Lost that one in the first half really with goals from two corners and a penalty the result of a lethargic and mistake strewn first half hour. Great improvement in the second half and by the end Norwich were hanging on and wasting time. An equaliser would have been deserved in the circumstances.

Jaakola - 4 - Didn't have a lot to do but what he did do looked a bit haphazard, Was responsible for the penalty with an ugly hack on Maddison who was trying to round him. Some people around me were convinced Maddison had handled it to push the ball around Jaakola but would have to look at that again. Distribution was adequate but not convincing.

Gunter- 6 - Decent display from him. Got to the byline a couple of times in the second half and put in decent balls. Appeared frustrated that his 'runs' were not being picked up by the others. Couple of Norwich fans I spoke to thought he was our best player.

Blackett - 3.5 - Could have been sent off for a reckless two footed tackle and got the benefit of the doubt from the ref, probably rightly but it was touch and go. He ain't a left back, I'll leave it at that.

Moore - 5.5 - Always looks decent quality but surely two goals from corners is at least in part down to him as the main central defender.

Llori - 3 - Wasted possession, particularly one free kick, and looked dodgy on the ball.

Clement - 5 - Poor in first half but grew into the game. Lacks a bit of composure at times, and pace, but likes a tackle. I'd persist with him a bit on that showing as could become a crowd favourite but would have to up his game 20 per cent to do that.

Kelly - 6.5 - Arguably MOM for us until he was bizarrely substituted earlyish in the second half. He was about the only player who had a good first half and then I think laid on the goal for Smith with good cross behind the defence. Fans didn't like it when he was hoiked off chanting 'You don't know what you're doing' at Stam. if his substitution was down to an injury fair enough but inexplicable otherwise. That said, when he did go off and JVDB and Swift came on, we did look more compact in midfield and threatened more.

Aluko - 3 - Oh dear. When he receives the ball he always seems to have about three defenders around him. I think that is because he is too obvious and ponderous when he tries to evade the challenges rather than the opposition having him down as someone to mark closely. Just didn't add any value to our performance really.

Edwards - 4 - Didn't really notice him much but played his part in the second half improvement. At least I think he did as he was at least on the pitch at the time.

Barrow - 5.5 - I suspect that wasn't one of his better games but did look dangerous occasionally.

Smith - 5 - Looked out of his depth in the first half and it was a big ask for him today against Grant Hanley and Timm Klose, two experienced centre halfs. But took his goal well, a decent knack to have, and pulled the Norwich defence apart several times with good off the ball running. Again, worth persisting with.

Subs:

Swift: - 6 - Player of skill and some decent passing patterns but perhaps should have driven forward a bit more considering the state of the game when he came on.

JVDB - 5 - One shocker of a ball to Gunter easily cut out by the Norwich defender when we were in a good position but appeared to exert some sort of control on the midfield after coming on.


Ref: The usual shocker, the most blatant being that surely he should have sent Jaakola off for his foul on Maddison. It clearly denied him a goalscoring opportunity. Did not add on enough time at the end for Norwich's frequent time wasting.

Fans: Not bad, about 450 to 500 I would say. When we got a goal back in the first half there was a decent chorus of 'How shit must you be, we've just scored a goal,' although negative chanting as a highlight is perhaps pushing it a bit. Few 'Stam out chants' but far from everybody chanting it. Gallows humour but largely supportive of the efforts the players made, particularly second half.

Thanks for the excellent review. As you say we can’t give the opposition a head start. I just don’t understand why Jaakkola is still in the side.

I wonder if John Smith thinks we're in a relegation battle yet?

Thanks for the report

Just watched the goals of SS - first two were so basic

Norwich did seem to have quite a few ither decent efforts in the second half. Only showed our goals as highlights (good goal from Smith)

Going down. What an absolute shower of shite, devoid of ideas, scared to play like they want to to. Only chance is to change the manger and hope for a rebound.

Perhaps he will agree not to post on here if we go down.

I bet that has crossed more than a dozen minds on here.

They missed an absolute sitter in the second half for sure, Srebny? maybe, right up there with Ronnie Rosenthal. But we had two very near misses in the second half that they possibly didn't show.

We now gift teams at least 2 goals each game, we still don't have a recognised goalscorer, the substitutions recently have been off the wall, in my opinion the club is being sold down the river by the owners, we as fans need to take some sort of stand as this seems to be far more than a footballing issue, there seems to be no one in charge at the very top....A sad demise for our club

Either boycott or protest. Meekly applauding the team at full time for turning up isn’t working.

I bet that has crossed more than a dozen minds on here.

+1

I feel I ought to add about Aluko that when he receives the ball he is invariably static and that is the real reason why he always seems to have three defenders closing him down. He would be much more effective were he to receive the ball when he is in space, and he has to create that for himself, or on the move. It seems basic, has anyone told him this.

I also think I was mean on the rating with Smith. Should have been 5.5 really, touching six possibly.

I bet that has crossed more than a dozen minds on here.

+1

Well quite

Dellor was claiming Jakkola was lucky not to be sent off too but remember that they changed the rule on that, if a player makes a genuine attempt to win the ball, it is not a sending off offence.

Now I haven't seen Jakkola's foul for the penalty but if he genuinely went for the ball, the referee made the correct decision.

Clumsy tackle bit wouldn’t have said sending off personally

+1

Well quite

subtle.

So has the sending off rule if the foul denies a player a goalscoring opportunity been ditched then? This didn't happen on the half way line. Jaakola hacked Maddison down as he was rounding him with the almost certain result of a goal. it wasn't one of those where the player falls over the keeper's legs as they're running away from goal, it was a proper yahoo.

It may well have been a genuine attempt to win the ball, albeit a very clumsy one, but would not your scenario be more likely designed to cover outfield tackles of the two foot off the ground variety than the incident involving Jaakola today?

Also, you appear to be talking about straight red cards which are given for an immediately serious offence rather than being sent off for a second yellow for instance?

Sigh. Every time this happens it needs explaining. If it's denying a goalscoring opportunity and it occurs inside the penalty area it is a booking, outside and it is a red. Ref made the correct decision today.

Current law states:

Where a player commits an offence against an opponent within their own penalty area which denies an opponent an obvious goal-scoring opportunity and the referee awards a penalty kick, the offending player is cautioned if the offence was an attempt to play the ball; in all other circumstances (e.g. holding, pulling, pushing, no possibility to play the ball etc.) the offending player must be sent off.

So the ref obviously believed he was attempting to play the ball.

Did the players and Jaap come over to the away support after ? ..

I usually like your posts but 8 could read past the misspelling of Ilori. It's an I. It's on the back of his shirt. C'mon.

Thanks for explaining, that as I wasn't aware of it.

It might help though if the referees were consistent in applying that rule.

I usually like your posts but 8 could read past the misspelling of Ilori. It's an I. It's on the back of his shirt. C'mon.

Ha, I guessed his name as couldn't be arsed to look it up and have never heard anyone saying it. Sorry.

I usually like your posts but 8 could read past the misspelling of Ilori. It's an I. It's on the back of his shirt. C'mon.

Ha, I guessed his name as couldn't be arsed to look it up and have never heard anyone saying it. Sorry. No doubt you're correct that his name is on the back of his shirt, unfortunately I was not close enough to examine the spelling.

???

If Jaakola was making a genuine attempt to play the ball then a yellow is correct.

Looking at a few times on Youtube and I really question whether it was even a penalty. Both players seemingly went for the ball and took each other out, with the ball spinning well away from the NCFC player in any event. Academic really I suppose.

Looking at a few times on Youtube and I really question whether it was even a penalty. Both players seemingly went for the ball and took each other out, with the ball spinning well away from the NCFC player in any event. Academic really I suppose.

You may have a point there, Strap. Watching the clip from behind the goal closely, it looks to me like Jaakola actually palms the ball away, or certainly gets a hand on the ball anyway. And that seems to be what he is saying, by holding his hand up, when pleading his case with the ref. (Although, its easy to see why a ref would have given a foul and yellow there, esp. with Maddison writhing in agony one second, he looks up to see the ref has given it, and then jumps to his feet seconds later, and then takes/scores the penalty).

Agree with most of points raised apart from I thought Gunter got absolutely roasted time and time again. Illoris lack of even getting off the ground for their second goal was horrendous and summed up his whole attitude to this relegation fight.
Regarding the penalty, if I was Stam I'd be more concerned why Maddison was left totally unmarked in acres of space which led to the challenge.
I know it's been mentioned before but surely the one thing we should expect from having a manager who was a world class defender is to have a defence that can at least do the basics when it comes to corners and set pieces?

Norfolk, excellent write up, thanks for that. I agree with most all of your player ratings, too. Does Maddison look like a PL player to you? Read somewhere recently he is rated at 30mil!?

tilehurstender, yep Ilori continues his masquerade as a center half in the Champ. You wonder if game plans by opposing managers ever get exotic. More like...'Lump crosses in to their middle...create mayhem and havoc...their center half Ilori is weak in the air...should be easy pickings...you will have opportunities'. Yesterday, they had already scored their 1st from a header from a corner. Their 2nd goal, a routine corner, send up their defenders, Hanley engulfs Ilori, a complete mismatch.