When Kipling wrote If he clearly hadn’t endured a 77 day run without seeing his team win a game of football. Or even a three month spell without seeing them win away from home.
So please don’t expect me, in the next 900 words, to treat Triumph and Disaster the same. That’d just be stupid. Instead I’ll try and suck every last drop of joy out of an afternoon that was beautiful in its ugliness.
That we managed in the process to get a rise out of Tony Pulis was one big, fat, juicy bonus.
Yet, in truth, it was a game that but for some smiling football gods could so easily have gone the same way as so many that have gone before.
We’re back to the ifs again, but if Sessègnon had made the most of Gary O’Neil’s one wayward pass of the afternoon just before the interval and if Matt Jarvis’ air-shot / mis-control / exquisite back-heel hadn’t landed sweetly in the path of Robbie Brady then we’d likely be bemoaning yet another miserable away-day.
But for once the fine margins fell in City’s favour. And, for the Yellow Army as least, it was brilliant. Sod the neutrals.
We’ve spent far too much time this season watching City weave some pretty and quite intricate patterns but still being on the receiving end of the result. Aesthetically pleasing but with nothing to show has been the story by and large and we’d all yearned for an ugly win. Now we’ve got one.
Many had spoken of the need for a continuation of the football played in spells against Manchester City and how it was key to produce a performance of a similar ilk when faced with opposition from outside the Premier League’s elite. But in reality it was never going to happen.
Pulis’ Baggies, in terms of their playing style (and everything in fact), are about as far removed from Pellegrini’s City as is possible to imagine. Think Dennis Skinner. Think George Osborne. That’s the type of chasm we’re talking about. And so to be afforded the time and space to produce the quality of passing that we saw in spells last week was never going to happen.
Alex Neil – and he talked about it in Friday’s press conference – felt it imperative that City matched up with West Brom physically and so selected an XI that he felt could withstand the muscle and sheer effort that comes as standard with a Pulis team; Wes being the sacrificial lamb.
And with West Brom lining up in a tradional 4-4-2 (ish), it offered the rare chance to play two up front, with Patrick Bamford playing just off Dieumerci Mbokani in the same way he did so successfully off Kike last season. With a four v four match-up across the midfield there was no reason for City to be over-run as is invariably the case in a four v five.
What transpired was, certainly for the first 45, something akin to a Sunday morning pub league stalemate when both teams had taken copius amounts of drink the night before. It was attritional, hard on the eye and turgid; the only thing missing being a plethora of pot-bellies.
But, given the opposition, it was also essential. To have succumbed to the physical battering would have given the Baggies the initiative.
The goal when it arrived, however ugly and fortuitous, was timely in the extreme and to get our noses ahead at a time when Pulis would have demanded a head of steam from his team indicated that it may, just may, be our day.
What followed was predictably nail-biting, and a second goal would have saved many a furrowed brow, but a back-four that now has a central, dominant, imposing figure at its heart rose to the task magnificently. They were organised, they retained their shape, they didn’t drop too deep and were composed. Most un-Norwich City like.
That John Ruddy had not a single shot to save essentially tells the tale. There was to be no Alamo. Instead, for the most part, the Baggies were kept at arms length.
All season we’ve been crying out for a hero, a figurehead in the mould of Grant Holt, one who can be turned to when the brown stuff and the fan are in close proximity. And in Timm Klose it appears we’ve found one… or rather Lee Darnborough has found one.
The Swiss international, alongside his obvious experience and good technical ability, has added something in spades that has been lacking all season: character.
From his very first brush with the good folk of Norfolk in his joint-presser with Steven Naismith, the ex-Wolfsberg man has charmed all before him. He screams ‘good egg’ and bit by bit his grasp of the demands of the Premier League have reached a level befitting an international centre-back.
He’s made a difference and has been an improvement on those who have gone before; the prerequisites of a successful new signing. And, crucially, he appears to be inspiring those around him.
Ryan Bennett and Seb Bassong both look better centre-backs when playing alongside him. Martin Olsson looks to have re-established himself at left-back in that back-four. And, yes, Russ is delivering at right-back.
At the best possible time we now do have a clean sheet in us. Two in a row in fact, which a few weeks ago would have just been the stuff of dreams.
There’s still lots to do of course, and defeat yesterday really could have sounded the death knell, but we now have the scent of safety and have sounded a battle cry that will have resonated in the North East.
Let’s keep believing.
“Never mind the danger…”
Another fine piece, Gary. You have knack of capturing the experience of following City, while also being able to analyse it.
Except – why all these disparaging comments about Sunday morning football? In my Sunday morning career for Capital Canaries, I provided an example of elegant skill and subtle reading of the game. That’s how I remember it, anyway…
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Thanks Stew… if I recall it was the Fulham Sunday Morning League (?) with no mention of ‘pub’. Therefore a very different animal 😉
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Good stuff that sums it up perfectly. I don’t think we should worry too much about what happens at Newcastle today – although wouldn’t a draw be beautiful! Seven to go and even Jenas and Murphy praised our recent pick-up and there IS hope. My thumbs are pricking about Palace too – you never know – they might yet get dragged in.
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At last, after months of waiting yesterday we finally got the ‘rub of the green’!
A N has learnt lots this season and now has the personnel to put his plan into action. Impressive selections the past 2 games. Great to see Olsson at left back and Brady further forward. Klosse, O’Neil, Howson, Martin all outstanding yesterday.
With the exception of Arsenal all our remaining fixtures are against teams in the lower reaches of the current form table and 3 of them still involved in F A Cup duty. We just need to stop worrying about the end result and concentrate 100% on doing their job for the team.
Most importantly now I believe, at home if we are struggling please please, please fellow fans, DO NOT start moaning or booing we have to give that same 100% encouragement.
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Very kind, Gary. But in the interest of truth, pubs DID play an important role…
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Alex Neil talked it up before the game, said he’s sick of saying after games that we played well but didn’t get what we deserved, that he’d love to be able to say “we didn’t play great but we got the 3 points.”
It was a game that always had 1-0 (or 0-1) written all over it, and although we weren’t at our best and they were awful, this was a great achievement. If we weren’t defensively solid we would have got nothing.They were unbeaten in seven at home, then ‘along come Norwich’!
Grinding out a 1-0 is massively important in football. It looks like that’s how Leicester are going to get over the line. Maybe us too.
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Wine bar more likely…..
Cracking piece Gary!
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Another great piece Gary. Mustn’t get too carried away but yesterday’s win gives us hope and puts the outcome back in our own hands. A draw today will do nicely, and a few red cards would be a bonus. otbc
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Phew, that’s one big monkey off the back. Poor old Pulis hasn’t had the best of weeks!
Hooray for Lady Luck and Sir Spirit. We got lucky with the goal and that the Baggies were so poor on the day. Not pretty but pretty damn good outcome.
We have to show more creativity and threat for those blockbusters at home to the North East rivals. Hopefully Brady is fit and Wes back in and at his mercurial best. Without them, it’s a struggle. Need a striker to come to the party too.
Hats off to the defence – let’s hope it keeps well oiled from here on in.
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Thank you Gary. Reading two points scoring articles in a row is heartening. Of course we’ll need four or five more to read if we are going to survive. For me since the season opened it was obvious that Olsson and Brady would make an excellent left side, for me it’s poor that AN has only recently done this. Similarly Howson, not so good if he’s out on the right. Anyway, gripes over, we’re very much in the mix and on the up!
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Jon B (10) to be fair to Alex, Olsson was injured at the start of the season and, when he finally made the squad, his form was poor. Brady therefore became the standard pick at left back by default.
It has only been in the past two or three games that Olsson has shown anything like his best form.
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Couldn’t have gone any better for us this weekend. Let’s not kid ourselves though. If Newcastle, Sunderland & Palace win their games in hand we’re right back in it. And Sunderland have only lost 3 of their last 11 games. We need to grind these games out. We can do it.
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Fantastic result and nice to enjoy the weekend for a change.
One critical point – and this IS really important if we are to survive — we need to carve out more openings and shots on goal in our key games, one or two on target is not enough in 90 minutes of football.
It’s one reason we went down at a woeful Villa and Swansea away.
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Yes John, but the organisation of our defense has been much improved lately. One shot on target can be enough if, like yesterday, we restrict our opponents to ZERO on target! It’s injuries that worry me now. I hope Bennett will return soon, and Bassong did well, but the loss of our top scorer is a major blow. We can ill-afford any more casualties.
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