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  1. Superman wears Grant Holt pyjamas in bed

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    Please bare with me folks - this is going to be fairly long-winded!

    I love Norwich City Football Club with all my heart. I always want what is best for them but it has occurred to me yesterday that what is best for them is not actually what is best for us fans. Let me explain. On the evidence so far, the Premier League is an absolute disgrace of a league to be in. I don't want to watch it anymore. I want to be entertained, I want to enjoy watching a game of football for 90 minutes, not a wrestling match, complimented by diving and feigning of injury and time wasting and gamesmanship and cynical play and so on.

    After every match this season I have come away feeling cheated and not remembering ANYTHING good about the matches. It is true that we have been totally and utterly robbed of points by officials in each and every match so far. This is not an excuse for our lack of a win - this is the reality! However, we do have a number of short comings which I'll get onto in a moment. On my part, I didn't feel anything could ever make me fall out of love with football. However, the Premier League might just do that.

    I don't believe this league is very good. The finishing is certainly more clinical but thats about it in terms of quality from any team outside the top 6. Organisation is the key and unfortunately the rest comes down to gamesmanship and cheating. Some of the things West Brom did yesterday were alarming and made me feel sick. This is a sad state of affairs when a good footballing side with great tradition such as the Baggies have to resort to these tactics to gain results. But thats the thing isn't it. They do this because they know they HAVE TO in order to stay up.

    I'm not sure I could bare to see my team have to do this to stay in this frankly horrible division. The problem we have is that the club NEED to be here. As a supporter I could happily live without it and everything it represents. I'm not torn - I'm a fan of my club and I want what is best for them, but if we went down I don't think I'd be that bothered. I wouldn't be happy because we NEED to play at the highest level but the fans, managers, players, media, referees and anything else connected to the premier league often make my blood boil and curdle.

    Yesterday I was disappointed by the West Brom fans. I've had a soft spot for the Baggies since about '97 when they came to Carrow Road and taught us a lesson in attacking play with the likes of Peschisolido and Sneekes romping away with a 4-2 win. But it was their fans which stole the show that day, not the team. Amazing, amazing support from start to finish, 'Boing Boing'ing their way through the match and creating the kind of atmosphere a football ground should be filled with.

    Yesterday, nothing. Absolutely nothing. Sat on their hands, no songs... if they hadn't been 1-0 up they would have had no repertoire at all! Stoke fans were better but fairly muted. Chelsea and Wigan dreadfully quiet. Now we aren't the most famed vocal bunch in the country but at least we give decent backing. It seems to me that as soon as you get in the top flight everything changes, even the fans. Its almost an arrogant air that surrounds you. I hope this doesn't happen to us if we do spend a sustained period in this league.

    I don't like this league. I don't like it at all.

    Anyway, now for the important stuff. The stuff which really matters. The stuff that City can affect. The stuff that hopefully means we don't have to rely on officials having visited SpecSavers the morning before. City's abilities to stay in this division. Well, we've probably not learnt anything we didn't already know or at least guess would be needed.

    We know we need some pace up top, and Jackson for me has done nothing wrong and should start next week. Martin has surprised me to be fair and played pretty well but we NEED pace to give us a chance.

    We know that Hoolahan also has to start - he brings us a different dimension to Crofts and Johnson, who have done nothing wrong but lack guile. Only play one of them.

    We know that Tierney is outstanding at this level.

    We know that De Laet is lacking concentration for 90 minutes and is therefore a liability, despite his otherwise sterling efforts. 3 mistakes this season - three goals conceded. He can't be dropped due to injuries. Sharpen up.

    We know that Lambert has yet to fall upon his strongest and most potent team. Understandable to a degree as there are so many different options but he MUST settle on it soon. Personal opinion would be that we return to the diamond, play Fox and Hoolahan, and make the opponents adapt to playing us rather than us adapt to playing them.

    We know that we CAN compete on the pitch with these teams. We have not been outplayed by anyone. Indeed with some luck we would have won 3 of the opening 4 games.

    We know that we are not street-wise. I hate this term because basically it means we don't cheat enough. Horrible I know, but if we are going to stay in this league we are going to have to play the same games the opponents do. ANY contact in the box, GO DOWN. Let the official make the decision. I feel disgusting saying that.

    We know that referees are not going to give us much. On the evidence so far they aren't actually going to give us anything! Yesterday was the poorest display of officiating I have seen since Andy D'Urso ripped up the rule back vs Charlton a decade or so ago.

    Lots of things to work on, but what I KNOW is that we have the players here already to make a good fist of this league and stay up. We are going to need a change in our luck at some point though - we can't go on getting terrible decisions go against us, but equally we have to sharpen up at the back and front. There are reasons we haven't got a win that don't relate to referees. We need to add guile and pace urgently if we are to score goals. We need to be more clinical when chances present themselves. We have already won plaudits for our style of play and attitude. Now we need to earn plaudits for the way we defend and win games.

    I find it alarming that some fans have already pressed the 'panic button' after four games and four pretty good performances. I can only assume these people don't know how football works. 38 games is a long season and it was always likely to take us time to get to grips with the top league. Unfortunately for me, the idea of 'getting to grips with this league' generally means 'getting to grips with opponents' rather literally.

    I really hope over the coming months, the Premier League can change my opinion of it, regardless of my own clubs performance.

    OTBC ILWT
     
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  2. ThaiCanary

    ThaiCanary Well-Known Member

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    I will echo your points about the Premier League as a place to be. I hate it!

    I have not watched PL football unless Norwich are playing in it, and then it's only our games I watch.
    It's a horrible and financially unbalanced league where the big get bigger and the rest fight to survive, with any means they can as we have already seen.
    A witnessed by us so far this season - Stoke, Wigan and West Brom have learned how to 'compete' to an extent but that is all they are likely to do. None of these teams are ever likely to be top 8, let alone top 6 no matter how long they stay in this farce of a league.

    We are the new whipping boys who will be targeted as an easy chance to get dubious advantages against during the game (as admitted by a Baggie fan). We are going to have a long hard season and if we go back down, I am with you - I will not be worried about it. Give me Championship football any day of the week over this nonsense.
     
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  3. Superman wears Grant Holt pyjamas in bed

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    and what a sad state of affairs it is when football fans agree that they don't care if they are in the top league! it was like this last time in 2005 but i suppose i'd forgotten to an extent just how awful the whole experience can be. i like football to be fun - that doesn't mean winning all the time. in fact, most of the most memorable games have been ones we've lost - but i want to see some football during the 90 minutes. west brom stayed up very easily last season but were no better than us barring two major aspects. 1) a clinical finisher and 2) gamesmanship. so we are a £10m striker and Tom Daley away from finishing about 12th. every (i was going to say saturday afternoon here, but even thats been ruined) match day is an uncomfortable experience and i get practically no enjoyment from them but for an even more extortionate price. ghastly league, ghastly.
     
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  4. CanariesSoccer

    CanariesSoccer Well-Known Member

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    Worst post I've ever read. How anyone can say they don't want to see their club playing at the top level is absolutely laughable.
     
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  5. Guru of Ipswich

    Guru of Ipswich Well-Known Member

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    Superman a quote from PC/CS @ 10.27 today

    ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    One of my favourite moments of last season was Holt diving to get one of your Donkey CBs sent off. There was so little contact it was hilarious, he just turned and fell. As a result of that he went on to score a hat trick.
    ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    at least get your bloody stories straight! ah well roll on to Delia's little rant, won't be long now!
     
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  6. ThaiCanary

    ThaiCanary Well-Known Member

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    It is my honest opinion. I do not like the PL and I would rather watch Championship football every week.
    It might be the best place for the club (any club) for the money it can generate but beyond that it is far, far from being the greatest league in the world as advertised by the likes of SKY TV etc
     
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  7. CanariesSoccer

    CanariesSoccer Well-Known Member

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    Thai - It's your opinion, but its my opinion that your opinion is an incorrect opinion.

    You don't like the Prem, that's fine. You don't want Norwich to be in the Prem, that's concerning. In no way am I looking for an argument, but to say you would genuinely rather see Norwich lingering in the second tier, like the Binners, is ludicrous!
     
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  8. CanariesSoccer

    CanariesSoccer Well-Known Member

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    For the record, I prefer the Championship to the Prem as a league.
     
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  9. ThaiCanary

    ThaiCanary Well-Known Member

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    From a spectacle and enjoyment factor of what is happening on the pitch - yes.
    I want to be able to see my team compete, not necessarily winning things but competing and being allowed to compete on a more level playing field.

    We will need to agree to disagree but thankfully I know I am not the only one who feels this way.
     
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  10. Superman wears Grant Holt pyjamas in bed

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    <laugh>

    guru, you and i both know that comments like that were just in jest. if you feel they were anything other, you are a bigger fool than i initially believed.
     
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  11. CanariesSoccer

    CanariesSoccer Well-Known Member

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    Fair enough Thai, consider yourself agreed to disagree.

    *gentlemans handshake*
     
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  12. ThaiCanary

    ThaiCanary Well-Known Member

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    :emoticon-0150-hands
     
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  13. Superman wears Grant Holt pyjamas in bed

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    PC, not sure if you were having a go at me for my comments about the premier league. my point is that i despise everything about the league. its not that i don't want my club to be in it and be a success - its that i can live without it as a fan. i think football is the most glorious game the world has ever created. it is like a religion, it embeds a passion that runs through your blood like no other game can. that doesn't mean i like what it is becoming though, and what it is becoming is not what football should be about and that makes me sad. i should be able to walk home after a game and not feel like i'm losing faith in the game. yes we see great skill and great goals at this level, but it is outweighed by everything that goes with it. i genuinely detest it.
     
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  14. johnnywarksmoustache

    johnnywarksmoustache Well-Known Member

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    <laugh>

    That old saying springs to mind "Be careful what you wish for....!"

    As for the gamesmanship of premier league players I think you need to look a bit closer to home before you lambast other teams players for blatant cheating! <ok>
     
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  15. Superman wears Grant Holt pyjamas in bed

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    oh good, another blinkered ipswich fan who i assume is saying we somehow cheated our way to promotion last year <doh> ;)

    seriously though warky, its been a long time since ipswich have played in the top flight and a lot has changed. if you were to go up i'm 100% sure you'd be debating the merits of the league too. the best bit about the premier league is the fight to get there. the fight to stay there is massively overrated and a thoroughly miserable experience. this isn't because of results, its because of how teams play the game. poor decisions or not, we have to improve if we are to stay up, but i won't be crying in to my beer if we fail in this mission.
     
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  16. CanariesSoccer

    CanariesSoccer Well-Known Member

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    Superman - My comments were aimed at the sentiment of not wanting to play in the top league, not necessarily at yourself, although obviously that is a sentiment which you hold.

    I agree, the Premier League is a nasty plastic league with plastic grounds and plastic fans, but to say you hate it so much you'd rather see us wallowing in the Championship is crazy! Pure madness! The Premiership is what's best for the club, and in the long run, what's best for the fans.

    I am delighted that we are in The Premiership.
     
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  17. SUPERNORWICH 23

    SUPERNORWICH 23 SUPERNORWICH

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    I agree with most of your points Superman, this league is laughable and watching yet another dubious pen was expected but Vaughany leaving the pitch looking like someone attacked him outside a kebab shop on a Saturday night just made me furious.
    We got the £90mil, if we go down the club is in good shape.
     
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  18. Superman wears Grant Holt pyjamas in bed

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    don't get me wrong - i want norwich in the premier league! i just don't know whether i want to watch it. i too am delighted we are here and it is so massively important for the club to try and stay here for as long as possible, even if it means yo-yoing a bit. my argument throughout this thread is that the needs of the club differ from my own needs. the clubs NEEDS top flight football. i can live without it. happily!
     
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  19. Guru of Ipswich

    Guru of Ipswich Well-Known Member

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    hang on a minute, I think the Budgies are going to be taking their ball home with them because they aren't getting their own way!
     
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  20. Resurgam

    Resurgam Top Analyst
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    At least we get close to the ball Guru <laugh>
     
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