The Reds win on the road thanks to goals from Mel Johnson, Charlie Wellings and Mollie Green.
Forest made the trip down South for a clash against Southern Premier Division side Watford in their opening game of 2024/25 pre-season.
There was an early opportunity for new signing Charlie Wellings as the forward had a go at goal from distance, a shot which the keeper easily claimed.
Freya Thomas played a diagonal pass across the pitch, down the left channel, where Amy Sims fired a dangerous cross towards goal; Mel Johnson met the cross, but wildly shot over.
Watford worked their first chance at goal as their forward carried the ball down the right side with the resulting cross caught well by Emily Batty.
Good press from Thomas won possession back on halfway and the midfielder played Mel Johnson through on goal, the striker skipped past the first defender but was denied by the challenge of the covering centre back.
It was The Hornets who came closest in the opening 15 minutes as their winger beat her defender and whipped a ball across the box. The cross was met with a commanding header which forced an excellent stop from Batty to keep the scores level.
A high press from Mel Johnson forced an error from the Watford defender; the striker pounced and made no mistake to slot past the keeper into the bottom right corner.
Nat Johnson burst into space on the near side and sent a low pass into the 6-yard box leading to a spill from the Watford keeper with the loose ball falling to Wellings to bury a second goal for The Reds from close range.
The hosts almost halved the deficit when an ambitious strike from distance was tipped over the bar for a corner. The resulting set piece picked out a Watford player whose header was cleared off the line by Nat Johnson.
Following a strong challenge on Millie Chandarana, the loose ball on the edge of the box fell to Thomas to hit a vicious low strike on target which was palmed away by the keeper.
HALF TIME: Watford 0-2 Nottingham Forest
Forest had their first sight at goal in the second 45 as Chandarana threaded a ball through the Watford back line to Wellings, but the winger was beaten to it by the onrushing goalkeeper.
There was a good chance for The Hornets following a mix up at the back, only for the hosts to be denied by a great challenge from Hayley James.
An aggressive press from Lyndsey Harkin helped regain possession in the opposition half with Holly Manders picking up play in middle of the park; the midfielder’s attempt glanced over the bar.
Forest’s appeal for a foul on The Reds’ substitute keeper were waved away by the referee and Watford took full advantage to slot into an empty net to reduce Forest’s lead to one.
The visitors looked to restore their two-goal lead as Sims played a long ball over the top of the Watford defence to set Mel Johnson free down the left channel with the attack finally reaching Manders to strike wide of the target.
As the match entered its final quarter, a corner was played short to Mollie Green who whipped an in-swinging cross into the box, then met by Harkin who saw her header deflect wide for a corner.
There were a flurry of chances in the area as Mel Johnson, Charlie Wellings and Becky Anderson all saw their efforts blocked, leading to a corner kick. The resulting corner was sent the way of Green by Chandarana; the defender, waiting on the edge of the area, fired a stunning volley into the back of the net to extend the visitors’ lead.
Watford netted their second of the afternoon as The Reds were caught in possession in their defensive third with the hosts handed a great chance to score which they dispatched confidently.
With only minutes remaining in the pre-season clash, Forest were awarded a free kick 30 yards from goal, Green stepped up and saw her attempt blocked by the wall as Carly Davies’ side secured a win on the road.
FULL TIME: Watford 2-3 Nottingham Forest