green struggled after being relegated from League One the season before.
A 5-0 thrashing against Colchester United is the club’s most notable win of the season but after the big result, the Green Devils only won one from their next 10 games.
Their form continued in the same manner throughout the season with inconsistency being the club’s main downfall.
They soon found themselves in a serious relegation battle with multiple clubs around them also struggling to pick up points.
Due to the battle being so open, there was hope that they could pull away from the bottom of the table with both Sutton United and Colchester on similar points.
Although, the hope soon faded when results didn’t improve, meaning that the Nailsworth club had to rely on the results around them to save their season.
Unfortunately, because of such a bad run of form and losing to teams who were also on poor form Forest Green ended up rock bottom of League Two with a minus 34 goal difference.
The team lost over half of their games ending the season with 11 wins, nine draws and 26 losses.
Attention now focuses to how the club can improve and ensure that they make a swift return to the Football League with new signings definitely a priority.
It will be hard for the New Lawn club to keep a lot of their players over the summer with the attraction of playing in the Football League too much for some.
However, there will also obviously be players that will remain at the club which could be a massive boost heading into next season.
Another benefit for the club is the appointment of Steve Cotterill, a manager who has top level experience within football having previously worked at Stoke, Burnley and Bristol City.
Unfortunately, Cotterill wasn’t able to save the club from relegation but with his commitment to the team, his experience could be the difference when looking to get promoted.
In regards to recruitment, Forest Green could look to a proven goal scorer to add to their attack.
Chesterfield’s Will Grigg is a good comparison who helped fire the Spireites into League Two with 23 goals.
Christian Doidge will be imperative for Gloucestershire club but the club also shouldn’t rely on one player so adding another proven forward would hugely improve their chances of a successful campaign.
Adding more experience to their defence should also be a priority to help organise the back line and stop leaking as many goals as they have done.
This summer will define the outcome of the club’s league status next season and if the recruitment is right, there is no doubt that Steve Cotterill can coach this team back to winning ways.
