Rea disappointed to be both hero and villain during Reds draw

Hatters goalscorer Glen Rea was left with mixed feelings following last night’s 1-1 draw against Nottingham Forest after being on target at both ends in the contest.

Having waited over two years to get himself on the scoresheet again following his strike against Walsall back in October 2018, Rea produced a cool finish into the bottom corner to put Town in front on 22 minutes, while his team-mates appealed for a spot-kick as Martin Cranie appeared to be fouled.

He then found the net again at the same end, although unfortunately this time it was in the second period, diverting Cyrus Christie’s dangerous cross beyond Simon Sluga under pressure from Ryan Yates.

Rea could have become the hero once more late on, only to send a volley over the bar from an inviting position inside the Forest area, as speaking afterwards, he said: “I didn’t really know it was a penalty to be honest.

“It came to me and what I don’t normally do is put it in the goal, as I should have scored second half as well.

“It’s nice to get a goal, a bit disappointing at the other end, but it is what it is.

"We take the positives and move on to Saturday as the games are coming so thick and fast now, you can’t dwell on anything and it’s a good point.

“I’l take it 100 per cent, I’ve been wanting to score for a while as I’ve been back for a while.

“I’m frustrated with scoring at the other end as well which wasn’t ideal, but it is what it is."

On the own goal, Rea continued: "It’s come off my head.

"He’s (Nathan Jones) been saying that guy (Yates) makes a run and I’ve tried to track him with the run.

"I’ve turned and it’s just hit me on the head and gone in, I tried to get it up (over the bar).

“Before the game, you’re saying they’re a great team with a great manager, so that’s a point gained and we move on to Saturday.

“We picked up three against Sheffield Wednesday away which was a great result and we take a point tonight.”

Rea’s previous five goals for the Hatters have more often that not been met by a frenzied celebration with the hordes of Town supporters in attendance.

This time it was very different though, social distancing rules meaning the Hatters haven't played in front of a crowd on home soil since February, meaning although Rea was quickly engulfed by his team-mates, there was a lack of any real emotional outburst.

He said: “I really want the fans back in, it’s not the same without them

"That’s why football is what football is because of the fans, it wouldn't be like that.

"We’re sorely missing them, but we know they're watching and we know they’re giving us their support.

"It’s nice knowing they’re watching, but if they were in here, it would have been 10 times better.”

Once Rea’s goal saw Luton in front, Forest were then reduced to 10 men when Nicholas Ioannou slid in on Martin Cranie in the closing stages of the first period.

Although Town were eventually pegged back and held, Rea felt it was a result to be satisfied, especially as a criticism of the side last term was their failure to hold on to results, which saw them battling against relegation all term.

He said: “I didn't really see it to be honest (red card), they sat in and they’re a very good team, they’ve got very good players.

“I felt like we could have done better in the second half, because of the good first half we had, but it’s one of them, they’ve got the point in the end and it is what it is.

“Because they sat in, we couldn’t be as fluent as we would like to be and that’s down to us as well, so we’ll address it in the debrief, we can’t dwell on it and go again Saturday.

“We’ve got to take massive positives.

"We’re all a bit deflated as they’ve scored with 10 men, but they’re an amazing team and they've got a great manager, so I don't think we can be too disheartened from getting a point, especially after getting a win at Sheffield Wednesday.

“It’s a point gained I feel, so it’s a big test on Saturday (against Brentford) and we’re a million per cent ready for it.”

Rea was back in the starting line-up after missing the weekend's 1-0 win at Sheffield Wednesday due to a broken nose, which he confirmed is healing well, adding: “It feels a lot better.

"On Saturday I couldn't be involved as a precaution, it wasn't nice, it didn't feel nice for a couple of days afterwards but it feels fine and I’m ready to go.”