Further to the above, it must be hard for those who won´t or can´t accept, that by PL standards we are a small club. Not that that means we should just accept relegation as a matter of course, because I don´t think we should, but it should be taken into consideration when gauging our chances against the rest of the league. As much as some might wish it, we can´t change the manager twice a season, pay millions over the odds for players to get us out of trouble, without getting ourselves into serious financial straits. I can certainly accept it, not least because it happens to be true, and I´m just happy knowing that McNally understands it. A less dutiful, watchful and conscientious CEO might easily have driven the club over the edge, by now.
Indeed RBF and our owners don't have the 'deep pockets' of Mike Ashley etc Whilst I respect of comments of KIO in saying that McNally et al should go, I'm almost certain that had Doomcaster not been pushed/jumped then we would never have experienced the heady days of successive promotions etc and a far more likely scenario is that NCFC would have ceased to exist as we know it. Whilst like most fans/posters, I'd rather we'd managed to stave off the prospect of relegation, I'm hopeful that we'll use next season to rebuild the team by bringing in some more promising youngsters to give them a chance to prove themselves.
Much as I agree with the recent comments by RBF and BH, it does still seem odd to me that having fought so hard to achieve promotion last May, so little was done last summer to try and reaffirm, consolidate and establish our place in the top flight. To wait until January to bring in a CB and a (as yet unconvincing) RB, by which time we were already in the bottom 5 or 6 is surely unacceptable, when the board and manager knew from the outset what we'd be up against in terms of trying to merely survive? If the club was crippled with external debt, you could perhaps understand it, but it isn't - and we are where we are deservedly. Sorry, but I believe that to be true. Arrogance or negligence? And I don't swallow this nonsense, either. If you can't defend as a unit or create goals as a unit, you deserve exactly what you get - next to boogie all, as recent results would suggest. http://www.skysports.com/football/n...are-better-than-recent-results-would-suggest? Fingers crossed for a Howson howitzer (or two) tomorrow
I'd also add how difficult it has appeared to be to attract the players we want to our club. On all sorts of levels we're at a disadvantage in this league but it's where we want to be.
Excellent post Cromer and IMO to try and survive in the PL with a defence that leaked 'soft' goals does tend to indicate negligence in my book, as that has been our 'achilles heel' for several years. We've got away with it in the past, because we could score more, but CJ has squandered several chances to score in recent weeks/months that would at least have seen us above Sunderland going into the last few weeks of the season!!!!
Griping over what some feel we´ve failed to do in the past isn´t really going to help our current situation in any way though, Cromer. As Hairy pointed out, we haven´t got nearly the same drawing power as many of the established PL sides. The fact that we were almost destined to have a season of relegation fight on our hands would certainly put some players off, others wouldn´t want a life out in the sticks, others wouldn´t want to come and play for an ´unknown´ manager, and so and so on. Failure to capture players may not entirely be down to negligence on the part of the board. Picking up a couple of CB gems at a price we could afford, isn´t necessarily the piece of cake, some would like it to be. Certainly we deserve to be where we are, I don´t think any one disputes that, especially not Alex Neil. The league table never lies, all we can root for, is that we end up top of our 4 team mini-league come May.
I remember saying long ago we should have tried to sign Curtis Davies to shore up the defence. I agree with some of what you say RBF, especially when you say that we'll never be able to tempt some of the better players until we become an established PL side (if ever). IMO, our best hope of doing that is we can unearth the next Gareth Bale, Theo Walcott etc coming through the academy!!!! Message to AN (or whoever our manager is next season) - please at least give Harry Toffolo a run out in the team, as he must be an improvement on Olsson!!!! Also implore on the wing backs that if they lose the ball in the opponents' half they MUST track back to help out in defence!!!!
No comments on last night's FA Cup game. I felt the Palarse penalty was VERY soft and so the sending off would not have happened either. Ali Al-Habsi very nearly saved the penalty and made some fantastic saves.
Neil Warnock working his magic again. 3 wins from 3, then 3-0 down at home to Derby and all their spending. It's now 3-3!! Really impressive.
Bournemouth win yet again....I wanted them to stay up at the start of the season, as the seasons gone on, I went off them because of Afobe, and we were relegation rivals. Suppose now they are miles from us, I'm slowly feeling glad again that they will stay up. Think my ill feeling is all jealousy at the moment.
Diego Costa bites Barry in FA Cup match!? Come on! What the hell is he doing?! Blokes another Suarez in many ways, and has now taken up biting too!
I don't think little was done though. I think hard work took place to identify potential targets within our budget. Unfortunately. A lot of these players had bigger ideas either financially or in terms of Champions League football etc, or just didn't want to take the risk of joining little ole Norwich. That's how it's going to be a the time being, but I have to say that AN has brought some quality (as well as some toss) into the squad as yesterday demonstrated
Yes, point taken. Problem with that concept is until we become 'established' like Stoke, Saints, even West Brom, players of the desired calibre are not going to join the club - until players of that required standard commit and join us, we'll never become an 'established' Premier League side. Chicken and egg personified
MASSIVE test for Rafa tonight. Not sure he'd seriously expect to beat Leicester, but the next 2 matches - at home to Sunderland and away to NCFC ...............
I'll be flailing blue and white flags, scarves, etc like a thing possessed - for the first time in my entire life!
It seems to be working Cromer - Leicester have just taken the lead. I hope AN is watching - Ranieri names an unchanged starting 11. Edit - just seen that Ankara has put his toys back in his pram and is staying at Boro.
