" Match Report Norwich v Cardiff 15/01/11 "
Sat Jan 15, 2011 10:56 pm
Cannot remember when I have been to an away game where I struggled to find a Cardiff fan either walking the streets or having a drink in one of the pubs. Eventually I saw a couple of guys outside one of the city centre pubs and upon entering it a couple more guys. It felt like the Cardiff supporters had deserted their team which gave me an empty feeling. So it was a relief when I entered away concourse that I saw 550 had made the long trip across the country. Norwich administration had decided to tuck us into one of the corners of the ground with a small meshing separating us from the away fans. It must be said the stadium was packed for this one and it had the potential for a great atmosphere. The Norwich fans to our right, in the stand behind one of the goal and wall segregation from us made sure we knew they were there. The Norwich announcer certainly knew how to get the home support going and to be honest it made for quite an intimidating feeling for us away lot in our corner. So much for this being a family club.
As the players came onto the pitch you could not mistake the new guy. It looked a monster of a creature and when the travelling Cardiff contingent asked him to do the Ayatollah no one booed him when he failed to reply. It would have taken a very brave individual to have done that and if this guy does not want to do the Ayatollah then I for one am not going to argue with him. The Beast Jon Parkin made his debut for the Bluebirds and partnered Chopra up front. The captain Bellamy covered the left wing with Whittingham on the right and in central midfield Oli partnered McPhail. Tom Heaton was in goal and he had the back line of Naylor, MacNaughton, Hudson and Quinn in front of him.
From the kick off Cardiff started brightly passing the ball around nicely and making progress in the Norwich half down the Bellamy wing. The first chance fell to Whittingham just outside the Norwich penalty area where he managed to create some space for himself only to force a save out of the Canaries goalkeeper. Cardiff then reverted to their usual play of a target man and it soon paid dividends.
From midfield Cardiff decided to see how good their new man was. Long high balls made their way to the target known as the Beast. After every won ball by the Beast the question being asked by the away lot was did he actually jump for the ball because it looked like he did not have to. Well no one was bothered about the answer when one such move on the 7th minutes saw the Beast nod the ball onto Chopra who in return laid the ball back to him and from 25 yards with the outside of his right foot hammered the ball into the Norwich goal. What an awesome start to the Beasts Cardiff career and how good it felt he was on our side. The last time I felt like that, someone being on our side, was when I saw all those Argentine field guns that were captured after the Falklands war. They were all sent to my RAF camp where I was based and when you know those guns belong to you then it makes you feel pretty good. Jon Parkin reminded me of those guns.
So it was a great start and our new guy had made his mark. However from the restart Norwich started to win everything in midfield. Basically for the rest of the first half Norwich dominated and Cardiff were left with trying to catch the Canaries on the break. The Cardiff defence decided to defend deep and this allowed the home side to pass the ball inside the Cardiff half with ease. Fortunately for Cardiff the final phase of a Norwich attack was easily dealt with by the Cardiff backline but Norwich were picking up all loose play and were allowed to build again. One such build up play resulted in a 25 yard strike hitting the Cardiff crossbar.
Norwich attacked down both wings but fortunately failed to get some good quality crosses in. Credit must go to Naylor who seemed to block quite a few attacks down his side. Those crosses that did manage to make their way into the Cardiff 18 yard area were easily defended. Only one such cross was met by a Norwich head where the ball went safely over the bar.
Most of Norwich success though came from long shots. Due to their dominance in midfield they created some space for their midfielders to try their luck from distance. One such effort saw Heaton make a comfortable save. However a long range shot Heaton could only parry and the ball fell to a Norwich striker who tapped the ball into an empty net. As the Norwich fans celebrated the Cardiff fans were quick to point to the linesman who had his flag up for offside.
Cardiff’s best chance during this period of dominance from the home side came on a breakaway just before half time. As Norwich committed more players forward for an equaliser they were caught out as for once they lost out in midfield. From this Cardiff managed to set Bellamy free and as he made his way towards the Norwich goal he created enough space just outside the area to let loose a harmless shot that was easily saved.
The referee brought the first half to an end with the score Norwich 0 Cardiff 1.
Norwich continued to dominate after the break and it was some desperate defending by the Cardiff central midfielders that stopped the home side getting back on equal terms. One attack saw Hudson throw himself at the ball for an excellent block while another attack saw MacNaughton intercepting a pass that would have left a Norwich striker with only Heaton to beat.
After these early scares Norwich then struggled to trouble Heaton. The Cardiff defence held up well and this allowed for one or two breakaways to happen. One such break away found Bellamy on the wing and he picked out Chopra who found himself with only the Norwich goalkeeper to beat. Unfortunately he failed to beat the keeper who did well to get down and block the shot.
Norwich continued to press for an equaliser with Cardiff hoping to catch them on the break. However neither team seemed to look like scoring. As the game went into the last 10 minutes it was the Cardiff fans that were making the noise. This seemed to help their team as they started to win the midfield battle. By now Burke had replaced McPhail and his pace down the right wing was used to relieve the pressure of the Cardiff goal. So now it was looking like 3 points were on their way back to the Principality but Norwich continued to press forward.
The Norwich midfielder Hoolihan had been a thorn in the side of the Cardiff defence all game. He was a real live wire for them and totally controlled the midfield with his slick passing cross the pitch. It was his game that finally undone Cardiff. As the game went into injury time he found one of his wingers free. From this wing the ball was sent across the Cardiff area and got deflected across the 6 yard box to be met on the opposite post by an advancing Norwich defender who somehow from a tight angle slammed the ball into the net via the crossbar. A sickening end to the game for us travelling Cardiff but being the honest fans we are we were glad for the point.
Summing up: Although disappointed to lose out in the last minutes all of us would have taken this point at the start. However it must be said that we did very well to come away with something because we really were 2nd best for most parts of the game. A sign of a great team or have we used up all our luck? I think I will see how we do in the next two games before I answer that.
As the players came onto the pitch you could not mistake the new guy. It looked a monster of a creature and when the travelling Cardiff contingent asked him to do the Ayatollah no one booed him when he failed to reply. It would have taken a very brave individual to have done that and if this guy does not want to do the Ayatollah then I for one am not going to argue with him. The Beast Jon Parkin made his debut for the Bluebirds and partnered Chopra up front. The captain Bellamy covered the left wing with Whittingham on the right and in central midfield Oli partnered McPhail. Tom Heaton was in goal and he had the back line of Naylor, MacNaughton, Hudson and Quinn in front of him.
From the kick off Cardiff started brightly passing the ball around nicely and making progress in the Norwich half down the Bellamy wing. The first chance fell to Whittingham just outside the Norwich penalty area where he managed to create some space for himself only to force a save out of the Canaries goalkeeper. Cardiff then reverted to their usual play of a target man and it soon paid dividends.
From midfield Cardiff decided to see how good their new man was. Long high balls made their way to the target known as the Beast. After every won ball by the Beast the question being asked by the away lot was did he actually jump for the ball because it looked like he did not have to. Well no one was bothered about the answer when one such move on the 7th minutes saw the Beast nod the ball onto Chopra who in return laid the ball back to him and from 25 yards with the outside of his right foot hammered the ball into the Norwich goal. What an awesome start to the Beasts Cardiff career and how good it felt he was on our side. The last time I felt like that, someone being on our side, was when I saw all those Argentine field guns that were captured after the Falklands war. They were all sent to my RAF camp where I was based and when you know those guns belong to you then it makes you feel pretty good. Jon Parkin reminded me of those guns.
So it was a great start and our new guy had made his mark. However from the restart Norwich started to win everything in midfield. Basically for the rest of the first half Norwich dominated and Cardiff were left with trying to catch the Canaries on the break. The Cardiff defence decided to defend deep and this allowed the home side to pass the ball inside the Cardiff half with ease. Fortunately for Cardiff the final phase of a Norwich attack was easily dealt with by the Cardiff backline but Norwich were picking up all loose play and were allowed to build again. One such build up play resulted in a 25 yard strike hitting the Cardiff crossbar.
Norwich attacked down both wings but fortunately failed to get some good quality crosses in. Credit must go to Naylor who seemed to block quite a few attacks down his side. Those crosses that did manage to make their way into the Cardiff 18 yard area were easily defended. Only one such cross was met by a Norwich head where the ball went safely over the bar.
Most of Norwich success though came from long shots. Due to their dominance in midfield they created some space for their midfielders to try their luck from distance. One such effort saw Heaton make a comfortable save. However a long range shot Heaton could only parry and the ball fell to a Norwich striker who tapped the ball into an empty net. As the Norwich fans celebrated the Cardiff fans were quick to point to the linesman who had his flag up for offside.
Cardiff’s best chance during this period of dominance from the home side came on a breakaway just before half time. As Norwich committed more players forward for an equaliser they were caught out as for once they lost out in midfield. From this Cardiff managed to set Bellamy free and as he made his way towards the Norwich goal he created enough space just outside the area to let loose a harmless shot that was easily saved.
The referee brought the first half to an end with the score Norwich 0 Cardiff 1.
Norwich continued to dominate after the break and it was some desperate defending by the Cardiff central midfielders that stopped the home side getting back on equal terms. One attack saw Hudson throw himself at the ball for an excellent block while another attack saw MacNaughton intercepting a pass that would have left a Norwich striker with only Heaton to beat.
After these early scares Norwich then struggled to trouble Heaton. The Cardiff defence held up well and this allowed for one or two breakaways to happen. One such break away found Bellamy on the wing and he picked out Chopra who found himself with only the Norwich goalkeeper to beat. Unfortunately he failed to beat the keeper who did well to get down and block the shot.
Norwich continued to press for an equaliser with Cardiff hoping to catch them on the break. However neither team seemed to look like scoring. As the game went into the last 10 minutes it was the Cardiff fans that were making the noise. This seemed to help their team as they started to win the midfield battle. By now Burke had replaced McPhail and his pace down the right wing was used to relieve the pressure of the Cardiff goal. So now it was looking like 3 points were on their way back to the Principality but Norwich continued to press forward.
The Norwich midfielder Hoolihan had been a thorn in the side of the Cardiff defence all game. He was a real live wire for them and totally controlled the midfield with his slick passing cross the pitch. It was his game that finally undone Cardiff. As the game went into injury time he found one of his wingers free. From this wing the ball was sent across the Cardiff area and got deflected across the 6 yard box to be met on the opposite post by an advancing Norwich defender who somehow from a tight angle slammed the ball into the net via the crossbar. A sickening end to the game for us travelling Cardiff but being the honest fans we are we were glad for the point.
Summing up: Although disappointed to lose out in the last minutes all of us would have taken this point at the start. However it must be said that we did very well to come away with something because we really were 2nd best for most parts of the game. A sign of a great team or have we used up all our luck? I think I will see how we do in the next two games before I answer that.
Re: " Match Report Norwich v Cardiff 15/01/11 "
Sat Jan 15, 2011 11:03 pm
A good read, thanks Ian.
Re: Sticky: " Match Report Norwich v Cardiff 15/01/11 "
Sat Jan 15, 2011 11:04 pm
Cheers Ian, Very much appreciated. As usual an excellent Report 
Re: Sticky: " Match Report Norwich v Cardiff 15/01/11 "
Sat Jan 15, 2011 11:44 pm
Crackin read
Re: Sticky: " Match Report Norwich v Cardiff 15/01/11 "
Sat Jan 15, 2011 11:51 pm
Brilliant report, thankyou.
Re: Sticky: " Match Report Norwich v Cardiff 15/01/11 "
Sun Jan 16, 2011 9:06 am
Great report. Thanks Ian
Re: Sticky: " Match Report Norwich v Cardiff 15/01/11 "
Sun Jan 16, 2011 9:34 am
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A Norwich City Fan
Lisa Beales likes this.
Lisa Beales A very fair report of the game, no mention of the pen that should have been though. We came to Cardiff in October and were welcomed in "The Ninian Park". We hold Cardiff in very high esteem! Good luck for the rest of the season : )
6 hours ago · Unlike · 2 people
A Norwich City Fan
Lisa Beales likes this.
Lisa Beales A very fair report of the game, no mention of the pen that should have been though. We came to Cardiff in October and were welcomed in "The Ninian Park". We hold Cardiff in very high esteem! Good luck for the rest of the season : )
6 hours ago · Unlike · 2 people
Re: Sticky: " Match Report Norwich v Cardiff 15/01/11 "
Sun Jan 16, 2011 10:57 am
Cracking report as usual Ian, I'm also glad Parkin is on our side 
Gutted with the last minute equaliser, but in all honesty would've taken a point at the start.
Gutted with the last minute equaliser, but in all honesty would've taken a point at the start.
Re: Sticky: " Match Report Norwich v Cardiff 15/01/11 "
Sun Jan 16, 2011 12:05 pm
great report now after a nights sleep im happy with a draw just letting late goals is terrible and feels like a loss plus the jacks in second is a pain I wonder if the jacks was in another league we would not be so hard on our team as we are checking on them and I for one hate the jack bastards being above us
Re: Sticky: " Match Report Norwich v Cardiff 15/01/11 "
Sun Jan 16, 2011 9:28 pm
Good report but in Parkin's interview he said he done the very early on. And i aint gonna disagree with him even if you say he defo didn't 
very early on. And i aint gonna disagree with him even if you say he defo didn't
Re: Sticky: " Match Report Norwich v Cardiff 15/01/11 "
Sun Jan 16, 2011 9:32 pm
Nuclearblue wrote:Good report but in Parkin's interview he said he done the
Well if he said he did it, then he did it.
Re: Sticky: " Match Report Norwich v Cardiff 15/01/11 "
Mon Jan 17, 2011 3:31 am
Top report !
couldn't agree more about using up all our luck, it could prove a costly 2 points dropped in may,
couldn't agree more about using up all our luck, it could prove a costly 2 points dropped in may,
Re: Sticky: " Match Report Norwich v Cardiff 15/01/11 "
Thu Jan 20, 2011 12:10 pm
Fair play Ian, I've only just got round to reading this one - I liked the thought about having the beast on our side being like the big argentine field guns, good metaphor there - especially with the goal looking like it was fired from a gun!
Re: " Match Report Norwich v Cardiff 15/01/11 "
Thu Jan 20, 2011 9:49 pm
Cheers Ian, look forward to Watford match report