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Where do we go from here?

Where do we go from here?

28th December 2022 By Phil Huish 7 Comments

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It was clear for some time that the tenure of Dean Smith as head coach of Norwich City was coming to an end. I described us as being in a holding pattern following the Blackburn game where we were simply awaiting the end of his era.

It has also been clear that just replacing Dean Smith will not resolve all of the issues around the club at the moment.

In tough times relationships get strained, which leads to people saying and doing things that they may later regret. So in order to move forward and all in the same direction, there needs to be a reset in these relationships followed by an open and honest discussion about *how* we move forward.

The first thing that needs fixing is the relationship between the club, the fans, and local media. This is the most important thing to do but also the hardest to fix as it will take time and some frank discussions about what has happened in the recent past.

A successful Norwich is what everyone wants but that cannot happen if we are not all pulling in the same direction. There was clearly a breakdown of trust between the club and the media following the reveal of Mark Attanasio’s attendance at the Spurs game in May but if the club thinks it can succeed without the local media onside then they are sorely mistaken. Preventing local media from attending the AGM felt petty and counterproductive to me.

The relationship between the supporters and the club also needs to be improved. We are more than just paying punters, we are members of Norwich City Football Club. The clue is in the name.

Regular, open and honest communication between the board and the members of the club need to be maintained, and that should include interviews where local media can challenge answers that are given and discussions with the many supporter groups.

Withholding the home attendance from the Blackburn game felt a bit childish. I understand they may have felt that it would have inflamed an already tense situation but only releasing it on the official match report felt like the wrong thing to do. 

In an industry where data is key they could release two numbers, the number of tickets sold and the number of people who go through the turnstiles. It shouldn’t be hard to do and they must have the data already at hand.

Once we are all pulling in a similar direction we then need to work out what the direction is. If you go back to 2017, there was an understanding that we were a club that couldn’t afford to go out and spend vast sums of money to try and compete with the big boys. That is still true.

It should also be understood that if there is at any point a full takeover by Mark Attanasio, this wouldn’t change significantly. We may get a new City Stand or new policies on betting and betting sponsorship but spending £100M+ on players every season is not going to happen.

That leaves me with the question I started with: “Where do we go from here?”

For me, the biggest mistake we have made as a club in the last 18 months, and Dean Smith in particular, is we have not brought through enough players from the academy. On top of that, I would say that under Smith only Josh Sargent looks like a better player than when he started. 

The only way we can sustain a push up the leagues is by getting players in cheap and selling expensively. We need to get back to that mantra and worry less about players coming in and more about players coming through. 

It is possible to build on small foundations and work your way up the leagues, with Brentford being the perfect example. They’ve rarely spent big on players but they’ve done a lot with the data they know who to bring in and where they will fit into their system.

The mistake Stuart Webber has made more than once is that he’s brought in what he deems ‘good players’ without knowing how they fit in the system. There’s also the fact that Smith never looked like a continuation of the mould of Daniel Farke.

Until that mistake is acknowledged by the club then we are going nowhere except down the table.

Looking further forward, I don’t see Delia and Michael being in charge of the club for too much longer, and new owners will hopefully bring new ideas on how to bridge the gap between the Premier League and the Championship.

Ultimately, they may only offer a better focus and new takes on the existing ideas but that in itself will be a step forward.


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Filed Under: Column, Phil Huish

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Comments

  1. Bernard+Owen says

    28th December 2022 at 9:06 am

    On your second to last paragraph where you don’t see Mr and Mrs Wynne-Jones being at the club much longer, er 6 months, six years or later. Only failing health would move them and they look like a fit pair of octanagerians.

    And if it’s the latter, we could move the club lock stock and barrel to Bridport, at least it would then be on the Jurassic coast.

    Reply
  2. Canaryjim says

    28th December 2022 at 9:14 am

    I think we have little to no hope of Webber admitting his and the clubs failures he just doesn’t see it .
    Maybe he might go South American manager .

    Reply
  3. Toad says

    28th December 2022 at 9:44 am

    If we had genuine intentions of getting to the Premier league and staying there, you wouldn’t resign players like Kenny Toothpaste, who is a middle champ player at best.

    Suck it up until the fans force the owners out. They are lancing the enjoyment out of football for some curious notion of security. This is football, a cathartic separation from the security of everyday life, not a mortgage rate. We need the ups and downs and excitement to come together as fans. I remember going down to League 1 and fighting back. As hard as it was, it was a beautiful rebirth and Ipswich are getting 28k while a league below. The downs made the highs worthwhile and now watch Ipswich leapfrog us due to their momentum.

    We had a fine opportunity to stake a claim as a Premier league club and its fading with every game these owners cling onto power. They saved the club many years ago…agreed…but we owe them nothing. They did it for the fame and subsequent local kudos, not the club. That is obvious now because they should have sold 20 years ago to cement a legacy, but instead pushed the cheap option to maintain power and their political agenda. We even have campaigns to erect a statue of a man that had one good season and ended his own life in a garage because of the very serious issues following him. What a farce.

    Oh well, at least we have a lovely training pitch in replacement for the ludicrous debts that are rearing their ugly head.

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  4. canarylad says

    28th December 2022 at 10:32 am

    The stowmarket duo will not be going anywhere, the relegations we have had were the ideal opportunity to find a buyer and step aside into another role. Sadly didn’t happen. other people stepped up to be scapegoats. As to Webber what a great job he has,allowed time off to climb other mountains plus the Missus is on the board to hear any moans and groans. That is where the trouble lay, Yes player have come in who clearly were not up to the mark of the premiership, some even look like the championship can be included. Allowing 3 wingers to go on loan, that cost a fair few bob, did make many scratch the the hard to find itch. How many employers would allow these glaring mistakes to go without some action.
    We do we go ?. I would say the cycle will start again, those up the top see little wrong on the green stuff until things turn a little uncomfortable, it’s those the pesky fans and local media which are the problem.

    Until big changes are made, things will stay much the same. They have a chance of getting in a coach that fitted the philosophy Webber spoke of, of Farke being the first in a line, yea first hurdle he get Smudger in, hardly anything about him, that filed in the number 2, of a line of similar coaches. Players I cannot blame so much, who would turn down a move to a premiership/championship club, somebody believe they were good enough. they themselves aren’t going to say different are they.

    It is higher that the coaches box at side of the pitch, eyes have to be cast up to the directors box

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  5. Bill Higgins says

    28th December 2022 at 1:15 pm

    We need a director of football who’s head is in the game not off on some mountain trip.

    2
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  6. Mikey B says

    28th December 2022 at 5:40 pm

    Maybe I’m mistaken but didn’t Delia announce in her favourite newspaper during a successful run of results a few years ago, that she was handing the club over to Hapless Nephew Tom? So, unless he’s won the Euromillions and kept it quiet, nothing will be changing anytime soon.

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    • Canarylad says

      29th December 2022 at 11:17 am

      She did MikeyB. More than once I believe, so we will another highly experienced owner of our football club. I think there should be something that can be done to stop this family inheritance style . It really isn’t their club to do with what they wish, that’s a plaything. But while the this style ownership is legal we have no say on what happens. As an exampIe In on a supporter group, in meetings, we put forward very realistic ideas that cost nothing. That was approx 10:years ago, those ideas have never seen light of day. Wonder how many others have that experience

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