I think Andy has a point. Most good managers tend to overstay and this have to leave in less glamorous circumstances.
However I doubt Coz whatever errors he made in the end will come anywhere close for this nomination.

I can't recall the Docherty years.
But perhaps there's a sentimentality here. The manager that has to break or rebuild from a great side tends to be hugely unpopular and under pressure from the get go.

For this reasons, I'd have to go for Jewell. Now I did see some of your games under him, and so poor were the displays that I thought some of the teams we were playing in League 1 (yes Forest were there at the time), would thrash you.

Docherty aside I also recall Addison's time and a certain Philip Brown. Nothing much to crow about there...