Trio of Local Heroes from Nottinghamshire share story of rise to top of the football world

These are the words of a former Eastwood schoolboy who went on to conquer European football with Nottingham Forest and play more than 40 times for England.

Tony Woodcock is one of the ‘Local Heroes’ featured in the newly released film of the same name, “an inspiring story of defying the odds”, which tells the story of how three lads from the same city – Tony, Clifton’s Viv Anderson from Clifton and Long Eaton’s Garry Birtles – went onto win the European Cup with Forest and play for their country.

A number of former Forest stars joined the trio at the film’s premiere at The Arc Cinema in Beeston, where it is being shown all week ahead of a DVD, Blu-ray and digital release on June 5, including European Cup winners John McGovern, Ian Bowyer and Bryn Gunn, as well as current Forest assistant manager Alan Tait and coach Andy Reid.

The film features interviews with the three stars, as well as friends and former team-mates, interspersed with news footage from the period in question, narrated by former Minder star Garry Webster.

Film publicity says: “Sharing their fascinating journey, the trio recount their rise to fame and the obstacles they faced along the way, and how, during a time of economic difficulty, they persevered and prevailed.”

Tony said: “It’s a bit of a historical look at Nottingham that relates to other parts of the country.”

Among a number of emotional scenes, Tony returns to where it all began, his family home on Chewton Avenue, while the film also features his, so far unsuccessful, attempts to identify his biological father after making a “shock discovery” from a DNA test.

Talking about the film’s potential mpact, he said: “We’d like to think a lot of young guys trying to be in the game can see that with a bit of determination, grit and will to win, that everything’s possible.”

Following the screening, Tony, aged 67, who now lives in London, told the audience how the film came about.

He said: “We were chatting about Nottingham, about the three of us, playing for Nottingham Forest. We also said anyone playing in the Champions League final in this day of age, you’re lucky if you’ve got three guys from the stame country, never mind the same city. That was the real start of it.

“All the stories about our friends, what we went through, playing football and trying to get to become a pro footballer, all the hardshuips you get, the ups and downs that you have to fight your way through, that’s how it started.”