Nottingham Forest defender Joel Lynch has stepped up his recovery from injury and illness with an outing for the reserves.

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The full-back has missed the last six games but played the full 90 minutes as the Reds` second string drew 0-0 with Coventry at the City Ground on Tuesday afternoon.

Goalkeeper Paul Smith and forward Garath McCleary also gained some valuable match action, but James Perch did not feature despite being pencilled in for the game.

Perch has been out since April after suffering a stress fracture to one of his shins, but the defender was surprisingly named as a substitute for the league draw at Crystal Palace on Saturday.