Match Day Thread Norwich city v Reading

I couldn’t agree more.

This is a nothing result. It was a good come back from an early (wonder) goal against a team that then parked the bus. We managed two goals, should probably have had at least two more (Jordan Rhodes how could you!) And then they end up scoring a scuffed winner which turned into another screamer.

Luck wasn’t ours today, and to be honest a few players looked a little flat footed. Same as against Preston.

Point won, still well clear of third place, we move on.

 

The most interesting takeaway from tonight for me is that Reading approached the game very differently to Preston. The Royals defended very deep even before the goal, one wayward pass from us and they score on the counter.

Preston, by contrast, pressed hard from the off, caught us with our pants down and kept at it. Then they got a bit lucky, but managed the game out and made it comfortable by scoring more on the break, but they were still quite advanced.

We’ve then had eight teams in a row broadly try to emulate Preston, pressing us hard and getting in our faces. They didn’t get Preston’s luck and in the end in each of those matches that gave us space to pass round them.

It will be interesting to see if in all our remaining games the teams we face instead try to emulate Reading and treat us like we’re Liverpool or something.

 

I've no idea whether I consider that a point gained, or two dropped. But what it definitely is, is another game chalked off without a significant dent put into our lead.

Win at the weekend, in front of 5000 travelling fans, and this result will be irrelevant.

 

You want it in Mandarin with an extra Reading option ?

 

I did wear it for Dinner at the family. I really thought it wasn't going to work last night. But still undefeated in it!

 

Really frustrating game. We weren't at our best, but we still battered them. It just wasn't going in. Reading only worried us 3 times, and 2 went in. We should have wrapped that game up easily. A lot of poor individual performances, but Sheff United drew. So a point is ok. I was sure we were never going to actually score for most of that game. At that point, if I was offered a 2-2 draw, I would have snapped your hand off.

When I saw 6 minutes injury time I was stunned how they came up with that, but just expected we would play until Reading scored. Then they score in the 7th Minute of injury time.

 

Steve Gedge‏@stevegedge

Every promotion season has results like tonight's. At 0-1 I'd have taken a point. A 2-2 draw at Middlesbrough and a 1-0 win tonight and no-one would have been complaining. #ncfc

 

The important thing is that we now have five games left with ( effectively with an 8 GD over Leeds) a seven point lead over both chasers. Of course it is possible that they will both take fifteen points from their games in which case we will need nine, much more likely that one or the other won't take more than ten points. In that case we would need five from five games.

 

In further good news, the gap .......yawning chasm got another point wider! We have comfortably more than 3 times as many points as them and with 14 pts between them and safety, surely Birmingham will nail the coffin shut at the portaloo on Saturday!

Bah!

 

Sheffield United at home to Millwall
Leeds v Wednesday in the late kick off.

Conspiracy theorists may accuse Wednesday of helping Leeds to scupper their rivals .

We just need to match the other results or better until Buendia returns .

Still a bit nervy but quietly confident.

 

Hopefully the players will respond by raising their game against Wigan, who will also be desperate for points. A crucial game as after that it'll be 2 homes and 2 aways for everybody. Yes, we dominated possession, but we did so by playing too slowly which suited Reading's rearguard tactics. Hopefully Vrancic will start and give us more guile and movement at Wigan.

 

I think Farke wanted to keep as close to the same 11 that got those 8 straight wins .
Unfortunately Cantwell hadn't had much game time and struggled from what I have heard but faith in the kids has paid off over the season.

McLean can play right wing but that would mean 2 changes in the line up with his place being replaced.

So he went like for like .

 

Can Vrancic be a possible Buendia replacement? He's left footed, but I'd like to see him cut inside, and roam like Emi does.

 

Thanks for that FML and we were definitely denied at least one penalty shout. Yet another game when the opposition GK has played a blinder.
Many of the fans around me were saying at about 75 minutes that they’d take a point and we were never going to win all our remaining games.

 

He has played there before quite effectively and is more of a goalscoring threat than Cantwell.

The Sky commentators played back the penalty incident and thought it was definitely a foul and a penalty. Both the lino and the ref were in good view of it. Having said that, we'd probably have missed it anyway!

 

I know it's supposed to be the safe way to run out the game, but we give up the ball too often when we do that. We don'y have to attack the goal, just play keep-a-way. TBH I just don't care for it. For me it's in the same category as our throw-ins where we throw the ball at someone's feet and they kick it straight back to Lewis, or whoever.