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To fully grasp the scale of this revival, it’s worth revisiting what was effectively its starting point.
If you’re feeling brave, transport yourself back to around 2:00 pm on Sunday, November 5. No fireworks. Only damp squibs.
We... |
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The U21s conjured up a fantastic 2-0 away win against Leeds in PL2 last Friday, rising to 14th in the table – three points clear of the last qualification place.
Not only was it a massive result from a league-standing perspective, but it... |
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Here we go.
Assuming City can maintain their performance levels at home, our end-of-season fate will come down to whether we improve them on the road.
For half an hour at Middlesbrough, the answer seemed to be a clear yes. Then ? well,... |
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The dreaded run-in. We have been here before. Many times. Promotion battles are something the Canary faithful have become accustomed to. The final throes of season 2023-24 loom.Ă‚Â
City have nine games left to cement a playoff place.... |
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Well, those last seven days in NCFC world were eventful, to say the least?
A capitulation in the North-East after one of the most ludicrous red card decisions ever made by an EFL official, leading to yet another away loss – City?s ninth out... |
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A new era for the women?s team has officially begun.
Fans attending The Nest on Sunday didn?t know what to expect after the club parted company with head coach Martin Herdman a few weeks ago. Would they stick to his principles, which have... |
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An eventful week in City circles ended with the good news that the red card for Borja Sainz had rightfully been overturned and confirmed that, in the opinion of the FA, Jonny Howson feigned his reaction to get a player sent off. His previous warm... |
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For City fans, those 75 minutes between 2:30 and 3:45 yesterday will take some beating. At least for a week or two.
At 2:30, I joined the queue in the River End concourse to purchase refreshment. The big TV screen above me, it read, ‘CAR 0,... |
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Rotherham United.
There can be no bigger ?gimme? in Championship terms than to be playing at home having won your last five home league matches on the spin, and playing against a team that has lost their last eight consecutive matches and are... |
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I have followed football on all levels for more years than I care to think about and have watched the game change as the decades have passed.
I have served as a club president of a State League level club in Australia and before that a... |
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For 30 minutes it was all going so well. David Wagner described it afterwards as “one of our best away performances this season” and for that half-an-hour he was right. Ashley Barnes’ scruffy but effective finish was more than City... |
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The U21s have had a successful season from an attacking perspective, scoring 36 goals in the league, which makes them the sixth-highest scorers. One player who has contributed massively in that regard is Norfolk-born, Joe Duffy.Ă‚Â
Across the... |
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Rewind the clock to 4th March 2023, and City had just won 3-2 away at Millwall, sneaking into sixth spot in the Championship table for the first time in a while.
At the time it felt like a pivotal moment. City seemed to be heading in the... |
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After beating Boro on that never-to-be-forgotten afternoon in May 2015, City went on to win their next five contests against them, including that memorable 1-0 Carrow Road win in September 2018 that kickstarted Daniel Farke?s first... |
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It will be one of the eternal mysteries, not just of my life, but of existence, as to why Saturday?s awful game against Sunderland should have decided me to renew my season ticket after all.
I woke up on Sunday morning and felt fully... |
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Kenny McLean became the latest staff member to bite back ? very mildly ? against frustrated supporters as City eventually got the better of Sunderland on Saturday.
On a sodden pitch, another sodding draw was looking probable. But then McLean... |
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There wasn’t anything particularly beautiful about it – that was left to the rainbows – but it wasn’t half effective. And it’s upon such wins that promotions or playoff charges are built.
With 11 games to go City are still just... |
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There have been plenty of big City/Sunderland clashes over time, and this time it allows MFW to engage with a friend of mine, Thomas Weetman, a season ticket holder at the Stadium of Light since 2010.
He was kind enough to take a few moments... |
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Since the turn of the calendar year, the makeup of the U21s team has changed. The group is now younger, with room being made for Under-18 players to make the step up.
This transition is normal among most Category One academies, as they look... |
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In terms of managerial dismissals, this must be one of the most shocking in recent memory.
Martin Herdman, the man who has overseen one of the best seasons City’s women’s team has ever had, was sacked on Tuesday evening.
An... |
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Much will be written over the coming weeks around Wagner and his Valkeries being on rolling contracts and how much it could cost if they are removed from their current positions.
A rolling or open-ended contract has been discussed many times... |
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It?s humbling to be part of the new rota for Martin Penney?s Monday slot.
I was going to start with a few words about him, but can?t improve on last week?s comment from Alex B:
?Martin is sadly missed and his insightful articles were a... |
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The clues were in the pre-match press conference. David Wagner said that Blackburn presented a more physical challenge than Cardiff. I read that and my inner monologue said ?that?ll be Gibson back then?.
A head coach?s job is a balancing... |
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That David Wagner has turned around City’s home form is not in doubt. Not since Bonfire Night have they lost at Carrow Road – a gear-grinding 3-1 at the hands of yesterday’s opponents – and so in our renewed spirit of reconciliation,... |
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I wrote a piece earlier in the week on the difficult decisions awaiting Ben Knapper in the coming months. These are mainly two-fold: the need to reduce the average age of the squad while enhancing its overall quality, and, more pertinently,... |
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City travel to John Eustace?s Blackburn Rovers in the hope of continuing their recent run of good form and further cementing themselves in the playoff hunt as the season draws to its conclusion.Â
Blackburn were the last side to beat the... |
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In the summer of 2023, Gabriel Forysth joined City from Hamilton Academical in a deal thought to be worth around ÂŁ150,000 to the Scottish League One club.
Since the summer, Forsyth has demonstrated consistency, which earned him a Scotland... |
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Some big decisions await Ben Knapper. And when I say big, I mean huge. Massive.
He opted to keep his powder relatively dry in January, as he explained to the local media a couple of weeks ago ? a decision that appears sensible in hindsight ?... |
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The last nine days have certainly been eventful for those who follow Norwich City.Ă‚Â Attention has largely been focused on the fan base and the reaction to those substitutions last Tuesday night. So too on the words of the head coach and the reaction... |
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We all know Norwich are good in front of goal, but I don?t think even the most die-hard fan could have predicted this.
After another week-long break, this time due to a waterlogged pitch postponing the WNL Division One South East fixture with... |
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Aside from Sydney van Hooijdonk making it 5-1 with the final touch of the game, I’m not sure that could have gone much better.
Dare I say it, it even felt like peace had broken out in NR1.
The fans played their part, so too David... |
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I hope I haven?t lured you here under false pretences.
It?s reasonable for MFW readers to look to these previews for sage words and insight into the forthcoming game, in particular the way our team will set up and perform.
If I could... |
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While we’ve all been peeping from behind the curtains at the latest installment of the public domestic dispute between the club and fans, I’ve been more interested in what’s, apparently, not happening.
Parking to one side the rancour... |
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There is one thing that has been bugging me for a while now and I need to get it off my chest.
So here goes. Tin hat time.
The ongoing squabble between club and supporter has been framed by the club like this:
If you are Delia... |
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As an organisation there is one thing more dangerous than being in the middle of a communications crisis? and that is not realising you?re in a middle of a communications crisis. Ă‚Â
And that?s where I think Norwich City find themselves now.... |
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Where to begin"
The season ticket renewal email dropped yesterday.Ă‚Â
I described myself as a neutral with a season ticket at the start of this season, and I still hold fast to that view of myself.
But my patience is being... |
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The centre-back position is an area of strength in the academy. It’s a conveyor belt and the numbers on it grow by the month.Ă‚Â
Currently, Brad Hills, Jaden Warner, Jonathan Tomkinson, and Emmanuel Adegboyega are justifiably plying their... |
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Such a weird night.
Six goals. Some terrible defending. Profligacy with the ball. Bizarre decision-making (on the pitch). Some flowing football. And a head coach who ended the night by telling some of the supporters to stay away.... |
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As football games go, that was, as they say in these here parts, a rum?un.Ă‚Â
It started with the team sheet. Wagner preferred Lungi Sorensen at centre-back to both Danny Batth and Grant Hanley. Once again, it was Ashley Barnes and Josh... |
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What a couple of weeks it’s been in Norwich City world. So much has happened yet, in my view, nothing has changed for the better.
I apologise in advance if what follows isn’t to your liking. If you have an opposing point of view, then... |
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And so to a Tuesday night under the lights at Carrow Road.
We have at least moved past the point we were at earlier in the season where every game felt like a chore that would end in almost inevitable disappointment. Now we?re into pot luck... |
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As the weeks of season 2023-24 tick by, decision day draws ever closer for a select group of first-team players whose contracts expire in the summer.
In a recent round of interviews with the local media, sporting director Ben Knapper was... |
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If City are to break that glass ceiling between sixth and seventh place and sneak into the playoffs, games like QPR (A) are the type they are going to have to win.
And so, on that basis, yesterday was one that got away. Two points dropped... |
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On Thursday/Friday – depending on your time zone – an announcement was made from the International Football Association Board (IFAB) concerning the introduction of a blue card ‘sin bin’ system for top-level football.
This innovative... |
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After a challenging period where the Canaries had to play five consecutive games against opponents in the Sky Bet Championship playoff places, David Wagner and his players have (on paper) a less challenging fixture as they travel to Loftus Road to... |
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