Even the rain seems far less wet And the wind much less cold, And some of us can too, forget That we are getting old, And to hell if our latest bet Did not bring in the gold, It´s just amazing what one win can do Quite suddenly those major aches And pains all disappear, And from feeling not in great shakes Life´s easier to bear, That really is all that it takes When doom and gloom are near, It´s just amazing what one win can do Those petty feuds and arguments Which seemed unsolvable, That only needed common sense And being reasonable, Can soon be agreed on like gents Not like some raging bulls, It´s just amazing what one win can do And to those whom it matters most They can take much belief, And not fear that they´ll come to roast Under another chief, And as I´m writing this new post That fills me with relief, It´s just amazing what one win can do Although it was three points only It feels like so much more, Despite the win being homely ´Twas an unlikely score, So let´s hope it won´t feel lonely As we now hope to soar, It´s just amazing what one win can do. OTBC Up and at´em on Sunday!
Yes you have summed up my thoughts there RBF and the relief is immense (at least until next weekend). Funny how the outers have all gone quiet, perhaps the penny has just started to drop and there is an acceptance now that there is a very fine line between us scoring and winning 1-0 as opposed to hitting the post and say Soldado scoring for 0-1. That said the team's spirit and togetherness as well as their support for the manager is also obvious.
Very sadly I don´t think it will have changed an awful lot THURNBY, it would be nice to think that the improvement in form lately might have made some difference, but I fear the mutterings are only just under the surface waiting to rise again at the first opportunity.
Not from me. I have seen enough in the last month to accept that the seeds of change do appear to have been sown, just got to hope they grow well from here on in
Personally my regard for Hughton has grown since his appointment.The problem is that people were criticising because we were in the mix with eight or nine other clubs.It's totally unrealistic to think that we wouldn't be involved at least on the fringe of the melee,but that is what has happened.We have been out of the relegation zone for more than half the season and most of the fears have been unfounded. This time last week people were posting that we could be in the bottom three by the time we went out to play Spurs and the obvious implication was that we would lose and stay there.People were factoring in Cardiff beating Hull and Sunderland getting something at The Emirates in a sort of reverse clutching at straws.Our relegation odds are currently 7/2.On the opening day of the season they were 3/1.
I think that your summary of us being on the fringe of the relegation fight is very true Cruyff. Although I am firmly behind CH (and have been throughout) I am a tad disappointed that we are not a little more comfortable than we are - maybe another 4 or 5 points which would have come from beating Cardiff and Fulham at home would psychologically have made a huge difference at htis time. Still, that is football.
Aye Cruyff it was I who posted regarding the slim chance that we might slip into the unspeakable zone - my frustration has been borne of us not being where I think we should be - safe by now and able to unleash a bit - we have never been able to relax this season and the tension has been unbearable at times - (Though not, as RBF so beautifully pens about this week) - I feel the team has potential but is shackled by the pressures of being over cautious - and being over cautious has never led to creativity IMO. I hope this is a bit of a turning point - someone posted about Johnson's game - everything he usually tries to do actually worked and I was delighted - let us all benefit!
Hughton is still on probation for me, as I'm not convinced that he's choosing match-winning tactics deliberately, or being forced into them though injury and then sticking with them when things go well. His choice of subs still leaves something to be desired at times too. However, he is an inexperienced coach, and at times he's not had decent options from the bench, so I can forgive him that for now (well, now being when I'm feeling level-headed after a win!). Where he seems to have been very good is the transfer market, and with potentially £30m to spend in the summer, I'm hopeful he's the man to bring in the players to complete the transformation of our squad into one of premier league standard, without risking our financial stability in the way Lambert seemed to want to. If he makes 4-5 quality additions this summer, with at least two offering midfield creativity, then I feel positive about our future under his leadership. Hopefully the signings will give him proper options from the bench too, and his subs can have a greater impact.
The supporters of many of the clubs involved most likely think that way.Imagine being a Baggie looking at the table and thinking about that injury time penalty that allowed Jose's Little Horses to rob them of two points that might preserve their Premiership status.But then look at the bottom upwards.Fulham,Cardiff,Sunderland,West Brom,Palace,Stoke.The six teams below us all have one thing in common-they ditched the gaffer.
Absolutely, and another success story has been West Ham who similarly held on to Sam (just!) Like I have said on other threads only Jol, Di Canio and Holloway were justified sackings IMO as thye had lost the plot totally. Things like the Swansea and West Brom situations are ludicrous and the Cardiff debacle makes the owner look a complete t*sser - which of course he is and I sincerely hope that they get relegated for that reason. Who are the Bluebirds dad? - Oh they are the ones playing in red son!
Fulham still have a bit of fight in them and would have had three points at WBA were it not for Hawkeye.Cardiff just look like they have gone and I am now wondering whether they will get to 30 points.Crazy guy,crazy appointment.
Team selection 7/10 Team effort and workrate 8/10 Defensive stats 8/10 Goals scored 3/10 Subs used 7/10 We are playing well and keeping clean sheets, this is a platform we can build on as long as we score the odd goal. Hughton is learning and that is reassuring ....
If we beat Villa on Sunday, then start to score two goals in a single match I'll start to think we've turned a corner. We're a long way from safety yet and I'm amazed at the people on here thinking beating spuds will mean we won't go down ! A down turn in results next week and it's not so rosey. But we have been playing better football in the last three or four matches( at least going forward, we still have a monumental **** up at the back each game) so there are for me small signs it will get better. But I still want him gone in the summer.
chippy - I really would love to know, why, because by your own admission, performances have improved recently, belief and confidence is clearly beginning to return to the players, and as we all know, confidence is a major factor in getting a result. Just to say " but I still want him gone in the summer" does tend to sound a little like having an agenda, irrespective of what he does between now and then. I don´t think we´ve ever had a manager who has had to work under such a barrage of pressure and discontentment, for so long, and who despite that, is still managing to keep his cool, and his dignity, and pulling some good results out of the hat, while keeping the loyalty and the commitment of the players as well. I think he almost deserves a medal for doing as well as he has done. Yes, he´s cautious by nature, but is that necessarily a mortal sin for a manager? All along, he´s admitted that it is finding the right balance between keeping things tight at the back while at the same time having a threat going forward, that is the biggest task in the Premier League. I think lately he´s begun to show that he´s finding that balance, more often than not. The fact that this season so many players seem to be makÃng individual errors, which are very likely down to lack of confidence due to our position, can in all seriousness, not be layed at his door, and anyway despite those individual errors (often at the back) we´ve still kept, how many clean sheets this year? Speaking for myself, I´m very optimistic as regards the end of the season, and I think and hope, that if we continue in the same vein as the last three or four games, and end safely well clear of the relegation places, that he will be asked to stay and continue what he has started.
Yep, we have so many that no away team has scored at Carrow Road in 2014 (in the league). Unfortunately I've probably put the kiss of death on that...
Have to say there is NOT a competition between outers an dinners with a burning desire to be proved right. I've never been an inner but have been pushed onto the fence for long periods. A stunning performance and I just LOVE BEING PROVED WRONG!!!! Inners, outers or shake it all abouters we take a stance because we care about the club, its players and its fans - not being right. When I am pessimistic and it comes to pass I HATE BEING RIGHT!!!
I think you have to look at the injury list this season. If you compare us to West Ham I'd say we've had more of our important players missing for longer in the season. West Ham just got Andy Carroll and a couple of others back and they are clearly doing better. We have had 3 or 4 key players injured all season and it has restricted us. Now these players are back and our peformances are clearly improving. Tettey, Howson, both Bennetts, Turner, RvW, Hooper have all been injured for long periods this season, many at the same time and that has clearly hampered our progression, especially Howson and Tettey as has often been said. Tettey really does make our team click that bit better in defence and then allows us to get forward quicker.
