Forest will retain fighting spirit, says Gunter

CHRIS Gunter says Nottingham Forest will retain their fighting spirit – insisting: "It is only right that we battle for each other."

The Reds full back is a quiet, calm and softly spoken character off the pitch.

But he was the first to leap to the defence of Paul Anderson at Crystal Palace last weekend, after the winger had been elbowed.

Gunter ended up being booked after confronting defender Clint Hill, after he had felled Anderson on the touchline with a blatant swing of the arm.

While he says he will be trying to avoid picking up further yellow cards, the Welsh international says the team will continue to back each other in such situations.

And he pledged that he will maintain his own aggressive attitude on the pitch, as he returns to face former club Cardiff City in Wales tomorrow.

"That is the way it should be," he said.

"With the Paul Anderson situation, as a team mate on the pitch, when you see somebody get what I thought was a blatant elbow, you need to stand up for them.

"On the pitch you should be different in your character.

"Off it yes, I am quite quiet, I am a calm person.

"But I try to be a little more aggressive on it, because for 90 minutes it is a battle out there.

"You have to win your personal battle and you have to win the battle for your team."

Gunter says he will try to respond in a more measured way in the future, after being booked for shoving Hill in the chest.

"You have to know your limits and the boundaries," he said.

"But I hope it is something I can continue. You can't control it sometimes – but I'd like to keep that attitude on the pitch, in a controlled way."

Gunter was happy with the 1-1 draw Forest picked up at Palace – and hopes they can extend their six-match unbeaten run at Cardiff's new stadium.

"We felt it was a good point at Palace, because it is a tough place to go because of the way they play," he said. "It was a point gained for us, rather than two lost.

"It also kept our recent run going as well as our unbeaten record away from home.

"If we can pick something up from Cardiff, we then have a home game coming up.

"We are all confident and, with the way we are performing in training, everything feels great at the minute."