If you can't beat Rotherham at home

[canarydan23 4,060]

36 minutes ago, PockthorpePete said:

It is not about being happy, it is about having a bit of a grasp on reality. No one is claiming the season has gone as well as most expected. But to be endlessly whining helps no one. I've seen whiners come and go, as soon as the 'bandwagon' stops.  I've stood freezing my t its off midweek at Grimsby.  I've seen the highs and lows, and like others I've learnt to take the good with the bad. That's what comes with supporting a club outside the top six.

However we are in a better position to make the playoffs than we were Friday morning. So that is a 'high'. And I see no reason to dwell on anything else at this moment. Least of some delusional entitlement. Now dry your eyes, blow your nose and take the positives.... end if you aren't enjoying it, you know where the door is.

Curious. You've tried to play the "look at what a superior fan I am" card, yet undermined it with that last comment.

Supporting Norwich is a way of life, I've been attending games since I was 7. Anyone who says they've enjoyed it for all that time is lying. So by your logic, they should just leave? Like it's a choice?

You endure periods like this because it makes the Farke title-seasons, the Man City win, the 01-02 run to the playoffs, the Lambert years, all the more enjoyable. 

Clapping and smiling on the sidelines during these abject periods doesn't make you a better fan or a more dedicated one. My away days are few and far between now due to spawning 3 kids, but I've done my time freezing my **** off at dozens of away grounds. Doesn't give me the right to tell people they should enjoy games like today and certainly not to tell them where the door is if they don't. 

There's a strong argument that fans like you are actually a hindrance to the club's development. The easy ride our players get contributes to the Costa del Colney environment, the cosy little contract at Norwich, win, lose or draw you'll have a nice little life in our fine city.

We were favourites to finish top 2. We have one of, if not the biggest wage budgets in the league, we enjoyed a net transfer spend in the summer. We're 8th with 5 games to go.

And people boo and point out how failing to beat Rotherham today and the lack of urgency in the performance, given the context of the season (chance to go 5th, only 5 games left after it), is a cause of serious concern and disappointment, and that triggers the morally superior brigade to come out with "nothing to see here, it's all good, if you don't like it **** off".

Deary me. I guess if it means you feel like you've got 3 points in the best supporter league table, so at least some of us are pleased.

[littleyellowbirdie 2,595]

35 minutes ago, canarydan23 said:

And people boo and point out how failing to beat Rotherham today and the lack of urgency in the performance, given the context of the season (chance to go 5th, only 5 games left after it), is a cause of serious concern and disappointment, and that triggers the morally superior brigade to come out with "nothing to see here, it's all good, if you don't like it **** off".

 

There was absolutely no lack of urgency today. The squad worked right to the end to get a win.

Our players earn more than any of us because of their skill. On the other hand, they're very young men, practically kids, who are treated by some fans like the fans own them, entitled to boo them off the pitch every time they do anything less than win;  sometimes some fans wander off disinterested early if a win isn't deemed entertaining enough.

And yet those same fans display incredible fragility if anyone so much as criticises this attitude, not once considering if their resentment of that criticism might reflect resentment of players to fans who feel entitled to denigrate players regardless of whether it's fair. Truly odd.

Edited April 10, 2023 by littleyellowbirdie

[TheGunnShow 6,002]

I thought the urgency was there, but the precision wasn't. Everything was half-a-yard off being very fluid for players to run on at more speed that might have unhinged Rotherham's defence. Pukki got onto that through ball from Sara and then it got stuck under his feet a bit. Idah had a similar problem later on with a ball that stuck under his feet too.

Think we're being a bit slow to praise the Rotherham rearguard action, to be fair. Vickers made a couple of very decent saves, two got cleared off the line and they threw themselves at a heck of a lot of shots.

On another day we'd have had a relatively comfortable 2-0 win and probably mentioned wastefulness or lack of precision just in passing (in more ways than one!) but considering the state of play this season and the potential of getting into the play-off placings this late on, we're collectively focusing on the downsides a bit more.

I'd have taken 4 from the last two games. Just wouldn't have expected it in the sequence we got them. It happens, we move on and try again.

[canarydan23 4,060]

9 hours ago, littleyellowbirdie said:

There was absolutely no lack of urgency today. The squad worked right to the end to get a win.

Tell me you didn't watch without telling me you didn't watch.

Even nutty nigel, with his allergy to NCFC criticism, was concerned by the lack of urgency in the second half.

[Mello Yello 2,303]

12 hours ago, Myra Hawtree said:

As usual on this board, a sensible post deteriorates into some sort of personal slanging match.

Don’t know why I bother to read it really!,,

I know....good heavens, what will the neighbours think?.....

[Google Bot 3,309]

1 hour ago, Mello Yello said:

I know....good heavens, what will the neighbours think?.....

Who are our neighbours, out of interest(?).

I guess it would be pinterest to the right, and some kind of pinegrowers forum to the left?  Perhaps we should keep the noise down a a little.

[Mello Yello 2,303]

5 minutes ago, Google Bot said:

Who are our neighbours, out of interest(?).

I guess it would be pinterest to the right, and some kind of pinegrowers forum to the left?  Perhaps we should keep the noise down a a little.

Erm....yeah

[Capt. Pants 4,277]

I think we're confusing urgency with tempo. The latter was way too slow so Rotheram looked relatively comfortable. We had no one in midfield to pick a pass, Pukki and Sargent should maybe have swapped, 2 games in 4 days has sunk Onel, Marquinhos doesn't have the pace to get beyond defenders etc etc.

[TheGunnShow 6,002]

8 minutes ago, Capt. Pants said:

I think we're confusing urgency with tempo. The latter was way too slow so Rotheram looked relatively comfortable. We had no one in midfield to pick a pass, Pukki and Sargent should maybe have swapped, 2 games in 4 days has sunk Onel, Marquinhos doesn't have the pace to get beyond defenders etc etc.

I said "precision" earlier, but tempo isn't a bad call either. Our passing was half-a-yard off or half-a-yard too slow.

[keelansgrandad 6,679]

I have always maintained that its what each individual gets out of supporting City that counts. For me, in my 70s, and having witnessed so many dark days but on the other hand giantkilling, being in the EPL is not important. Achieving promotion means you have played well and been winning.

Friday, I was delighted that DW had, to me, seen sense and loaded midfield and the performance and result restored my faith.

Yesterday, my faith was challenged from 2pm when the team was announced and midfield was depleted at the expense of Teemu. For the first 15 minutes I was delighted at our domination but disappointed that we hadn't put at least one of those chances away. Then the game drifted and Rotherham gained a foothold in midfield because we had two wingers/widemen and Sara was left on his own in the middle. Possession matters but more important is what type of possession. and it reverted to AO and Lugi passing it to each other too much because Rotherham had established a foothold in the game.

So I then began to question why DW had altered our formation. Then I started look at individuals instead of the team and was worried that Teemu just didn't look worthy of his place. That Sarge has little or no ball control and takes too long. Marquinhos looked so docile so poor old Gabriel was left making decisions he didn't want to.

And the frantic finale and sad misses and, to me, bizarre substitutions, had me sighing every time the clocked ticked over.

So after the final whistle, my euphoria from Friday, and the results that went our way on Monday, had evaporated and I was left annoyed and angry that we had blown another good chance and we have had several opportunities this season to be firmly ensconced in the playoffs.

The chance for promotion by being in the playoffs doesn't bother me. Its that, by being there, we should have had a good season. But on reflection, we have sacked a coach who just didn't gel with the club from the start, brought in some singings that just haven't worked out and have played some delghtful stuff at times but not enough.

So if I had to give an answer to the OP I would say

Well we don't deserve it because it was in our own hands.

[kenfoggo 247]

There absolutely was a lack of urgency against Rotherham, apart from the first 15 minutes. It was a shocking display of apathy and lack of commitment or determination. Please do not attempt to praise that squad for not showing the will to win.

[Google Bot 3,309]

2 minutes ago, kenfoggo said:

There absolutely was a lack of urgency against Rotherham, apart from the first 15 minutes. It was a shocking display of apathy and lack of commitment or determination. Please do not attempt to praise that squad for not showing the will to win.

You could say the same of Farke's team though, they would systematically break teams down and never lose their heads.  Big difference is that Farke didn't have a crowd to feed in his last championship season. 

There were moments yesterday where Gunn was visibly split between his instructions as a pro and the crowd having a moan at him, we took a dip after one of those moments that saw a spell of pressure late on from Rotherham.

Edited April 11, 2023 by Google Bot

[yellowrider120 784]

13 minutes ago, kenfoggo said:

There absolutely was a lack of urgency against Rotherham, apart from the first 15 minutes. It was a shocking display of apathy and lack of commitment or determination. Please do not attempt to praise that squad for not showing the will to win.

I agree which makes it all the more incredible (and very worrying) that the manager deemed the performance 'very good'!!

[wcorkcanary 4,337]

2 hours ago, canarydan23 said:

Tell me you didn't watch without telling me you didn't watch.

Even nutty nigel, with his allergy to NCFC criticism, was concerned by the lack of urgency in the second half.

I think  he watches,he just doesnt understand football, or humans. In fact he only thing he understands is just how damn clever he is. 

[king canary 7,678]

12 hours ago, canarydan23 said:

We were favourites to finish top 2. We have one of, if not the biggest wage budgets in the league, we enjoyed a net transfer spend in the summer. We're 8th with 5 games to go.

I'm amazed people seem to miss this obvious point.

There is a reason we shouldn't be happy with 8th. 

Everybody in underachieving. The players aren't justifying the staggering wages they are on relative to their peers in this league, the Sporting Director has spent huge sums in fees and wages on players who seemingly are nowhere near as good as he thought/thinks they are and the managers we've had this season seem unable to elevate those we do have.

[Robert N. LiM 4,489]

7 hours ago, keelansgrandad said:

I have always maintained that its what each individual gets out of supporting City that counts. For me, in my 70s, and having witnessed so many dark days but on the other hand giantkilling, being in the EPL is not important. Achieving promotion means you have played well and been winning.

Out of reactions today. This whole post is outstanding. And the bit above is spot on especially.

[littleyellowbirdie 2,595]

6 hours ago, yellowrider120 said:

I agree which makes it all the more incredible (and very worrying) that the manager deemed the performance 'very good'!!

The XG stats support the assertion that we were unlucky not to win yesterday, which agrees with what I saw based on the 'eye test'.

[Monty13 2,252]

8 hours ago, Google Bot said:

You could say the same of Farke's team though, they would systematically break teams down and never lose their heads.  Big difference is that Farke didn't have a crowd to feed in his last championship season. 

There were moments yesterday where Gunn was visibly split between his instructions as a pro and the crowd having a moan at him, we took a dip after one of those moments that saw a spell of pressure late on from Rotherham.

Yes that was the difference, Farkes teams were generally very composed. They kept playing to the final whistle, probing and looking for the opening they knew would come and then ruthlessly took it.

We can argue semantics about urgency but there was absolutely no composure in that second half. Wayward passes, poor control and snatched shots.

Edited April 11, 2023 by Monty13

[Monty13 2,252]

8 hours ago, king canary said:

I'm amazed people seem to miss this obvious point.

There is a reason we shouldn't be happy with 8th. 

Everybody in underachieving. The players aren't justifying the staggering wages they are on relative to their peers in this league, the Sporting Director has spent huge sums in fees and wages on players who seemingly are nowhere near as good as he thought/thinks they are and the managers we've had this season seem unable to elevate those we do have.

Exactly this.

I’d add as well I love Hernandez and think Kenny is massively underrated for what he brings to the squad.

But the fact that a player who was surplus last year and one we’ve been crying out to upgrade for probably three seasons are two of the best we have had this season tells another story.

[keelansgrandad 6,679]

Just now, Monty13 said:

Exactly this.

I’d add as well I love Hernandez and think Kenny is massively underrated for what he brings to the squad.

But the fact that a player who was surplus last year and one we’ve been crying out to upgrade for probably three seasons are two of the best we have had this season tells another story.

I do believe this is their level though. That doesn't mean I think anyone else in the squad is worthy to play in the EPL. But the difference with these two is that you just know they are determined and giving their all. I do look at some and just wonder if they are fulfilling their ability. Yesterday I could quite argue that Teemu for instance didn't look like he was committed.

Kenny is going to have too many haters voting for someone else not to get POTS. I believe fan favourite Sara may well get it.

[The Raptor 1,232]

8 minutes ago, Monty13 said:

Yes that was the difference, Farkes teams were generally very composed. They kept playing to the final whistle, probing and looking for the opening they knew would come and then ruthlessly took it.

We can argue semantics about urgency but there was absolutely no composure in that second half. Wayward passes, poor control and snatched shots.

This isn't blaming anyone. More a theory that the crowd don't help here. The Players sense the nervousness which wasnt there in these type of games under Lambert/farke. 20 minutes from the end in those times, even in the 92nd minute everyone in the ground felt that we'd get a result and it was just a matter of time. It's a tough mindset to get back. The players are almost too desperate to succeed.

[sgncfc 1,258]

I always want us to win, but I also want to be entertained. The first half was OK - good first 10 minutes but then Onel ran out of puff and after that it was all a bit meh. I don't think there was a lack of effort. We were a bit unlucky, but the golden chance of the game actually went to Rotherham.

Problem is I came away from the match feeling like it was a waste of my time to even bother to go. Most of the crowd around me were equally apathetic. I don't really care either way at the moment because there's nothing about the way we play or the players we have that excite me. We haven't had a team like this since before Huckerby.

We are paying players for not being very good. Idah isn't a striker. Nor is Kamara. Pukki was, but isn't anymore. The only player we have who might score a goal (Sargent) isn't played up front by a manager who is only playing our best player (Gibbs) because of injuries and who thought yesterday was "very good". Giannoulis comes on to replace McCallum and demonstrates for the umpteenth time in a yellow shirt that he is useless. Soresen, Gibbs and Omobamidele are virtually faultless yet Sargent gets the sponsors MOM award for being a striker in a 0-0 draw.

The world's gone mad. I don't care enough about the playoffs or promotion because it's all so inexplicably boring.

[littleyellowbirdie 2,595]

20 minutes ago, The Raptor said:

This isn't blaming anyone. More a theory that the crowd don't help here. The Players sense the nervousness which wasnt there in these type of games under Lambert/farke. 20 minutes from the end in those times, even in the 92nd minute everyone in the ground felt that we'd get a result and it was just a matter of time. It's a tough mindset to get back. The players are almost too desperate to succeed.

On the upside, we've got more away games left this season than home games.

[nutty nigel 7,624]

12 hours ago, canarydan23 said:

Tell me you didn't watch without telling me you didn't watch.

Even nutty nigel, with his allergy to NCFC criticism, was concerned by the lack of urgency in the second half.

There was certainly a lack of urgency towards the end of the game. It was at the point where Gunny did what he had to do. It crossed my mind that maybe instead of keep bringing on attacking players maybe Hayden could have been introduced to free up the more attacking midfielders.

We miss Kenny...

 

 

[raunds canary 218]

It's certainly the hope that kills you.......

[The Raptor 1,232]

I like that kind of hope where during the game your team is top of the league only you then concede and end up third back where you started by full time. Poor old Ipswich 

[Ian 1,136]

12 hours ago, canarydan23 said:

Tell me you didn't watch without telling me you didn't watch.

Even nutty nigel, with his allergy to NCFC criticism, was concerned by the lack of urgency in the second half.

You're not that guy who sits behind me who moans about the team not lobbing long balls forward, and then also moans when Pukki gets out-jumped are you?

I think the team were fairly urgent yesterday, I just thought they were a bit clueless and lacking in someone to take the bull by the horns and drive forward.