Coelho

[quote user="First Wizard"][quote user="Coelho"][quote user="First Wizard"] [quote user="InLambertWeTrust"]Is it wrong that I want Norwich players to do well?I just don''t care about England anymore....[/quote]   Nowt wrong in that.....just don''t moan if Liverpool come calling in January...because he''d walk imo. [/quote]Are you implying that Liverpool would bid for Andrew Crofts or Steve Morison, or have I got the wrong end of the stick here?![/quote]   In essance yes, I guess, A Liverpool OR a bigger club than us could well bid for a striker who can score on a regular basis at International level.   Remember Ashton. [/quote]Eh? Dean Ashton who had one international appearance, in which he didn''t score? I''m confused.

It wouldn''t work. If you have a penalty specialist such as Lampard, Ramires might have feigned injury, gone off for treatment and then come back on absolutely fine once Lampard had scored the pen, which would be farcical. And as for ''challenges'', no thanks. Football is a game of human error, and that encompasses officials as well as players. Look at the Ramires penalty – even if we''d appealed it, it was still open to interpretation – if the video replay team decided that Ramires was ''looking for it'' and overturned the decision and booked him for diving, can you imagine the controversy, when there was clear contact with Ruddy? We have to allow officials to use their judgement. I''d hate to see the game stopped for three minutes while the officials went ''under the hood'' like in the NFL, scrutinising endless slow-motion replays while the players stood around kicking their heels. The show must go on...

[quote user="First Wizard"][quote user="InLambertWeTrust"]Is it wrong that I want Norwich players to do well?I just don''t care about England anymore....[/quote]   Nowt wrong in that.....just don''t moan if Liverpool come calling in January...because he''d walk imo. [/quote]Are you implying that Liverpool would bid for Andrew Crofts or Steve Morison, or have I got the wrong end of the stick here?!

The problem with the ''Respect'' campaign is that what most people see is what''s in the Premiership, where criticism is endemic and rampant. Premiership referees universally turn a blind eye to all but the worst foul language and dissent – they can deal with it, it''s a high-pressure environment and players are bound to be angry and frustrated when there''s so much at stake. But what message does this filter down to grass-roots level? We see refs getting castigated on the TV, we see professional players surrounding referees and yelling abuse at them, yet on a Sunday morning in the park we are all supposed to behave as good as gold? It''s time the professional game started setting a proper example, so the millions of people who are exposed to professional football and its coverage start seeing the ''Respect'' campaign being adequately implemented. Sure, the fans are going to chant stuff at referees and get on their back, but they''re big enough to deal with that at the professional level. What we need is for more TV exposure regarding the rules, the correct application of the rules and positive remarks about referees when they get something right. And, most importantly, referees need to be given an edict from the authorities to stamp out dissent and foul language. If you publicly issue a directive saying that ANY dissent will result in an immediate yellow card, and enforce it stringently, players will soon get the message.Now, as for Norwich specifically, nothing personal against those fans who are screaming blue murder and saying ''we''ve been robbed in all three of our games'', but they are wrong because they''re not fully aware of the rules. Wigan – I personally don''t think it was a penalty, but then again the shout on the stroke of half time against Russell Martin WAS a penalty in my opinion, so that evened itself out. Plus, the important lesson to learn was not that ''Premiership refs are bent against the new boys'', but ''that''s what happens if you get caught in possession trying to be smart when you''re the last man''. Stoke – the foul was outside the area, but Walters would have had a clear goalscoring opportunity. Ruddy saved the penalty, so we actually lost nothing as a result of the officials'' misjudgement. Chelsea – it was a penalty, and whether Ramires would have got to the ball in time to put it into the empty net is a moot point. A yellow would have been the easy way out, but I can understand why the referee adjudged that the attacker would have had an opportunity to shoot on goal. Those are generally 50/50 and down to the discretion of the referee. I dare say that if you see Mike Jones give a penalty in the same circumstances later this season, it will also be a red card – as long as he is consistent with his interpretation of the laws, there''s no problem.

Well I''m going to Wembley, so I hope that England win despite heroic efforts from Crofts and Morison. And no Joe Hart howlers please! Much as I like John Ruddy, Hart has the potential to become the best England goalkeeper since Gordon Banks.

I''d very much like to be involved this year, I will try to remember to put a selection in here every week. Good luck one and all!

[quote user="Non matching quote blocks in post"]To be fair you don''t come across as a diplomat move an agent provocateur ....[/quote]I''ll take that as a compliment... they clearly can''t resist my charms [;)]

[quote user="nutty nigel"]As for plastic mods, that is a new concept. Live and let live doesn''t happen on here anymore. There''s always some jobsworth introducing himself to debates, not to take part, but to try and force their own values on others. These jobsworths have now started to believe they speak for everyone else too. Unbelievable Jeff![/quote]I presume I am included among those ''jobsworths'' who were simply trying to stop people bickering and get people involved in constructive debate. The main problem is that so many people seem unwilling or unable to extend an olive branch to other posters. Nothing more boring than a diplomat, is there? [;)]

I think January will be very important for QPR. I wouldn''t be surprised to see us ahead of QPR in the league table at Christmas as Warnock has a lot of big egos to juggle and keep happy. If Taarabt stays beyond January you''ve got a chance, although in both games against us last season Hoolahan was much more effective than Taarabt, who kept running down blind alleys and playing schoolyard football. When he''s on his game, Taarabt is a Champions League-quality player, but he''s not consistent enough for a bigger club to take a gamble on him. That could work in QPR''s favour. Also, Lakshmi Mittal is one of the richest men in the world, and if he and Fernandes are committed to the club long-term then I genuinely believe they can build something sustainable and impressive (other than a new stadium!). If you are struggling around Christmas, expect some more real quality signings to strengthen the squad.SWP''s career has gone down the pan since he left Man City the first time, although ever since he''s been a fringe player - it''s cause and effect. Was he not in the team because he''d lost the plot, or did he lose the plot because he wasn''t in the team? If he''s playing week in, week out then he could rediscover his form and be a handy player this season. Barton will be the heartbeat of the team and is easily the best signing you''ve made this summer. If he can avoid disciplinary problems then he will be what Parker was for West Ham last season - head and shoulders above the rest. Ferdinand is a decent acquisition, Gabbidon and Dyer both highly questionable signings.The main problem is getting the team to gel - a good team on paper doesn''t mean squat. Just ask Newcastle from 2008/9 or West Ham from last year. If the cohesion and togetherness isn''t there, you could still be in danger no matter how much you spend. Sure, our signings haven''t made much impression on the national press or fans of other teams, but we have young, hungry players and an extremely settled dressing room, and even if we do come up a little bit short this season we won''t be full of overpaid has-beens who can''t be arsed to play Championship football. QPR have the potential to achieve a huge amount with the current owners, but I think we have cut our cloth according to our more modest means and are much more united as a team and a club. Time will tell...

My mate who lives right next to the ground said that he''d seen him at the ground this morning, but I think he''s just seen the posts on BBC/Twitter and is trying to wind me up. I remain extremely sceptical.

[quote user="Salopian"]We all seem to have been a little mesmerised by the stream of transfers this summer, with perhaps £8m plus spent, a goodly proportion of the so-called £40m to come our way by 2012. Perhaps we are so slightly excited by the level of spending not seen for some years that we are all looking for more before the end of this day. PL has given a fairly good hint that he wants to keep some money back, to meet needs perceivable in January. It''s true that players are cheaper in the summer, although by today selling clubs will up the price to January levels, partly because they know our desperation and partly because they will be taking a slight risk in selling a good player now. PL is surely right, however. It would be foolhardy to splurge all now when we don''t know what will happen between now and January. Players can lose form, or worse, could sustain a long-term injury. Some players have shown already that they have taken to the Premiership, others have yet to do so.If we have spent out now we may have invested in the wrong areas of the side. We could finish with sveral strikers sitting it out, and no adequate fullback cover, for instance. I would like to have insurance, to have more players, but signings now would be very short-term, be expensive and not meet our needs in December/January.[/quote]Remember in January you will have players in the last six months of their contract who will be able to leave for free next summer, so clubs may take a reduced fee rather than lose them for nothing. Other than an emergency loan or short-term contract for an experienced goalkeeper, I think we should go with what we have for now. Having five centre-backs on the books already is enough - Ward and Whitbread shouldn''t be out for long.

[quote user="Bethnal Yellow and Green"][quote user="Bethnal Yellow and Green"]I thought Whitbread was our best defender against Stoke, not sure what Barnett has done to come straight back into the team after making a mistake which cost us 2 points - regardless of whether it was a penalty or not, or even an accidental clash, Barnett dallied on the ball and was punished.[/quote] I meant Wigan of course. [/quote]But against Wigan, De Laet made a mistake which cost us a goal, and shortly afterwards Whitbread also got caught in possession in his own half leading to a dangerous breakaway. Bit unfair to criticise Barnett but not the other two - any defender will make mistakes over the course of a season. We have three very good centre backs who are still adapting to the pace of the Premiership; I don''t think there''s a great deal between the three of them, they all have a great deal of quality IMO.

[quote user="Chunky Norwich"]Exactly. Really gets on my goat this if-you''re-not-a-season-ticket-holder-you''re-not-a-proper-fan mentality. Of the 13k last night, I bet half were dirty casuals meaning about 16k season ticket holders couldn''t be bothered to shell out a tenner to watch a competitive Norwich game last night[/quote]I shelled out a tenner even though I knew it wasn''t going to be a ''competitive'' game! One of my mates (not a Norwich fan, I hasten to add) actually had 50p on 4-0 MK Dons at 130/1. There were 12 of us in total - mostly ''dirty casuals'' plus myself and another couple of season ticket holders - and I did warn everyone before the match that we would lose. I''ve taken a whole load of abuse from my ''mates'' over the performance (all good-natured, of course), but I couldn''t really care less as long as we''re up for it on Saturday.

[quote user="Armchair Follower"]Is it me? or did Jenny Kirk seem to take extra delight in the reporting of last nights result against the BBC''s newest bum chums MK Dons on breakfast TV today ?[/quote]Well if she did, we can all take comfort from the fact that if you spoonerise her name it becommes Kenny Jerk.

[quote user="pete_norw"] [quote user="Nexus_Canary"]Leyton Orient ???Tonight was a waste of time, we have bigger fish to fry  :)[/quote]the team last night were made up of players that will probably not be in the 25 [/quote]That''s just about as wrong as it''s possible to be. Rudd, Ayala and Korey won''t need to be in the 25 because they are young enough not to qualify (and Ayala is a ''home-grown'' player). Martin, Whitbread, Drury, Fox, Hoolahan, Wilbraham, Surman and Jackson were the other eight starters, and they will all be in the final 25.