Experienced goalkeeper with an impressive record, signed on loan from West Brom after early-season injuries to Rune Pedersen and Paul Gerrard in 2005 - 2006. Considering that a couple of years previously Hoult had been being talked about in connection with England, as he kept a club record 24 clean sheets to take the Baggies up to the Premiership, it represented something of a coup for Gary Megson to persuade him to drop 3 divisions.

He promptly kept a clean sheet on his Forest debut, but thereafter wasn't startlingly better than Gerrard or Pedersen, though it has to be admitted that he was unlucky to be at Forest in arguably the darkest period of the club's history, as the team struggled to come to terms with their lowest league position in decades. The end for Hoult came in an embarrassingly awful thrashing at Huish Park (the score was only 0-3, but it could have been half a dozen if Yeovil had really put their foot on the gas); the first goal was a pretty limp shot from outside the area, but Hoult kind of waved at it as it wobbled past him. There was no way back in the eyes of the fans after that, and Gerrard was fit again anyway.

No great loss, frankly; I suppose he could be said to have steadied the ship, but since the ship was heading at full speed towards the rocks at the time, this is not necessarily a good thing.