Ten random thoughts on today's game

1. After QPR's first equaliser, and for the rest of the first half, the lack of pressure on the ball from our midfield and defence was embarrassing. Hughes bawled at his teammates to sort it out, but frankly, he was pretty much as guilty as anyone; and defensively, Croft is a total liability - as much as Damien Francis was two seasons ago, I'd say. Robinson wasn't much better either.

2. Free kick for QPR's second was a disgrace: and I think we all knew what was bound to happen when it was awarded. That said, it had been coming, and we deserved to be behind at the break.

3. Our comeback was so classy that it made me wonder what on earth we were doing losing to a spirited, but limited side in the first place. Bring Dublin on, and switching to 4-4-2, made all the difference: I hope Grant pays heed to it and sticks with both Earnie and Dublin (assuming the latter's fit enough of course) up front. I freely admit to wondering what on earth Worthington was doing when he signed Dion - but Sutton was off to Villa in any case, and credit where credit's due: the big man did terrifically well.

4. Safri just makes the whole side look so much more secure and cohesive. I really hope we don't lose him in January: without question, he's the most important member of the team - just as he was last season too.

5. In the purple patch which saw us go ahead, Croft turned from defensive liability to offensive weapon: his ball across for Dion's equaliser was coolness personified. He is carrying a few too many pounds, though - and I'd like to see Grant get tough with him, so we can truly get the best out of him.

6. Earnie's a terrific player - but he wastes far too many free kicks. We had a couple of fantastic opportunities earlier: the least he should be doing is getting them on target.

7. As with the ridiculous free kick which led to QPR's goal right on half-time, we (and the players?) all knew what was bound to happen when 5 minutes injury time was ludicrously announced. But cruel as it was, it was a poor goal to give away - and if you're counting, that's now a disgraceful 17 goals conceded in our last 6 league games. We just don't defend as a unit - and although a fully fit Safri will help fix this, it's still the same old soft centred Norwich. Good football at times today - but if you give away three goals a game, you don't deserve to win.

To reiterate: given how superior we looked during our second half fightback, we should've dominated that game, and only have ourselves to blame for not putting it away. John Gregory was ecstatic at getting a draw, high-fiving his substituted players as they took an age to come off. And even though we were plainly the classier side with far higher levels of potential, a draw was nonetheless a fair result: it's up to Grant to toughen us up, because we won't get anywhere if we can't close out games as a matter of routine the way the top sides in the division can.

8. On an amusing note, I was near the front of the centre of the School End Upper stand. There was this hilarious old lady - probably in her mid to late 60s or so, sat right at the front, constantly making w**ker and 'V' signs to the QPR fans on her far left, and making this enormous din by taking off her shoe and slamming it against the barrier. The way she kept leaning out over it to taunt the Rs supporters, I genuinely thought she might fall over at one stage - but she was fantastic! Reminiscent of Kevin Baldwin's mum as he described her in his two books on City (Mrs Baldwin has even been known to gob at rival fans in her time...)

9. Overall, encouraging to have played so much better in patches, but the same old problems are still there in abundance too. Actually, today was us in a nutshell: good going forward, but leaking goals like a sieve - and still doing stupid things which the truly hard-nosed professional sides don't. All of which will have been an excellent grounding for the watching Peter Grant - and it's over to him to see what he can do. Good luck, Peter!

10. And if anyone's that pissed off, look at it this way: you could be an Ipswich fan. Or even worse, you could be a West Ham fan. "Down with the Warnock, you're going down with the Warnock..."

Posted By: thebigfeller, Oct 14, 19:10:41