Stewart Lewis

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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

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. […]

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 […]

“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 […]

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 […]

Let’s take a breath. With 18 games remaining, nothing is “must win”. Panic is neither helpful nor justified. We’re second in the league, and we’re what commentators say we are: a very good team at this level, with a formula for success. That said, our mini-blip has of course put added focus and pressure on […]

I was proud of myself for preparing most of this column a week early. Bad idea. Like the planned visit to my mum in Norfolk over Christmas, it’s had to go back to the drawing board. Part of my preview was an assessment of why Watford’s manager won Manager of the Month for November, and […]

I hesitate to mention this, as it may lead some readers to check my record. There’s no denying it’s a shocking record. And if you’re holding me to account, there are some new offences to be taken into consideration. Yes: each year the MFW writers make their predictions for the eventual top six and bottom […]

Let me start with a disclosure. I have a soft spot for Coventry. True, I didn’t in May 1985 when they beat champions Everton (already in their flip-flops and swimming trunks) 4-1 to ensure their survival and condemn Norwich to relegation from the top flight. But a lot of water has flowed under the bridge […]

Let me open with a disclaimer.  I find it difficult to take a balanced view of AFC Bournemouth. The problem stems, of course, from its portrayal on the BBC and elsewhere as “plucky little Bournemouth”, “Cinderella team Bournemouth” and so on. Not to put too fine a point on it, that’s irritating garbage which makes […]