Goalkeeping strength.....do we need more experience as back-up?

[Dubai Mark 0]

I picked up on a comment in another post where it was suggested we do not have enough goalkeeping strength, this was dismissed by some which surprised me a little.

So,do we really have enough experience if anything happens to the excellent John Ruddy? Now I am not suggesting that Rudd and Steer are not excellent young keepers, but I am of the view that in a tough season, should Ruddy  be out for any amount of time, neither of these young keepers has enough experience at THIS LEVEL.

I thought one of PL''s few mistakes was not bringing in at least an experienced loan keeper when Ruddy got his Red Card last season, and whilst Rudd did OK (after a very dodgy start) I really dont think we can afford not to have a seasoned pro on the bench. Of course, when considering that PL and now it appears CH have no issue with having such young keepers as back up it also confirms how highly they are thought of.    

Bringing in an experienced back-up keeper would also enable the club put Steer and Rudd out on some short term loans to gain valuable experience, if its good enough for Ayala, then why not for at least one of these? 

[KeelansGlove 0]

No

[lappinitup 629]

We are now spending top money on a grade one academy. What would be the point of this if we don''t give the youngsters a chance when the opportunity arises but rush out for experience instead. Might as well close the academy.

[Legend Iwan 30]

Does anyone know if we''ve been granted grade one status yet? I know Norwich have been advertising for lots of youth coaches but on the last list of grade one academies I saw we weren''t included.

[RvWs 4 year contract 0]

No.End of thread.

[paul moy 235]

I thought we did last season and still do as we do not have experienced back-up if we lose Ruddy. Losing Gunn cost us relegation in the 90''s and if we lose Ruddy it could cost us a lot of points and just losing one point cheaply could see us go down. The Prem is not the place to experiment with inexperienced goalkeepers.  Hughton is totally correct here IMO.

[Yellow Wal 315]

We now have the best goalkeeping coach in the country at the club.

We have two of the best young keepers at our disposal.

If the coach considers that one of them is not capable of acting as a reliable backup then I am sure the manager will get some experience in, but I strongly doubt it.

Make no mistake, in a season or two Norwich City will not be big enough for all three and I would not be surprised to see any one of them, including John Ruddy, move on.