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'Let's be having you’ was the cry at the crack of dawn for the long trip down to the homeland of Delia Smith and the Canaries.
Thankfully the only queues en route were for the full English breakfast at Corley Services, where the KFC stood desolate and chicken-less. We arrived in good time to sink a couple of pints of Gold in one of the friendliest away pubs, the Coach and Horses, home of the Chalk Hill Brewery.
The locals fancied their chances, although they warned us not to count our chickens until the final whistle as Norwich City had rescued points this week against both Wolves and Ipswich, well into added time.
For our part, despite being on a high after Tuesday’s great result against Sunderland, we didn’t think we’d get anything after our recent poor away form and current selection headaches, but we were willing to be pleasantly surprised.
Phil Parkinson sprang the first surprise by playing Reece Burke in midfield and unleashing Darren Pratley after his latest injury. It wasn’t great in the first half and we rode our luck as Norwich hit the post, Ben Alnwick pulled off two cracking saves when called upon and there was a welcome miss from Moritz Leitner. We even got the benefit of the referee’s discretion, when he only booked Darren Pratley after a wild challenge, something that could have been red in other referees’ eyes, like at Loftus Road last week.
But Parkinson moved Filipe Morais to the left at half time and it changed the game. We gave as good as we got in the second half and with careful use of the substitutes, including a first appearance for Jon Flanagan, we earned a well-deserved point.
This result felt as good as any win and with other results mostly going for us, it keeps our heads above water and a small gap is – agonisingly slowly – developing between us and the bottom three.
With 12 matches to go, confidence is rising. Fans are getting their slide rules out, calculating how many points will see us safe.
The majority seem to think 46 points will be enough, although I think 48 will be more likely. So, four wins and a couple of draws should do the business.
But anything can happen in football and a couple of results either way can change everything. Have I got enough fingernails left?
Source
Thankfully the only queues en route were for the full English breakfast at Corley Services, where the KFC stood desolate and chicken-less. We arrived in good time to sink a couple of pints of Gold in one of the friendliest away pubs, the Coach and Horses, home of the Chalk Hill Brewery.
The locals fancied their chances, although they warned us not to count our chickens until the final whistle as Norwich City had rescued points this week against both Wolves and Ipswich, well into added time.
For our part, despite being on a high after Tuesday’s great result against Sunderland, we didn’t think we’d get anything after our recent poor away form and current selection headaches, but we were willing to be pleasantly surprised.
Phil Parkinson sprang the first surprise by playing Reece Burke in midfield and unleashing Darren Pratley after his latest injury. It wasn’t great in the first half and we rode our luck as Norwich hit the post, Ben Alnwick pulled off two cracking saves when called upon and there was a welcome miss from Moritz Leitner. We even got the benefit of the referee’s discretion, when he only booked Darren Pratley after a wild challenge, something that could have been red in other referees’ eyes, like at Loftus Road last week.
But Parkinson moved Filipe Morais to the left at half time and it changed the game. We gave as good as we got in the second half and with careful use of the substitutes, including a first appearance for Jon Flanagan, we earned a well-deserved point.
This result felt as good as any win and with other results mostly going for us, it keeps our heads above water and a small gap is – agonisingly slowly – developing between us and the bottom three.
With 12 matches to go, confidence is rising. Fans are getting their slide rules out, calculating how many points will see us safe.
The majority seem to think 46 points will be enough, although I think 48 will be more likely. So, four wins and a couple of draws should do the business.
But anything can happen in football and a couple of results either way can change everything. Have I got enough fingernails left?
Source