Somebody once divided the lead male characters in literature into “Sincere Man” and “Authentic Man”. “Sincere Man” is sensitive, responsible, respectful – the kind of man you’d be happy for your daughter to bring home. “Authentic Man” is rather different – a force of nature in whom sensitivity and politeness come a distant second to […]
Stuart Webber – a busted flush, or our best hope?
“Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears. I come to bury Caesar, not to praise him. The evil that men do lives after them; The good is oft interred with their bones” Julius Caesar, Act III Scene II. Actually, Mark Antony did come to praise Caesar, and to turn the crowd against his critics and […]
CITY v BLACKBURN (A) – THE PREVIEW
I knew it would be painful. But it had to be done. I just checked back to the pundits’ and bookies’ pre-season view of this year’s Championship. Favourites to win the division were … yes, Norwich City. “With not too many changes to the squad and Dean Smith in charge, Norwich are looking for a […]
Wonderful, horrible, uplifting, gut-wrenching – the world of the Championship
Football people – not least we fans – are notoriously poor at learning from history. But there’s one mistake I’m determined not to repeat. At this point of previous Championship seasons, with City still having a prize to play for, I decided it would help to predict the final outcome if I listed our and […]
NORWICH v HULL CITY (H) – THE PREVIEW
One of my pet hates is the over-hyping of a single game’s importance. To describe a match in the middle of a 46-game season as “make-or-break” or “a six-pointer” is ridiculous. Unless it’s referring to the employment prospects of a Watford manager, of course. Then “make-or-break” may be fair enough – but absurd if it’s […]
CITY v WATFORD (H) – THE PREVIEW
If you find yourself on the rota to preview a Norwich-Watford, game, the cardinal rule is “Don’t write it too early”. The usual reason is the likelihood of Watford changing manager in the days before the game. Though it would be rash to discount the possibility of Watford carrying out one of their regular executions […]
CITY vs BLACKBURN: THE PREVIEW
Saturday will be our 23rd league game, marking the halfway point of the season. At this stage, we should have some clarity about City’s prospects and the way forward. Except that we don’t. Three times in recent years Norwich have gone into a Championship season with a very strong squad for the division. At this […]
CITY v WATFORD (A) – THE PREVIEW
I want to like them, I really do. Watford’s the local team where I live and many friends support them. As foreign owners go, Watford’s are decent on community involvement and support. And, of course, the club has followed a parallel path to City’s in recent years. We should feel some solidarity. There are three reasons, of […]
CITY v HULL CITY (A) – THE PREVIEW
No disrespect to my neighbours here in Hertfordshire, but their geography of eastern England occasionally leaves something to be desired. Knowing my beloved Norwich are visiting Hull, a number have suggested it’s an easy trip for the Canaries: “Just up the coast, isn’t it?” Well, not quite. It’s a gruelling journey physically; it’s also often […]
For now we see through a glass, darkly. But it won’t stop us speculating
It’s not my norm to begin articles – or anything else – with a Biblical quotation. This time, however, it seems apt. We now have the fixtures. We have the new branding. Closer to our capabilities on the field, we know of two additions: Isaac Hayden and a new set-piece coach. Beyond that, it’s all […]
WEST HAM PREVIEW: More at stake than might appear at first glance
Another Norwich game – at this stage, who cares? Well, there are one or two reasons to. I’ll get to a preview of the game. First, with your indulgence, a detour. A good friend of mine is a life-long Fulham fan. We share thoughts and reminiscences on the – remarkably similar – highs and lows […]
MAN CITY PREVIEW: A free hit for Norwich. Just don’t look at the stats…
In the past three weeks, City have woken up, and shaken up, the bottom half of the Premier League. Finally given a near-fit squad, Dean Smith had galvanised them into a competitive team. Whether or not inspired by the 120-mile-distant Billy Gilmour as the BBC would have us believe – I think not, though I’m happy […]
PALACE PREVIEW: Can City reward the journeys of their loyal travelling fans?
Regular readers will recall that, while I grew up in Norfolk and will always call it home, I’ve lived the past 35 years in Hertfordshire, around 20 miles from London. When local friends raise an eyebrow at my driving to Norwich every fortnight, my standard reply is “It’s easier than getting to Crystal Palace”. And […]
MAN UTD PREVIEW: Sad but correct managerial changes, and my own dilemma
It’s always special preparing for a City game against one of big boys. Trying to imagine ways we could thwart them – weaknesses we might exploit, ploys we might try, all aided by a fervent Carrow Road crowd. There’s an extra personal challenge for me this time. Because of her various commitments, this will be […]
BRENTFORD PREVIEW: What next for the faltering Canaries?
I have a dilemma. There are several things I ought to be doing this Saturday. I also have a ticket for Brentford. There’s a strident voice in my head – which I suspect will be echoed by comments on this article – telling me it would be madness to expect anything other than another miserable […]
“We’re doomed – doomed, I tell ye!” But are we?
I’m not here to rubbish the pessimists about Norwich City’s prospects. How could I be? The facts are stark: six played, six lost. Yes, we had the toughest starting fixtures imaginable – but we’ve also been beaten, convincingly, at home by Watford. Whatever the strengths of our squad, they haven’t thus far played with a […]
WATFORD PREVIEW – The season starts here
The real test of whether Norwich City can survive in the top flight begins at Carrow Road tomorrow. Before we come back and expand on that, a brief detour to Watford – the club closest to where I live, though not to my heart. My Watford-supporting friends assure me I’m safe to write this column. […]
QPR PREVIEW: City still fighting for the title – and they’ll certainly need to
It matters, and it won’t be easy. I’ve spent a chunk of the past week pushing back on suggestions that it would be a let-down if we fail to win the title. The first and overriding aim of this season was promotion back to the Premier League. It’s fantastic that we achieved it with five […]
PRESTON PREVIEW: Curses, howls of protest and a fog of confusion
“The closer he looked, the less he could make out, the deeper everything sank into the gloom” No need to know the literacy reference (though big respect if you do). The quote is from Kafka’s The Castle. It’s indelibly marked on my memory because it was a question in my final university exam. Just the […]
BRENTFORD PREVIEW: Two clubs who deserve success, but no divided loyalties
This is not a six-pointer. This is not a six-pointer. This is not a six-pointer. It’s as well that I’ve come to that conclusion, as our editor Gary made clear he’d disapprove any use of the phrase. There are extreme cases where I might try to persuade him that a match deserved the label, despite […]