I love Norwich City.
Like countless others, I travel countless miles away from home to witness thumping upon thumping. I haven’t seen Norwich win on the road since Nottingham Forest in 2016.
The humiliations test your devotion; sometimes they even make you question your sanity. My sister’s ears take a bashing regularly as I rant over the disparity of what I have witnessed. When we drew at Rotherham, it took me two hours before I spoke.
This love is often disregarded and rubbished by non-footballing fans who suggest a more cultured hobby, but nothing gives me a thrill like boarding a bright orange coach to visit to obscure places of the country.
What I adore so much about this club is the breadth and depth of its demographic. Generations grace the terraces, all with individual stories, but with one overriding similarity: an unconditional love for Norwich City.
Another similarity is the need to buy into this new regime.
I’m proud to associate with a club that is fan owned and has arguably the most inclusive, supportive and switched-on fan base around. However, like every club, there are a few who seem dead set on changing that image by spouting nonsense.
Not everybody is a football expert, and I definitely don’t claim to be, but calling for the head of a manager (or coach) four games in is quite frankly ridiculous. Fortunately, this is a minute minority.
When we win we’re going to win the league; when we don’t we’re going down. There is no middle ground and that’s incredibly frustrating yet predictable – and understandable.
Nothing beats that elation of winning. The pure pandemonium of when the ball hits the back of the net. And nothing hurts more than the deflation of a defeat.
Following the mauling received by a winless Aston Villa, fans have let forth anger, frustration and criticism on all corners of the playing and management, and quite rightly too.
I could type 800+ words about the need for patience and time, but quite simply if the players aren’t going to turn up for 45 minutes, then those aforementioned qualities aren’t going to be in evidence. This entire football club needs an education but also a reality check.
This is a new team, a new era consisting of several new and unrehearsed components. Players who have entered a new country and culture. Adaptation is going to happen. Norwich have all the ingredients for a Mary Berry cake, but are yet to produce that final product. And do you know what? That’s okay.
People seem keen to criticise. Again, that’s fine. People are permissible to respond to games, results and decisions in whichever way they perceive right, but context is still needed.
Cast your minds back to last season. Norwich sprinted out of the blocks like Usain Bolt, destroying all competition in their path, maybe not in an attractive or destructive manner, but they were winning games. But much like Bolt they pulled up early.
Prior to that infamous self-implosion at St James Park, Norwich sat top of this division. We finished eighth. This slow start is a side effect of a high turnover of squad and a team still gelling with each other.
Expectation is good, and dreaming is imperative; it’s all part of the make-up of being a football supporter. But no team have ever adjusted to a new philosophy effortlessly, and teething problems were inevitable. David Wagner had half a season to implement his philosophy on Huddersfield.
But what comes with expectation is pressure and impatience. I understand the desire for this club to thrive and prosper, believe me – nobody wants this club in the Premier League more than myself. However, the reality is, this is a marathon, and one which will almost definitely continue beyond this campaign. Dream yes, but contextualise too. Four games in, there are ten months to go.
You may wish to rationalise or theorise about why Norwich haven’t entered top gear sooner but the fact is there have been reasons to be cheerful, and that in itself is a positive. Trust is needed, along with the obvious calls for patience and time. There must be a genuine belief that the hierarchy of the club have a clear plan of how to get Norwich back to the rags and riches of the Premier League. You only have to read Mick Dennis’ article on the owners to know there is a plan.
I’m not criticising supporters, nor am I ‘happy clapping’.
I’m simply asking for calm and a shift of thinking. Vendettas against the same players have continued, message-boards are flooded with negativity following a defeat and radio phone-ins seem as disillusioned as ever. We are all better as one, and whilst I accept this is an impossible task, we have to attempt to create an overriding feeling of positivity.
Yet booing at home in the debut game of the campaign is moronic and belittling chances of victory on release of a team-sheet is equally depressing. This was supposed to be a brand new era, wasn’t it?
Yet the fractures are still evident, and that’s also true of City’s fragmented defence.
Supporters can dream but this frenetic league will see Norwich defeat impressive opponents and fall on the sword to teams that less adroit. This is a project and, whilst I understand watching a team grow and develop is time consuming and difficult to grasp, it can be rewarding.
Lambert’s teams of 2009 through to 2012 powered through the leagues and were my greatest years of supporting this club. What was achieved was something we won’t see for a while, if ever. But this gelling period is natural and expected. I know it’s uncomfortable and perplexing but go with it, give it 15-20 games and revaluate.
’m sure it’ll all be okay. The ingredients are on the table.
I understand as a fan base we’ve felt disconnect and are sceptical of change is natural, but this could be a prosperous period. Criticism of defeat is justified but time is required. This is the beginning of a very gruelling and harsh journey, but once you’ve boarded the rollercoaster, you might as well ride it.
Part of me wishes we’d of received a setback in pre-season.
Contextualise. Patience. Trust.
I full agree with all that is written in the above article and as I said in a previous comment patient is a virtue and some city supporters are already proving that they have no patients.
I also mentioned that some commenters in the EDP yesterday (Phil) had already given the season up and stated that he wouldn’t be buying his season ticket next season, if that is his thoughts sell it now to someone that is on the waiting list who might have more constructive comments.
Living in Lancashire I only get to see games local to this area and when I travel to Gt Yarmouth am never able to get tickets to home games, I have to hope that the bbc and EDP online reports during game are faithful to whats happening in the game.
With all the games so close together Farke and his backroom team must be having a nightmare trying to sort out the defensive problems along with injuries and adjusting to a new country/league so all the impatient and embittered supporters think how long it took you to settle into a new job then think of all the other difficulties they face.
The biggest issue I have is that we’re being asked for patience, but we’re not being offered anything in return.
With McNally we had a 5 year plan with very specific goals, culminating in us in the Prem. From Webber/the board I’ve only heard “we need 3-4 windows to sort out the squad”.
Okay. In the meantime, what? We’re just aiming to stay in the league? Go up this year? What’s the goal? Throw us a line.
Because if Webber is saying that we won’t have a legitimate run at promotion for 24 months, I’m not sure I can get behind that. There’s not many jobs you can walk into not commit to any improvement for two years. Maybe he has, behind closed doors. But I think the fans deserve to be told how good does Webber really think this team is and have we really gone backwards?
Dave: I thought you’d read the interviews Steve Stone and Stuart Webber gave us back in May. Apparently, though, you either missed them or have forgotten. The good news: they’re still there to look at, and discover many of the answers to your questions. Stuart Webber has most definitely said more than “we need 3-4 windows to sort out the squad”.
Happy reading!
I read both interviews. I don’t remember any goals being set as to when we will be promoted and I remember specifically looking for that. Happy to be corrected.
It’s important to remember that McNally’s “7 year” plan didn’t exactly get off to a flyer. We lost 7-1 to Colchester, drew 1-1 with Exeter, lost 2-1 to Brentford, won 5-2 over Wycombe, won 2-0 over Hartlepool, drew 0-0 with Walsall, lost 2-1 to MK Dons, drew 2-2 to Charlton, drew 1-1 with Gillingham and won 4-0 over Leyton Orient. 13 points from 30. Funnily enough, that was another overhaul of players etc.
Why the farke did he change a winning team and leave nelson out farke seems to me to be like neil fishing all season and not knowing his best team,our defence is no better than last season,i really fear for the worst and by the way sign 2 more players and try not to loan them out again
Sorry Paul, but if you read the reports, Nelson was injured, Wes is NOT able to play 2 games in 4 days and I guess Maddison was also being rested. Pinto missed a lot of pre season and Klose is still coming back from injury.
I’m happy to give the new regime time.
Paul: As revealed after the game, Nelson had a groin injury. On Saturday morning they didn’t think he could be involved at all, but after treatment he said he could be on the bench and come on if required.
Most message boards and social media sites (especially Twitter) are pure echo chambers. A lot of the users will spout the same vitriol they know their followers will adhere to, whether it’s justified or not. They seem more content with people liking their comment, than the substance of what they’ve said.
All of us were frustrated with the result. However, we all need to understand that this project will take time before it clicks. I fully believe it will.
There’s a real lack of balance in our support base. It’s quite refreshing to see someone someone young offering it. Well done, Connor.
Daniel’s written my thoughts exactly. For those reasons I more or less keep away from reading fan comments on Social Media & I’ve never listened to Canary Call. I find this site generally reliable for a balanced view.
Often in life we aim high and don’t quite achieve the goals we set, but please remember if you don’t aim high you achieve even less. The rebuilding of this club to its full potential will take time but the aim for the season has to be promotion because the financial consequences of less will make the task even harder in future. I agree that slating individuals is the wrong way which is why I prefer this site to the local press. However, if the criticism is fair and reasonably accurate then that should be acceptable. So far the defending has been poor and if people think the cure is a change of personnel then that is a reasonable comment. I would be in that category and would like to see some new, preferably experienced and British, signings in that area. I also believe we need a similar addition to the backroom staff. I continue to support the changes and although I hate roller coasters I am enjoying some parts of the ride.
Where exactly, are these ‘obscure places of the country’, that the Canaries visit?
Just a thought?????
Norfolk!
I meant obscure as, I wouldn’t visit them, the Wigan’s and Hull’s of this world?.
Surely we must rank as the most preached at supporters in the country. Never a day goes by without somebody telling us we must be patient, or criticising in some or way. After two miserable years of failure is it really any wonder to anyone why patience is in short supply?
Change, we are told, is what we were all clamouring for. Yes, we got change. However not the change a good number of us were hoping for,
A wily German coach is our last hope it seems, can he make silk purses out of cheap sows ears?
Since January we have flogged off Olsson, Brady, Canos, Rudd, Murphy, Dorrans, Howson, raking in. Cool 30 million pounds sterling plus. In addition many high earners have been dispensed with, sell out crowds hVe continued, new sponsorship deals have been announced, parachute payments hVe been received. That’s since JANUARY!
Very little expenditure has gone the other way, in fact, we still aren’t comfortable that the asset stripping has finished. Early signs are that we have got precisely what we paid for in terms of the new intake. It would seem that next years wage bill is the most pressing concern for the board and stockpiling money to accommodate the ordinary running of the club the objective.
Having seen Farke in the flesh, he comes across as a thinker, a skilled technician, a decent man. I would hate to see him carry the can for any failures this season.
You be as patient as you like, you justify every sale and tell yourself the team has benefitted from the removal of a Howson or a Murphy, that’s your prerogative. The right of every supporter is to make his or her mind up and while most still hold fire on venturing opinions be in no doubt the clock is ticking and an immediate improvement is necessary.
Failure this season will bring into sharp focus the role of the ownership and board in the clubs decline and the pressure will start to mount. It simply has to.