Today is the 25th of December and I am in a reflective mood. Looking back at 2016 it’s been, well…crap! Bluntly this should have been the year I for one remembered the most.
Exactly one year ago, I was in Sweden planning my move to be in the homeland of my wife. We had just beaten Man United away and I was buzzing for the future of my two passions in life. To think that we would still be in the Premier League when I arrive in Sweden full time! The shackles of TV restrictions gone as Prem TV is played live on Saturday afternoons. It was a nice thought…alas.
After arriving back in England we were linked with some decent players and with 9 points in the bag from Christmas it was surely the final piece of the jigsaw. Some of the press gave Newcastle and Norwich top billing for their spends in January but for some reason, it undid us totally.
We soon witnessed a Gary O’Neil two-footer at Stoke and that game against Liverpool which seemed to sum up Norwich perfectly. We lacked cohesion, spirit and the manager was coming apart at the seams.
When Klose got injured and he limped off at Selhurst Park the club limped with him into the mire and the Championship. Yeah, we rallied against Watford when Redmond wanted to go out on a personal high but it was too little too late. By then McNally was already gone and I for one miss him greatly.
The crowd sang for the gaffer and the board responded. Alex Neil stayed and the fans got their wish. Engulfed by naivety we all thought the march back to the promised land would be akin to a stroll down Tombland on Lord Mayor’s evening, forgetting we went down with two powerhouse clubs.
The transfer window was terrible, the Ross McCormack deal was laughable. We then tried to send Naismith on his way only for it to fall down. Oliveria arrived and wasn’t fit to play for a while meaning Naismith got the nod upfront at Birmingham. After the 3-0 reverse, Naismith took a month off, not even making the bench. This only nine months after joining for one of our biggest ever fees. Quite incredible.
On went Alex Neil, seemingly bulletproof as he took the September manager of the month award. Those fans like me knew the award was strange. Norwich had been bang average, scraping home against a host of sides either out of form or out of luck.
Losing to Preston, Leeds and Huddersfield seemed to give a clearer indication of where Norwich actually were as a side. And it doesn’t make for pretty reading.
The Huddersfield Town game is one that sits worst with me. Mainly due to the fact that I purchased my first house with a girl from there. We would often go to games and Norwich were simply brilliant every time. Away at the Alfred McAlpine, a Craig Bellamy-inspired Norwich ripped them to pieces as we won 1-3. They were the open carcas we feasted on. At Carrow Road Bellamy and Roberts destroyed them with a 4-1 and more recently we had the 5-0. I was in shock, usually this mob roll over and let us have the points, instead, they gave us a lesson. I for one applauded them.
For me, teams aren’t rolling over anymore. Watford, Burnley, Bournemouth and Hull changed things. The simple fact is the smaller teams have belief. It is possible to go up and it is not the impossible dream it was made out to be.
The biggest disappointment of all has been the board. The AGM and Delia’s interview slagging off foreign investments and the shallow, empty words from Jez Moxey about wanting to be a Premier League CEO were dreadful. The fans smelt a rat. They smelt blind faith and a CEO who unlike McNally was happy to be a puppet for Delia. Ed Balls was doing the waltz and opposing teams were starting to dance around us. I simply can’t see us going up this season with Alex in change.
I think next season is our best chance with a fresh manager in place. We can clear out some deadwood and freshen it up. We are club carrying too many individuals…if we can fix that we have a chance of going places.
Fingers crossed for a strong 2017 because I for one want my club back because right now I am struggling to recognise what it stands for.
Happy New Year!
