The infamous NCFC no shows and how to deal with them...

[a1canary 0]

We''ve become pretty familiar with these in recent years - games where the players just don''t turn up, don''t perform and where any 11 of us couldn''t have done any worse. THOSE games at Derby and Wolves (was it last or two seasons ago now? or both!), Stoke away last year, any first round carling cup game under Worthington, those infamous consecutive away performances at Port Vale and West Brom in the late nineties. And now yesterday. Performances like that are never far away for Norwich it seems.But the question is, as a manager, what do you do about them? No manager has ever managed to really get to grips with it. Grant got one pretty early on in his reign with the 5-0 away at Stoke and initially, our response was good going on to beat sunderland and wba away, but the dire performances soon returned. They seem to be almost exclusively away from home and Roeder got an early example at Plymouth before he really had his feet under the desk. But good away showings and no defeats since plus wins at scunthorpe and barnsley have made us think maybe he''s on to something. But no, you won''t crack it that easily Glenn! So, what''s your next move? How are you going to get to grips with it? You say throwing the tea cups isn''t the way you do things these days, but what would alex ferguson do? Tea cups with football boots, studs up, if you ask me!! We await with interest what result we get from the ''one to ones''!!

[Eadies Right Foot 0]

i dont fully understand what you expect glenn or anyone to more about this? we seem to have improved rapidly from some of the away performances under worthy especially but footballers and teams will always have off days, especially in a league where everyone can beat everyone. its just the way games go sometimes, especially if one of the team gets an early goal.

sir alex ferguson is one of the best managers in the game but they still lost 2-0 to us in the premiership season and they are an absolute golf apart. more recently just look at newcastle loosing 6-0 at man utd.

[Mook 0]

[quote user="Eadies Right Foot"]

i dont fully understand what you expect glenn or anyone to more about this? we seem to have improved rapidly from some of the away performances under worthy especially but footballers and teams will always have off days, especially in a league where everyone can beat everyone. its just the way games go sometimes, especially if one of the team gets an early goal.

sir alex ferguson is one of the best managers in the game but they still lost 2-0 to us in the premiership season and they are an absolute golf apart. more recently just look at newcastle loosing 6-0 at man utd.

[/quote]

It''s not losing games that A1 is talking about. It''s the no-shows. Read the post properly!

I don''t know why the no-shows happen here, but they do. I guess if the manager could do anything about it, then someone would have done it by now! Either that or recruit 11 Gary Holts.

[BCanary 0]

[quote user="a1canary"]We''ve become pretty familiar with these in recent years - games where the players just don''t turn up, don''t perform and where any 11 of us couldn''t have done any worse. THOSE games at Derby and Wolves (was it last or two seasons ago now? or both!), Stoke away last year, any first round carling cup game under Worthington, those infamous consecutive away performances at Port Vale and West Brom in the late nineties. And now yesterday. Performances like that are never far away for Norwich it seems.But the question is, as a manager, what do you do about them? No manager has ever managed to really get to grips with it. Grant got one pretty early on in his reign with the 5-0 away at Stoke and initially, our response was good going on to beat sunderland and wba away, but the dire performances soon returned. They seem to be almost exclusively away from home and Roeder got an early example at Plymouth before he really had his feet under the desk. But good away showings and no defeats since plus wins at scunthorpe and barnsley have made us think maybe he''s on to something. But no, you won''t crack it that easily Glenn! So, what''s your next move? How are you going to get to grips with it? You say throwing the tea cups isn''t the way you do things these days, but what would alex ferguson do? Tea cups with football boots, studs up, if you ask me!! We await with interest what result we get from the ''one to ones''!! [/quote]We''ve had some pretty big "no shows" in recent history. I''m surprised you didn''t mention the Fulham and Burnley games, as they both proved to have major significance in the future of the club. I''d imagine there are hundreds of different issues that come into play when it comes to a team having a "no show" - and there are different reasons for each. But what would probably help, is a head-strong,  no-nonsense leader on the pitch who can sort things out quickly as they go wrong on the pitch. It''s something we haven''t had for a fair few years now.

[Shack Attack 0]

Good post a1 [Y].

The danger with the ranting and raving, tea cup, football boot throwing method is that if you do it too often it loses it''s impact. I think you also need to have the complete respect and support of your players. Peter Grant shouted a lot but it never really seemed to have any impact. Whereas somebody like Fergie demands complete respect and can therefore get away with giving out the hairdryer treatment.

Glenn seems to be going about it in a calmer manner and his mention of ''one to ones'' has certainly given the players something to think about. Doesn''t matter whether you''re a highly paid footballer or an office worker, the thought of being hauled into the manager''s office will cause you to think about what you may have done wrong.

Having said that I do wonder whether we have any more ''no shows'' than any other club or we just think we do because we scrutinise our games so much more closely than any others. Perhaps it''s just human nature to throw in the occasional crap performance regardless of who you work for.

[a1canary 0]

Hmm, Fulham. Clearly i have wiped that from my mind on account of it being still relatively recent and of the gut wrenching disappointment that it recalls! Burnley before Worthy''s departure certainly, and shows that it doesn''t always happen away from home.The point about leaders on the pitch is excellent and so important. I still recall Adam Drury talking to the press after the cup game at Tamworth last year and eulogising about DD. He said something that really concerned me and was perhaps a prelude to the continuing problems that lay ahead. He spoke about how improtant Dion was to the team, and not only that he was a leader, an organiser and an inspirer, but most worringly, that he was the only one in the dressing room who took on this role. This is the reason he makes such a difference when he''s on the pitch, probably as much for this as for his actual footballing contributions (Nutty, maybe this is why statistically, when he was at the back, we still conceded much the same number of goals when he played there as when he didn''t!). Here''s an example that some may be able to relate to - when i play 5 a side, there''s a bloke who sometimes plays who''s got a real gob on him. When he''s in goal, he never shuts up telling everyone when they''ve lost their marker, when they haven''t seen the run, moving us up, getting us back. Most of us hate it, but the fact is, whenever he''s there, we play 20 times better. It''s about having a manager on the pitch. We certainly have one in Dublin, but we need another. Legend as Dion is, we can''t have the performance levels of the team resting on the shoulders of a 38 year old.

[O.T.B.C 0]

Make them play football at Coney, then everytime someone makes a mistake or does not score, we shoot them with a spud gun in the neck, from childhood experiances, they hurt. On a more serious note, I still think that if a couple of players have a bit of mare in the game, then others tend to follow have the chumley walmers to get on out of the mess they may find themselves in. We do need more leaders, but as a player, they must try hard, I can except them not performing due to any other reason except effort.

[ncfcfaithful 0]

a1 i completely understand what you''re saying but on the other hand we really are no different from 90% of other clubs out there.Every single team suffers from these no shows with the exception of the top 4 probably in the Premiership.  the year we won the league we didn''t suffer from them but it''s only natural if your team is not challenging in the top 2 or 3 of your league you will suffer from these displays.I''m not sure if you play football at all but if you do i''m sure you''ve played in games where the teams played terribly and people can''t explains why.I''m not trying to make excuses but when you support a club the size of ours these performances will happen from time to time especially away from home.

[a1canary 0]

You''re right ncfcf, just that it feels like it happens more with us than others, but it probably doesn''t. Except with the Man Us of this world as you say.But it does just go to show that half of this silly game is played in the head, and the managers that understand that and deal with it best tend to be the most successful. Wenger, Ferguson, O''Neil are great thinkers It also shows it''s completely pointless to judge a player on these ''no show'' performances and to after one; "so and so is rubbish, i don''t ever want to see him in a city shirt again." Put the same player in a confident winning team that is enjoying its football, and it will be a completely different player. If that makes sense?!

[ncfcfaithful 0]

a1 you''re spot on.  If only we''d managed to get our hands on one of the managers named above in years gone by such as O''Neill (Doh)Also a1 congrats on a good post nice to see a sensible post with a good base and good points to back it up.

[Paul Lamberts Disciple 0]

[quote user="a1canary"]He spoke about how improtant Dion was to the team, and not only that he was a leader, an organiser and an inspirer, but most worringly, that he was the only one in the dressing room who took on this role. It''s about having a manager on the pitch. We certainly have one in Dublin, but we need another.
[/quote]

Dion takes on this role because he is a professional footballer and knows no other way. The same can be said for our other great players in recent times - Hucks, Fleming (yes Fleming), Malky, Holt, Edworthy, dare I say it, Safri, etc (please add your own.) To be blunt, they are just good people, you can see that. This translates to a work ethic and professional attitude in training and, crucially, on the pitch. Most of our team, and younger footballers in general, simply do not share these core attributes. Many are clearly selfish, wayward, greedy and lazy little oiks; some of the "banter" in the Carrow Rd background of post match interviews is testament enough.  They''re just lads like many on this site, and Joe Bloggs on the street... they are no different.

But they should be. Look at all really succesful sportspeople. Dedication, hard work, professionalism, 24/7. Dare I say it, they are not particularly fun or charismatic to the outside world. They are not the ones "cracking the jokes with the lads in training" (City legend, Jason Shackell, 2007.) Their success in only down to this attitude; plenty of people have the talent but go absolutely nowhere. In this country especially, probably due to ludicrous amounts of money washing about, footballing talent is just as likely to be squandered as it is to be nurtured into to real achievement - the likes of which we havent seen from home grown players since 1966. This is partly why, I think, our national game is in such a disgraceful condition.[:(]

[Cheerio 0]

[quote user="Mook"]

It''s the no-shows. ...................... Either that or recruit 11 Gary Holts.

[/quote]Every club gets no shows - and then there''s England.11 Gary Holts..... do we have enough footballs to last 90 minutes or should we recruit ball boys for the stadium roof.

[Robert N. LiM 4,243]

Those who put it down to leadership are spot on. In the early weeks of the season, if Dublin wasn''t in the side, we had no one on the pitch with any leadership or presence at all, and we looked a rabble as a result.

Fozzy looks as though he has this quality, too.

And Mr Barclay, FFS change the record on Holt. You slagged him off last week and everyone shouted you down. He was a great player for NCFC. You''re wrong about him, everyone else is right. Get over it.