Gordon Forrest

{{Infobox football biography

| name = Gordon Forrest

| image =

| image_size =

| alt =

| caption =

| fullname = Gordon Ian Forrest{{cite book |title=The Scottish Football Review 2004/05 |date=2004 |publisher=CRE8 |location=Burford |isbn=9780954855604 |page=70}}

| birth_date = {{birth date and age|df=y|1977|1|14}}

| birth_place = Dunfermline, Scotland

| death_date =

| death_place =

| height = {{convert|5|ft|9|in|m}}

| position = Midfielder

| currentclub = Shenzhen Peng City
(assistant head coach)

| youthyears1 =

| youthclubs1 = Rosyth Recreation

| years1 = 1993–1996

| clubs1 = Raith Rovers

| caps1 = 1

| goals1 = 0

| years2 = 1997–1999

| clubs2 = Livingston

| caps2 = 37

| goals2 = 5

| years3 = 1999

| clubs3 = Leiftur

| caps3 =

| goals3 =

| years4 = 1999–2000

| clubs4 = East Fife

| caps4 = 26

| goals4 = 1

| years5 = 2000–2005

| clubs5 = Berwick Rangers

| caps5 = 123

| goals5 = 18

| years6 = 2005–2009

| clubs6 = Burntisland Shipyard

| caps6 =

| goals6 =

| totalcaps =

| totalgoals =

}}

Gordon Ian Forrest (born 14 January 1977) is a Scottish football coach and former player who is the currently assistant head coach of Chinese Super League club Shenzhen Peng City. His playing career included spells with Raith Rovers, Livingston, East Fife and Berwick Rangers in Scotland, and Leiftur in Iceland. He has coached in Scotland, New Zealand and in Canada, where he was with Vancouver Whitecaps FC.

Early life

Gordon Forrest was born in Dunfermline, Fife, on 14 January 1977. He was educated at Woodmill High School in the town and supported local football club Dunfermline Athletic.{{cite news |title=Vancouver coach Gordon Forrest backs Dunfermline Athletic's youth route |url=https://www.dunfermlinepress.com/sport/13517028.vancouver-coach-gordon-forrest-backs-dunfermline-athletics-youth-route/ |accessdate=13 January 2019 |work=Dunfermline Press |date=6 May 2014}}

Playing career

Forrest began his senior career with Raith Rovers, joining as a youth from Rosyth Recreation in 1993.{{cite news |last1=Mccoll |first1=Michael |title=Gordon Forrest joins Whitecaps as U18 Head Coach |url=http://www.canadiansoccernews.com/csn-archives/aftn/gordon-forrest-joins-whitecaps-as-u18-head-coach-r3195/ |accessdate=13 January 2019 |work=Canadian Soccer News |date=18 October 2012}} He made his Raith debut against Celtic in 1996 and also played in the UEFA Cup. When his former Raith manager Jimmy Nicholl moved to Millwall, Forrest had an extended trial with the English club before joining Livingston in 1997. After two and a half years there, he left in 1999 for a short spell in Iceland with Leiftur, where he again appeared in the UEFA Cup. Returning to Scotland, he joined East Fife in October 1999. He then joined Berwick Rangers in 2000, making over 100 league appearances before leaving in 2005. Forrest ended his playing career with amateur club Burntisland Shipyard.

Coaching career

Having left senior football whilst still in his twenties, Forrest concentrated on his coaching career, obtaining a UEFA 'A' licence and youth and child coaching licences from the Scottish Football Association (SFA). He went on to work for the SFA as a Youth Development Officer in Edinburgh and Fife. In 2009 he returned to East Fife, working as first team coach under manager Stevie Crawford. In 2011, he emigrated to New Zealand to work as a football development manager for the Northern Football Federation.{{cite news |title=Assistant Coach and Head of High Performance – Gordon Forrest |url=https://www.whitecapsfc.com/technical-staff/gordon-forrest |accessdate=13 January 2019 |publisher=Vancouver Whitecaps FC}} He was also assistant coach for the New Zealand women's national team at the 2012 Summer Olympics.

In October 2012, Forrest joined Canadian-based Major League Soccer (MLS) franchise Vancouver Whitecaps FC as head coach of their under-18 team and manager of coaching development. In January 2014 was promoted to working with the MLS team as an assistant coach to Carl Robinson.{{cite news |last1=Vose |first1=Christopher |title=Getting to know Gordon Forrest |url=http://www.thevancouverherald.com/news/2014/02/14/getting-to-know-gordon-forrest |accessdate=13 January 2019 |work=The Vancouver Herald |date=14 February 2014}} Whitecaps released Robinson and his coaching team, including Forrest, in September 2018.{{cite news |title=Vancouver Whitecaps part ways with Carl Robinson |last1=Bogert |first1=Tom |url=https://www.mlssoccer.com/post/2018/09/25/vancouver-whitecaps-part-ways-carl-robinson |accessdate=13 January 2019 |publisher=Major League Soccer |date=25 September 2018}}

Forrest returned to Scotland in January 2019 to take up the position of assistant head coach to Robbie Neilson at Scottish Championship club Dundee United,{{cite news |title=Dundee United: Morgaro Gomis signs up for third spell |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/46840876 |accessdate=13 January 2019 |work=BBC Sport |date=11 January 2019}} a role he shared with Lee McCulloch from June 2019 onwards.{{cite news |last1=Nicolson |first1=Eric |title=Lee McCulloch gets new role with Dundee United |url=https://www.thecourier.co.uk/fp/sport/football/dundee-united/923660/lee-mcculloch-gets-new-role-with-dundee-united/ |accessdate=5 July 2019 |work=The Courier |date=27 June 2019 |location=Dundee}} When Neilson left the club in June 2020 to become manager at Heart of Midlothian, Forrest and McCulloch were initially placed in temporary charge at United before joining Hearts as Neilson's assistants.{{cite news |date=21 June 2020 |title=Robbie Neilson: Hearts name Dundee Utd boss to replace Daniel Stendel |work=BBC Sport |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/53131136 |accessdate=17 August 2020}}{{cite news |title=Hearts: Lee McCulloch & Gordon Forrest join Robbie Neilson's staff |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/53756029 |accessdate=17 August 2020 |work=BBC Sport |date=12 August 2020}}

In June 2023, Forrest was named as first team coach of Hearts.{{Cite web |title=Coaching team confirmed |url=https://www.heartsfc.co.uk/news/article/coaching-team-confirmed |access-date=2023-06-07 |website=www.heartsfc.co.uk}} He was dismissed in September 2024 {{Cite web |title=Hearts sack head coach Naismith |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/articles/cdjeygg03meo |access-date=2024-09-22 |website=www.bbc.co.uk}}