Chris Wood was Nottingham Forest's shining light as manager Nuno Espirito Santo picked up his first victory since taking over from Steve Cooper.

The New Zealand striker scored a hat-trick against his former club Newcastle to seal a memorable 3-1 win at St James' Park and move the Tricky Trees up to 16th in the Premier League table.

Eddie Howe's side took the lead on home soil through an Alexander Isak penalty but Wood was on hand to tap in from close range and level the scores before the break.

Shortly after the half-time interval, the ex-Magpies centre forward scored a magnificent solo goal before netting his third on the hour mark.

Wood said: "We needed three points and it was fantastic for the side to get it. This is a tough place to come. The boys did extremely well.

"We felt like we did well in the second half, we felt like we were the better side. Nice to get the three points.

"We showed we have quality in this team and a team that will work hard.

"I don't mind where I score! It is nice coming back to Newcastle, I really enjoyed my time here, it is a great bunch of lads and staff."

Forest captain Morgan Gibbs-White praised Wood's contributions in his post-match interview and stressed the need for his side to build an "identity" under Nuno's rule.

He said: "It starts from the start of the week when we start building into the game. It's about building our own identity with how we want to play. 

"We showed that today and credit the big man [Wood]. He scored three brilliant goals today."

Forest do not have long to celebrate their impressive victory on Tyneside with a home match against Manchester United awaiting them on December 30.