THE muscle strewn thighs and steely glare that made opposition players cower in unashamed respect and let's face it, honest to goodness fear are not quite the same force as they were when Stuart Pearce was pumping up Nottingham Forest to bursting point.

If Brian Clough was the lifeblood of a club that has flirted successfully with the best, then old Psycho himself was the heartbeat. And what a heart.

Not many players even considered the painful prospect of trying to block one of those marauding buccaneering runs. All they saw was the sight of eyes fixed like bayonets, shining tattoos that could have been stamped SAS and a single minded determination to win at all costs.

With his 35th birthday looming in April, the runs are not so frequent or penetrating these days but the passion that has burnt inside Pearce for the last decade or more still demands and commands respect wherever he plays.

And it was that respect, that commitment, that belief to avoid defeat at all costs that Forest, not surprisingly, turned to in their greatest hour of need eight days ago.

Anyone with an inkling of day to day life at the City Ground will tell you that it was only a question of when Pearce would manage the club that has been his working life for the last 11 years or more. The question of whether he would one day boss the club he has played for with such distinction was never really an issue.

Yes, the timing could have been better for all concerned. But it was hastened by the predicament that Forest had got themselves into, dashing headlong towards the English first division at a quicker rate than desperate shoppers racing to the January sales.

Frank Clark, all honesty and integrity, had tried his best to stir some reaction from a side that had not only failed to win in 16 League starts but one that was beginning to mirror image the sad outfit that went down in Cloughie's last season.

For all Clark's admirable qualities, he knew that he could not provide the resuscitation levels needed to got Forest back on their feet quickly if they were to stand any chance of retaining their coveted Premiership place.

To his credit, he also knew that the inspirational quality that he perhaps lacked in his dignified manner was present in the man who has replaced him - temporarily or otherwise.

That's why Clark had no hesitation in recommending to the Forest board when he was leaving that they "should give Stuart a try".

A few hours later, deep in conversation with his wife and close friends, Pearce had installed himself in the madhouse ranks of management. Whether or not he decides to continue in mid January, when Forest's protracted takeover plans might be shrouded in less mystery, is debatable.

For all we know his England career, brought out of self inflicted retirement by Glenn Hoddle earlier this season, might well be over. But no one should underestimate how important representing his country is to him. The arm waving antics, the screaming delight and uncontrollable tears are the real thing when it comes to his emotions of the three lion variety.

Prolonging his playing career with Forest is not far behind in the priority stakes. He's rattling on past 500 appearances for the club - and approaching 100 goals - since Clough picked him up for a song from Coventry in May, 1985.

By Clough's own admission, Pearce was the one who did the "picking up" after that. He reveals: "When Pearcy rolls up his sleeves, hitches up his shorts and goes into battle, you can't have anyone better on your side.

"There were times when we were in need of a bit of an all round lift and you could almost bank on him picking the crowd up and the team up. I know one bloody thing ... he certainly picked me up.

"I used to watch full backs whack the ball forward in Pearcy's direction and when he chested it down and set off on one of those galloping runs of his, the poor lad who had just got rid of the damned thing would be saying: `Oh God, here he comes again.' You could see the horror bursting through the expressions on their faces."

Whether or not he can go on hoisting Forest in an upward direction remains to be seen but he's not made a bad start with Arsenal and Manchester United the first opposition coming over the hill at him.

It was inevitable in the wake of Clark's departure and Pearce's clench fisted appointment that there would be some reaction in his first game. Forest came from behind to beat Arsenal and Arsene Wenger, who despite his great knowledge of the game, hadn't quite cottoned on to the influence that Pearce can bring to bear by the River Trent. If Clough could walk across it, Pearce could certainly run to halfway.

Those powers failed to account for Manchester United, who ripped up the script on St Stephen's Day, and further questions of Pearce's managerial techniques will be asked this afternoon when Forest head down the A46 to meet a Leicester City side managed by a guy who could easily have been installed at Forest before Clark got the job three and a half years ago.

Martin O'Neill's place in Forest history is decorated with top honours but the job is currently held by an individual who will probably go down in Forest history as one of the greatest ever - and possibly the most popular.

Forest supporters, with renewed belief, will be hoping he can carry on the dual role and if he remains successful, they might even settle for him giving up the playing bit prematurely.

But there will be some agonising to be done before he makes up his mind about continuing the managerial job he has started. For all his outside influences and internal passions, Pearce will weigh things up in mid January and decide what is right for him and his wife Liz.

It needed a pizza advert for the watching nation to realise his wit was as sharp as his tackles and he knows he will need more than a bit of humour too in the weeks, if not months and years ahead.

He also values his private life to the utmost degree. Relaxation for him is at contrasting ends of the leisure scale. He has an increasing love of working with horses - his wife introduced him to the equestrian life - and yet he still enjoys letting his hair down with his many friends in the punk rock fraternity. A peculiar mix but it works for him.

He switches off from football when he goes out of the main gates as quickly as he will switch on at three o'clock this afternoon.

It's not easy to do that in his new role and it's something he is trying to come to terms with but the football folk of Nottingham will be hoping that their latter day; Robin Hood can see his way clear to staying in the managerial jungle long enough to give them a genuine chance of reaching safety.