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"Megasoggy" ACN Pod 118
420 Plays1 year ago
Tom, Jon & Edie are back to share their unrivalled excitement and enthusiasm for the new canaries season, and give unparalleled insights such as comparing NCFC's prospects to trapped air leaving a bloated corpse.
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Transcript
Season Preview and Listener Engagement
00:00:22
Speaker
Welcome to Long Come Norwich podcast. We're back to baffle your earbuds with our belligerent bluster and babble. There's baited breath at ACNHQ as we're banking on Norwich City blessing us with another basket case season of joy and pain. Join the media with me and we're delighted you've joined us to look forward to it.
00:00:41
Speaker
Edie, I want to kick straight off with a listener question. Describe this season or rather your anticipation towards it in a sound. So picture, if you will, a bloated corpse that's washed up on a seashore.
00:00:58
Speaker
and there's a lot of trapped gas in there and maybe just like the gentle ebb and flow of the waves have disturbed the body and the body makes this sense kind of like as the air comes out just kind of like
00:01:14
Speaker
So when you said, when you said before, when you said before we started pressing record that your sound would be like the slow escape of air, I didn't think that it would be like deceased person air. I thought it would at least be the air of a living being. Is that a positive noise? It doesn't feel like a positive noise, Edie.
00:01:33
Speaker
The air is more kind of involuntary, so you can't really help it. I'm sure there are good things ahead, there are, but I just think the temporary situation, or the multiples of temporary situations we find ourselves in, I just think it's really, really hard to kind of envisage a future when there is so much change afoot.
Team Assessment: Past and Present
00:01:59
Speaker
Change that isn't necessarily necessary.
00:02:03
Speaker
OK, but, Punt, have you got a noise in your locker? Well, the noise, just to clarify the question, and it was from Paul Buller, was, describe this season's prospects in a noise rather than your anticipation levels, which I guess, you know, might be slightly different. That's probably the noise, actually. We could do all right, like it is. It feels like
00:02:30
Speaker
We're in a position whereby, quality-wise, if you looked at that squad, player for player, and you compared them to the vintage season that was 22, 23, we are probably not an awful lot better, and some could argue worse in terms of actual technical ability. However,
00:02:54
Speaker
Dean Smith is gone. David Wagner is here. David Wagner has a prescribed way of playing, and he hasn't really got his troops to do that as yet. Maybe in two or three games at the start of his tenure where we looked really effective, but I think that was just a release of energy, a smudge of ball being dead rather than David Wagner putting anything into the players, which made it all exciting and lovely. I don't know. I look at the signings.
00:03:20
Speaker
And I think we've signed a couple of double hard bastards and we didn't have those in previous seasons or we didn't have that certainly in the previous season apart from Grant Hanley who is a little bit broken probably until next year anyway. We've signed capable lads who will be dependable but without much flair and I guess that's the thing that
00:03:49
Speaker
Not necessarily worries me, because look, you can get yourself out of the championship by being obdurate and difficult to be and defensively resolute. All of those things that we've actually seen in pre-season can be positive steps. It's just not the knowledge that we're used to. And I think it's fine if we start to win games. But if we don't, I think the tide will turn quicker than maybe those people at Carrow Road anticipate.
00:04:16
Speaker
Because I think, naively, I think there will be those in the corridors of power that just think, ah, it's fine. They can see that we're in transition and we've had to sign six or seven new lads. And so they'll give us a bit of patience. Don't think they'll be afforded that if the football is a little bit more attritional.
Playing Styles and Pre-Season Concerns
00:04:38
Speaker
Stodgy.
00:04:40
Speaker
Well, Stodgy was last season. I'm hoping Attritional this season. Okay. What's the difference between Attritional and Stodgy? Stodgy is just a bit bloated and bollocks and Attritional is a bit more like, we'll get there. We're going to get there. We're just going to keep plugging away till we get there. So Stodgy is the corpse on the side of the cage and Attritional is that corpse is suddenly full of helium and it just starts to float and all the children share.
00:05:09
Speaker
That's a really bleak summer holidays activity. The podcast now, mate, is fine. We're done. Come on, kids. Let's go and look at the floating corpse by the river. Well, I think that there certainly seems to be in the corridors of power, fingers crossed that we're going to be given a bit of time. See the Chris Sutton preseason kind of clickbait headline was, if you're going to moan, stay at home.
00:05:33
Speaker
And so you wonder always how much that's a request that's kind of gone into, can we try and be positive and can we try and not, can we try and play down negativity and how much of that something is a completely organically written article. I don't, I don't think this is totally organic. Like he doesn't club lackey. Yeah, no chance.
00:05:57
Speaker
No, you'd hope so. I do think that there probably is an element of the club being delighted that headlines like that are out there, though, because to your point, you know, Pump, we had a season where we were told off a lot. And I think that might be the thing that I'm most hoping we get some positive momentum on early doors. Realistically, it's probably only results that will do it. However,
00:06:25
Speaker
you know, you say that I think the football, the football producing chances, clear cut chances is probably more important maybe than the result. Because if you go back to bollard ball, when we were getting results, we were so unconvinced. So I'm not sure it is necessarily like what I don't necessarily mean, I want us to win first and foremost, I want us to smash whole five nil. But what I want
00:06:53
Speaker
to see is I would almost prefer a nil-nil draw with three chances that on another day we put away that we've created with really good counterattacking moves where you think, oh, everyone knew where to go there and everyone knew where to run.
00:07:09
Speaker
than a one nil with the only shot we had on target for like the whole game with no kind of meaningful patterns of play being clear. Do you see what I mean? I think that the fans are more likely to moan if they go, come on, we know we're in transition, but Jesus, you've had all of the off season and all of the apparently a very successful pre-season to work out how to attack people in the championship.
00:07:39
Speaker
you
00:07:40
Speaker
Yeah. And I don't know. Well, that's an interesting point in all of itself. I don't think we've spent much of preseason learning how this this Norrie City side is going to attack people and he's going to never do those. No. But what I mean is that actually the focus and, you know, another podcast that I listen to another Norrie City podcast that I listen to regularly says, you know, Frank Conner says you can extract themes out of preseason, but you can't actually take anything meaningful out of it. And I think he's bang on. And the theme of this preseason has been
00:08:10
Speaker
We've been difficult to beat, and we've been defensively sound, and we look way more organized than we were under Smith, under Wagner. You could even argue under Farka as a defensive unit as well. You know, we do look, or we have looked extremely well drilled in that regard. My worry, actually around preseason, and this is a real concern, is maybe the planning around that preseason, because I haven't seen, and I've watched most of the games, but, you know, dipped in and out of them.
00:08:39
Speaker
I haven't seen us have a real proper physical battle and test. We've played a lot of technical sides. We've played a lot of sides from the continent. Any of the meaningful games have been against sides within Europe and not within this country.
00:08:55
Speaker
And that is a concern to me that actually day one, like if Hull come and smashes about a bit, are we prepared for that? Yeah, Duffy and Barnes will be, but I'm not sure about the rest of the troops. So I wonder whether there's been an issue in the planning there, but about to find out, aren't we? And it'll be fun finding out.
00:09:13
Speaker
So Edie, I think we've obviously got our glass balls in front of us and our pre-season telescopes on the go. What is your gut feel? So you were saying that you've got that escape of bloated corpse air.
00:09:30
Speaker
Do you feel from what you've seen with the changes that you don't necessarily think are necessary, do you feel that we are moving in a positive direction? Like would that be your recap of the summer? If it's a Norwich City Monopoly board, are we a bit further ahead around? Have we moved a few squares forward or are we still at the crap cheap stuff at the start of the board?
00:09:56
Speaker
We have seen a lot of promise from the new faces in the friendlies. And I'm feeling kind of okay about that. I just think without interference, I'm fairly weirdly hopeful we could at least spin the roulette wheel and see what happened.
00:10:12
Speaker
It's just this idea that we've got somebody who knows, someone who never particularly demonstrated that they liked the club or the fans, who's set to leave, but we don't quite know when, like just sort of doing what was happening before, which is, I'm guessing just kind of like fiddling with people psychologically.
00:10:38
Speaker
in the hope that this would lead to victory. I don't know, could we not just at least try and get on with the business of progressing and becoming a cohesive team without all of that kind of like
00:10:54
Speaker
uncertainty about the foundations that are around it. I think
Leadership Influence and Midfield Strategy
00:10:58
Speaker
that's where I'm feeling the kind of... It just seems that what really made everything mega soggy last season was that it just felt like interference and lack of cohesion, lack of communication, confusion, all the seas. And I don't know, I have this sort of instinct that we have a better chance if there's just sort of less noise coming
00:11:23
Speaker
ironically from the person who originated the ignore the noise commandment so yeah i think at this juncture it's worth pointing out that because of my uh you know absence makes the hargo fonder um and it's been several weeks since we last potted at the end of the season and i have unfortunately become really positive and uh as full hard as it might seem
00:11:50
Speaker
I haven't seen an orange city side struggle at home for some time now, and I've sort of forgotten that that's what I had to become used to. And you mentioned the lads that have come in. So far, all of the transfer business that we've done has been a kind of resounding
00:12:13
Speaker
Yeah, okay. Yeah, fine. Yeah. Sort of nod of the head and a bit of a smile. Like none of them have been the fist pumping that's revolutionized our season, or now I can't wait to get to Carrow Road. Or in fact, you think I can sneak into Colney and watch a bit of training. Cause I can't wait to see him kick a ball. You know, none of them are those types of signings, which obviously our expectations were managed to that end towards the end of the season anyway. But to a man, every single one of them.
00:12:40
Speaker
And I can't remember a transfer window like it really. They've all been 100% nods of the head. Yes, that is a perfectly logical based on age, based on contract length, based on the fact they haven't cost as much money. It's based on risk and reward. You know, it's, they're very sensible signings. Now I'd caveat that with, they are just above mid table championship signings, probably.
00:13:04
Speaker
but then that's where we were. And if Duffy can stay fit, that should really help us with that physicality and with that difficulty to concede. It is another person who's played at a higher level for longer than Ben Gibson to help Andrew Amabamedelli, if he's still with us at the end of the window.
00:13:25
Speaker
We have got someone who is maybe in the Hanley mold before Hanley is back and ready. I think it's November, isn't it? It's the most kind of optimistic timeline when he might actually be in meaningful action Hanley, unless you correct me there.
00:13:39
Speaker
He's well out of the boot and doing a lot of physical recovery. And I think he might even have gone on tour and done some physical work. So it wouldn't surprise me if he doesn't play again this season because the Achilles is an absolute arse-ache of an injury to do. Or that he's rushed back a la David Beckham style pre-World Cup or whenever it was that he did his Achilles and he's back, as you say, October, November time. But I think what we need to say with that is that
00:14:09
Speaker
I don't think he's ever going to be the same player and he's going to have to adjust the way he plays to do that kind of injury at that age, especially when Hanley relies on his speed. I think a lot over the first sort of five yards. Yeah. And the last ditch defending Hanley is probably the best last ditch defender, I would say in the division and comfortably in the Premier League would be up there. He's excellent at that.
00:14:32
Speaker
The problem is, he finds himself in positions where he has to do all that last-ditch defending because he hasn't done the stuff before it. And I just wonder whether if you take a little bit of an edge out of his game, but he's not going to be anywhere near the defender that he was. Who do you think starts on Saturday in those centre-back pairings, Edie? Obviously, Duffy. Stuffy plus Gibson is my guess, but I would hope it would be on the Bamadeli. And I reckon it might point to whether or not they think they can sell him if they don't start him.
00:15:01
Speaker
I'd like them to give him a chance because he just showed a lot of promise in flashes and then obviously it looked like he was gone a bit sad inside. It was when he lost his uncle figure next to him. As all the senior people in front of him and beside him dropped out of the team, that was when his form went downhill.
00:15:23
Speaker
And this is where we need those kind of tentpole players to really like. They might not necessarily have that much of a role on the pitch, but they absolutely do, psychologically. But I just, I really, I'm really looking forward to seeing Duffy because I just, I do love a shit house.
00:15:43
Speaker
Well, it's like, likewise, I love the fact that we've got too horrible to play against center forwards. And I think, yeah, what I'm hoping is that I'm hoping that Barnes can really help Sargent see the, I get the impression like Sargent's one of those who helps the defender up as he goes, as he runs back after the chance breaks down.
00:16:04
Speaker
I want Barnes to teach him to stand on their fingers as he runs past. I'm hoping that he learns that from Barnes because Sergeant is such a physical unit, but I feel like he needs to use it in a nasty way. And I think Barnes is the ideal shit house to do that with. He's just so pure, isn't he? Lovely happy boys that they need the space to be lovely and happy and the protection of a solid unit of sheer spite
00:16:32
Speaker
Let's talk about the, let's talk about what I still feel. And I mean, I could just copy and paste and drop this in from the previous four season preview pods, sentiment field. I mean, how have we not, how have we not recruited in that area? I mean, it's just, it's just shuffling the pack and hoping that you get different results from the same cards, isn't it? Yeah. Um,
00:17:01
Speaker
Maybe or maybe Wagner just doesn't want to play with a recognised CDM. That's the perceived wisdom around all of this, isn't it? That he doesn't want to play that kind of central midfielder. He wants players who are a bit more dynamic, who can occupy different spaces on the football pitch. Your
00:17:19
Speaker
absolute bestie. Kenny McLean is probably like a shining example of that in so much as what? Captain the other day. Well, and I think you'll be captain for this coming season actually, but that is almost like a template of a... Hang on, have they announced that? Sorry to interrupt handsome man, but yes, that's weird, isn't it? I don't remember being honest with you. Well, I wonder whether it's a Hanley Still Club captain and then maybe it might, you know, kind of be rotated around dependent on personnel because
00:17:44
Speaker
You can argue, McLean might not be guaranteed a start in this team. I don't think any player's guaranteed a start in this team. I think McLean is one of the first names on the team sheet under Wagner because we haven't bought in a different eight. I think the only chance that McLean isn't starting every week is a drop of form plus Gibbs having the step on we all need him to have. And this is it. So I think if we're talking about those two positions being in front of the back four, but that's a little bit interchangeable and we're not going to play a 10,
00:18:14
Speaker
which that is an issue that we might want to come on to. We're going to have two up front, aren't we? Well, that's an issue that I want to discuss then, if I'm perfectly honest. But anyway, if we're going to play two in like that and almost a conventional 4-4-2, although the flexibility around that shape is really high and players are interchangeable in that regard. But we've got four players. We've got Nunez, we've got Sarah, we've got McLean, we've got Gibbs. How many more do you need? It really is.
00:18:43
Speaker
this is the system that Wagner has decided to play, agree with it or disagree, that's where we're going. Now, I'd rather they come out and tell us that, but I don't know, I think we can all read in between the lines. I'm not sure those players are good enough in those specific positions for us to compete towards the top end of the championship, but my expectations aren't that we're going to compete at the top end of the championship, so let's just see what happens.
00:19:08
Speaker
Yeah, I think it comes down to, you name those four players and you think all four of those would be, you can see all four of those in the starting 11 of all, but maybe two teams in the championship this season. You know, it wouldn't be a massive surprise. Gibbs maybe needs to prove it over a longer period, but Sarah McLean and Nunez, you can see all of those being named in a starting 11 of all, but maybe
00:19:31
Speaker
couple of the boys that came down and you wouldn't be shocked. My issue, and this is the same as this time last season, going into that season, is that I feel that any one of those could be elevated by the introduction of a better pivot or a specific CDM.
00:19:50
Speaker
And I don't know if, you know, I think McLean is, he is the best passer of the ball at the club. He has got the nicest wand at the club. He is capable of progressing play. He is capable of doing some quarterbacky stuff. We have seen him do that. However, there are issues in his game when he has to carry the other person as well. So you almost feel like he needs someone better alongside him. And you can say exactly the same with Nunez. He's exactly the same as Sarah. And obviously Gibbs is a bit of an unproven quantity that he, he almost needs to become Johnny Howson for this system to work.
00:20:20
Speaker
Which is quite a big ask, no Edie? Well, I mean, yeah, admittedly, at the moment, it does feel like that recent gathering of golden retrievers, where they break the Guinness World Record for the largest number of identical dogs gathered in one place. But I don't know, maybe this is time
00:20:43
Speaker
There's so many unknowns, I still feel like, and this might be idiocy, but I feel like there is potential for something absolutely unexpected and mad to come out that hopefully they have the good sense to like recognize and iterate and repeat to actually address some of the gaps.
00:21:02
Speaker
Either that or like whoever's selling pies, we're going to have a majestic Cinderella moment where they could just run onto the pitch, make magic happen. I don't know, but we can only trust there's a system or trust that magic random things will happen because we're Norwich.
Predictions and Rivalries: Ipswich versus League Positioning
00:21:20
Speaker
All right. So, so Punt, you've already said you don't expect this to be towards the top end of the championship. So let's, let's get straight to it. Where are we going to finish and who is going to be the top two?
00:21:32
Speaker
Ooh, I think I flip around where we're going to finish anywhere between 9th and 14th, so I think it'll be somewhere within that bracket. I think there is the distinct possibility that we could trouble the top six for a little bit because Wagner's sides are
00:21:52
Speaker
Traditionally streaky. We've said that before on this podcast. I think we might go on a brilliant run last year QPR were top of the league weren't they after 16 games or something, you know, so Yeah, I think you know It's it's highly plausible that we could be in the conversation at some point and then I think we'll fall off And I just don't think we'll have the longevity around it. So yeah, look I'll go for 11th In terms of the top two
00:22:20
Speaker
That's a really interesting one because most people are tipping up Leicester and you look at the personnel that they've got within their squad and you think, well, that's a really reasonable assumption. You speak to any Leicester fans about it and they're way more pessimistic about the situation. Well, they're used to losing, aren't they? Well, and the absolute churn in terms of like big names in their squad, you know, the likes of Tealemans and Madison leaving, you know, so at Barnes as well. But I do think they'll have enough to be in the top two.
00:22:49
Speaker
I also think Leeds will probably have enough to be in the top two as well under our former glorious leader. I was going to say, that's the one thing that's going to hurt the most other than Leeds slash Ipswich. That is a listening question that we'll come on to in a bit, I'm sure, Edie. I'm sure. What about you then? What are you saying, Edie? Are we going to... Let's play a bit of... No, not generation game. What's the one that's higher or lower? Play your cards right?
00:23:16
Speaker
That's the one. Yeah, play your cards right. Higher or lower than 11th. I think maybe a smidge higher. There you go. 10 and a half. Only is like the result of a season that is essentially a laboratory.
00:23:31
Speaker
Well, laboratories can throw up some interesting things. If there's some like green smoke and some explosions and some, you know, exciting things, as long as it's not like the type of thing like a, you know, discovering penicillin with a bit of mold growing on the side or something. I want it to be exciting. No one invented, for example, Viagra. They didn't sit out to invent a drug for that purpose. They were just mucking around with a heart medication and look what came out. That's a laboratory.
00:23:59
Speaker
Okay, so you're going slightly above 11th, fair enough. I can't help but think that the championship is, we kept talking about how bad the championship was last year. I can't help but think that it is going to be stronger this year, but I also do think that our squad is slightly stronger
00:24:24
Speaker
than it was this time last year. So I don't agree that we've got technically any worse, because you said earlier on, Punt, that we've got technically worse. I think we have. Who have we solved that makes us technically worse? Timo Pookie has left the building.
00:24:39
Speaker
He hardly got a kick, though. I don't think that... I was thinking more in terms of technical ability... I can't wait, it's no longer in the building. Well, he wasn't getting played anymore. He wasn't concentrating on the pitch. The same. Make up with the squad. Max Erens isn't going to be in the squad. Andrew Elma Baradelli probably isn't going to be in the squad. They're both still with us at the moment.
00:25:05
Speaker
Aaron Jesus. He's really like meditating on Sargent now though, like he was doing well and he did well when he had the opportunity to do well and the saddest departure of Pookie has perhaps created more opportunity. So I think I can see that there's two sides of that coin I think because Josh Sargent was excellent under Dean Smith and as soon as Dean Smith went, how many goals did he score under Wagner? I want three, four in the second half of the season. He was played in a different way under Wagner.
00:25:35
Speaker
If he played through the middle loads of the time, loads of the time, because Pookie wasn't getting a look in was he? I don't know about loads of the time. I am choosing to be confident on Sargent and Barnes' positive impact on him. I don't, you know, effectively what I'm kind of picking up on is, yes, you can name a couple of players who technically have done good things at the club previously, but in terms of last season's dross to this season,
00:26:05
Speaker
It's not like Emmy's gone. It's not like we've lost that kind of talisman or that kind of drop-off of someone who was playing most 90 minutes and contributing most 90 minutes. That just simply hasn't happened. Pookie in terms of career, yeah, massive loss. But Pookie in terms of last season to this season, it's not a massive drop-off, even in terms of goals.
00:26:24
Speaker
You know, you forget Isaac Hagen as well, Tom. He's brilliant. No, this is my point. I don't think that we are... This little squad hasn't had a huge turnover. I really like... Again, because of... Technically a brilliant player.
00:26:42
Speaker
technically a brilliant player, but I don't think he wasn't making an impact. He was part of what looked good under Wagner. But I do think that if we're going to try and give Wagner the benefit of the doubt that he has now had a pre-season, he has now in theory got the fitness to where he wants it, he has been working on shape and style. Now, come Saturday, if we can't see any patterns of play, if we can't see any progressive movement of the ball and
00:27:11
Speaker
Ideas that that look like they were intentional rather than oh, it's bounced off like like one of the goals in the friendly You know where Duffy went up and caused havoc with the keeper and sergeant tapped it in as far as I'm concerned That's replicatable You know that buying buying big shit houses who were good from set pieces that cause mayhem and and training Strikas to nip in and pick things up like Wagner said in his post-match comments That is that is a recipe for success
00:27:37
Speaker
That's fine. If the new plan is blunt force trauma goals, like, no problem. Like, got no issue with that at all. Like, that's fine. As long as we can see, that's kind of the plan. And if we can coast at 1-0 after getting a blunt force trauma goal, then because we actually are a bit more capable of the back, my concern is that people like the aforementioned scribe legend that is Connor,
00:28:00
Speaker
I saw a couple of comments after a couple of the games that we still seem to be shit at playing out from the back, but intend on doing so. If that's not fixed, that's the sort of thing that gets the crowd.
00:28:13
Speaker
a bit unruly and a bit feeling a bit negative. But I mean I think this season maybe more than any other I am consciously aware of how I am willfully deciding to be positive before I'm being given a reason to be negative because I just think let's travel in hope
00:28:33
Speaker
for the first two, three opportunities to pick up points. And I think the fact that we have got this outgoing sporting director that you mentioned, ED,
00:28:46
Speaker
I hope maybe that, whilst of course he's involved in the recruitment, I hope that there is a little bit more with that. This is the plan that Wagner's got. Wagner's planning on being here for longer, of course he is. He'd be intending on that. So hopefully he is having slightly more say in that maybe 60, 40, 70, 30 balance between sporting director and manager than has happened previously. And if he is able to impact success and replicate that regularly with the players he's brought in,
00:29:13
Speaker
I'm going to willfully believe that he's able to do that and just hope that we don't get found out and stopped after a couple of months of success. And if that doesn't work, bring out Mungo. Let's do some listening questions, pump.
00:29:29
Speaker
Do you want this season or just random, any old way they come? Actually, let's continue with the theme of this season. Cameron Huggett, our friend asks, would you rather Ipswich do the double over us but we finish above them or that we avoid defeat but finish below them? Thomas.
00:29:49
Speaker
I can't, I can't lose to a switch at home. So, I mean, I just can't, I can't handle that. So I would... Okay, let's broaden that out then. Let's exaggerate that then and say,
00:30:08
Speaker
They're going to get top two. Oh, fuck that. No, I don't, I don't think there's any, I don't think they've got a hope in hell of finishing top two. I, I, I want people to carry top two in a season or two, but they're doing it nice and slow. Oh, I don't know.
00:30:28
Speaker
i don't know i i think those weirdos on the second tier podcaster trying to suggest that ip switch is some kind of like good for them absolute heroes and i just think i don't get it not fuck that not falling for the smoke by in either no i think something might be an ip switch fan to be fair bless them they will be also rans again and that's very much the category that we're in at the moment fine but i honestly think they will just be
00:30:51
Speaker
championship fluff within a season after finishing 13th, 14th. I don't know enough about every single squad in the championship to predict a place by place finishing, but the strength at the top of the championship means that you have got to have really fantastic credentials and a really good squad to suggest you're going to finish above Leeds, Borough, Leicester, Southampton, like
00:31:16
Speaker
Good luck. There's no chance that they're going to have to finish above three of those four. Not going to happen. They might finish above a couple of them. They're not going to finish above three of them. But would you rather? I'd rather they finish above us, but not the top two.
00:31:35
Speaker
It's like, you know, you can't be asking about like, what would you rather fight a duck sized horse or several, you know, several duck sized horses or, and then you can go into like the various like granular detail of the duck and the horse, but really, would you rather? Yeah. Well, that is the question. So Edie, what would you rather?
00:31:56
Speaker
Yeah, I know, but only because you've been a bit of a dick about it. So I was just, you know, there cannot be any physical games that are won by its which I'm happy to accept any other peripheral unfortunate events, but either that or it occurs when I am out of the country and away from internet access, because I just couldn't bear to see the antics resulting from such a thing.
00:32:22
Speaker
Imagine how excited they are. Imagine how excited they are about the Derby. They are super excited. You think you've seen Arsenal and then there's this. It would just be like 10 Arsenals on the internet. Genuinely just dreading Derby Day. I'm so glad it's away away.
00:32:44
Speaker
But remember that time where, who was it? Luke Chambers, who scored like 88th minute and they all went mental. And you just heard that kind of primal roar from the away end and that gut punch that I felt. And I was like, oh, suddenly I remember what it's like to lose to them because we had in my mind, we had lost. And then I know how awful and all, you know, all of the rest of it. And that was lovely. But.
00:33:08
Speaker
That's the only level of insight I've had into what it would be like to lose to them for so very long, and it was horrendous. So yeah, let's see. So yeah, I'm with you guys, we can't lose to them. No. But I fear we might. Anyway, friend of the pod, Matthew McGregor asks, like we have any level of insight into this, who should be on the shortlist to be our new sporting director?
Recruitment and Sporting Director Speculations
00:33:34
Speaker
Edie.
00:33:36
Speaker
Yeah, I mean, I'll go for that. Are you nominating any thoughts for the question or just for them to be the sporting director? No, to be the sporting director, just for the metaphors that would be on the walls. Oh, I'd confuse them even more than they are right now. Yeah, don't ask me to do it.
00:33:53
Speaker
Having said that, if I had some sort of form of, I don't know, authority at the club, I would try and at least make it make some sense. I think I'd give it a good go. But no, best not. I think I would nominate that role didn't exist. Okay. We can't wait. It's so ambitious. It's typical Norwich. It's like we want
00:34:20
Speaker
the big rum rum sports car, but our garage is teeny tiny. We always like, you know, want to eat more food than our tummies can feel. And we want a sporting director when really, who are we gonna hire? It's just, it's just silliness. Just get a manager who like has a bit of a vision and some welly and like is happy to share that vision with us. That's all I ask for.
00:34:46
Speaker
Talking of big tummies, so I have heard this off three different people now that Rob Newman is in the frame for sporting director. A very White House experience. Okay, big Robert Newman, we're talking. Yeah, big bad Bob Newman, yeah. Yeah, I mean, Robert Newman.
00:35:10
Speaker
I mean, look, he's got, he's got credentials. He's got recruitment credentials. And I think if we look at the body of work that our current sporting director has done, all the really good recent stuff has been around infrastructure and actually maybe the recruitment and all right, you know, we're reserving judgment about this summer, but the recent recruitment hasn't been great. So if we got in a recruitment specialist, I think I would probably be a little bit more comfortable that that's where we're aiming.
00:35:39
Speaker
And he'd be a cheerleader, which we desperately need. He knows Neil as well, because he'd have played with Neil Adams. And he's worked with Grant Holt at West Ham. So, today, lots of connections. Tom. I actually would have gone completely opposite to that. I mean, I've heard that link as well and would welcome with Open Arms, a former player being involved in that, you feel like maybe they'd get a bit more rope, if that was the case. However, I would have gone
00:36:09
Speaker
and my heart would yearn for further ashore like so I completely echo the point on the recruitment side of things but I would almost want them to try and attract someone who is keen to get into English football after discovering some gems in Spain or discovering some gems in Chile or discovering some gems in
00:36:30
Speaker
wherever and have successfully unearthed and moved some talent that's ended up at the league or ended up in the Bundesliga or whatever, that would be the approach that I would try and go for. I mean, how you go about recruiting someone like that or doing that, you know, it's all down to the kind of football network and the connections you've got. I mean, likewise, I would be really interested. I doubt we'll ever, well, maybe we would once they're unveiled.
00:36:59
Speaker
be fascinated as to the actual machinations of it. Like how involved is Stuart Weber in appointing his successor? Like would he be exploiting his network to try and get someone he thinks would do a brilliant job after him? Or would he not want the person after him to do a good job? Because that might overshadow his legacy. Likewise, he hates the fans and doesn't like us anymore. Not he ever really made me did. And therefore he might not necessarily be a good reference that he would give potential suitors. So
00:37:27
Speaker
You know, how do you recruit for someone who's still in the job and doesn't really want the job anymore? Like that's a really interesting, you know, I'd love to, I'd love to understand how they're actually approaching that. The, um, so whoever decided that fans for him, didn't she, uh, at the forum that they'd appointed a, a external agency to help them with that. So you would hope that they come in with this, but the incoming suite are going to say, can I have a word with the bloke that's already in the chair and understand why I think you'd want a handover.
00:37:58
Speaker
Yeah, I just love to hear that handover. Yeah, the fans are arseholes, but you know, it's all right. Anyway, should we do the next one? So this comes on, I don't know if you've heard of this new app called X. So anyway, we went out for questions on that.
00:38:16
Speaker
And we got at Cadern82 on X and he asks, does Daniel do the Farka wave to the wavehounds at Carrow Road if they beat us? Do we hate ourselves? Do we like playing? Yes, on this podcast we do. And the second part of the question is, if this isn't your greatest fear for the season to come, what is it?
00:38:40
Speaker
It's not my biggest fear for this season. It shit is the biggest fear. It shit is the biggest fear. I would take seven nil away from home as long as we didn't lose at home because I'm not going to go to Portland. They're unbearable in defeat. What do you mean in victory? I can't be physically present. I think I would implode.
00:39:04
Speaker
So, but with the, because I can just, I can turn X, I'm not calling it that. I can turn Twitter off. I can turn, I can easily, I can go into a Robert Mugabe media lockdown and just like ignore the internet for a few. I'm a Norwich fan, I'm used to that. I can deal with that. But no, Ipswich is my biggest fear. Farka, I feel like, I just feel affection for that period and for that part of R.
00:39:31
Speaker
kind of footballing legacy is far enough away with already two managers on might even be a third by the time we play him, you know, who knows. So I, I think he will do it. Of course he will. This is his shtick. But I also think I honestly think as long as it's not a really
00:39:48
Speaker
As long as it's not too close a game, like a last minute defeat kind of game, like if they just beat as comfortably three nil, his leads are quite good at doing it. Currowed from memory. I actually think he'll get such a good reception. He might even do like a mini wave with the Barkley as well.
00:40:04
Speaker
I think he's a change command. It's a one hand wave as he goes back after doing the proper file. I think he'll be well received. I honestly think he will. I think he will be well received. It depends if he still loves us, despite getting sacked in some kind of porter cabin, then fair dues. I wouldn't blame him if he thought of both as one package and kept that to a minimum.
00:40:31
Speaker
I think if he went full fist-pumpy Chris Wilder in front of the Barclay, he wouldn't be well-received. But as long as he kept it fairly considered, he'd be all right. But I think he's a changed man. I saw him as a picture of him wearing virtually the Leeds club shop. He never did that at Carrowood. He was always very sartorily elegant, had lots of designer brands on. So maybe it's a different Daniel Farker that's come back to England.
00:40:58
Speaker
He doesn't give me give it the big and vibes. I honestly don't think he'll be like that. I think that he'll be asked about it in the press conference beforehand, going back to Cairo, blah, blah, blah. I think he'll be respectful. I think he'll be nice. I think he'll get a good reaction. But it's always the same when you have people come back and play against us or same as when Russ Martin was in the dugout.
00:41:21
Speaker
you know, we were being outclassed. So it was quite easy to be nice about it. It's harder when it's a really, if it's a really feisty game, we feel that we've been really badly done by in some way that then the bad feeling can spill over into, oh, yeah, we never liked you anyway. But, you know, I think so much of it depends on how the game actually plays out. I certainly think unless it is one of those really nasty games, then I think you'll be received really well.
00:41:48
Speaker
Do you want some more questions? Yes. Should we talk about the kit? Because I just always want to talk about kits. It's bloody awful, innit? I don't think it's bloody awful. I just think it's boring.
00:41:58
Speaker
It's really thin looking. It just looks like it doesn't hang. I don't think it would make you look thin if you put yourself in it, though, because of the hoops. Oh, no, because, yes. Bit harsh. But that's always the case, isn't it? I mean, me as well. I don't think anyone,
Kit Design and Club Rumors
00:42:13
Speaker
like, it's not a flattering design, is it? Yes. There's a certain band of the shirt that really brings out whoever you are, boobs, like man boobs, woman boobs, you know, put it on a dog.
00:42:26
Speaker
Damn it, dog boobs. No, I can't. I don't understand. So we got a little hint of hoops, didn't we, Punt? I can't remember who told us hoops. You told me hoops. Someone told me hoops and I didn't remember where I got it from. Someone said it's hoops. And I thought, well, you know what? Fair enough. We had that banter third kit with that. Was it Malim? Not Malimbu.
00:42:46
Speaker
Who is it? Oh, it was Millenboo, the stripey one. He just looked absolutely rated. Why am I in this? Yeah. I was going to be excited. And then when it came out and I was like, well, you've, you've, you've almost not quite followed through on the idea. Cause there's these weird side stripe vertical things that came down. So it's like, it's like,
00:43:07
Speaker
It looks really, really rubbish. And also they put a really nice filter on the pictures. So when I saw the launch pictures, I was like, that is a sexy kit. And then when I saw, as soon as I saw the actual e-commerce pictures and pictures of people wearing it, I was like, that's a different colour.
00:43:24
Speaker
They had it on a wire, like the picture that the social media account shared was of that shirt on a wire hanger. Just sort of like, well, that's what it deserves. I mean, it's not, I don't think it's one of the worst kits ever. But I know you really don't like it, John, but you didn't like the previous one very much, did you?
00:43:40
Speaker
No, I loved last year's home kit. Two years ago. So Joma are two out of three, like, you know, bad kits. Bad kits. And the only thing that can save us is a purple banter third kit. Well, it is purple. Let's see what happens. It is purple. Let's see what happens. I just want necklines to match up.
00:43:57
Speaker
Oh, you did the away neckline. Give me a break. I mean, I'm currently on, I will, I may, if Norwich are not horrific, I'll be buying the kids version of the kit for obvious reasons. But, um, currently I will not be buying any adult kit. I mean, it's, it's neither of them are whatever 60 quids worth in my book. Hard agree.
00:44:18
Speaker
Hard. Agree. Anyway, so we've got a couple of questions to probably round us off, which aren't this season related. So, Tom, is there anything else you would like to talk about in terms of the coming season? I know you want to do score predictions. We need to do score predictions, but we'll finish with those. Cool. Okay. So, Steve on Twitter or X, whatever you're going to call it. I'm not quite right. What has been the weirdest slash daftest incident or saga that you've lived through as Norwich fans?
00:44:47
Speaker
Now, I can kick off on this. I think there was a strange time when the internet had kind of was a thing, but social media wasn't a thing. And so rumors were awash of all sorts of things. And honestly, the two weirdest ones that I can remember were
00:45:04
Speaker
that Dean Ashton and Jason Shackle were in a relationship and that they spent time in showers afterwards, which the weird and this is like that. I mean, it's just so stupid and infantile. It's ridiculous. But the club actually had to come out and publicly deny that that was the thing that is mental, that that happened.
00:45:24
Speaker
and also then it was the whole probably like similar time frame leon mckenzie and damien frances like damien frances was sleeping with mckenzie's wife and he had the mask and there was a big bust up in training it's just it was i mean if because we weren't you know we were doing quite well i guess at that point then it wasn't there it was just insane wasn't there a bill gilmore version as well
00:45:47
Speaker
Yeah, with Todd Cantwell, which again, you know, that's, I think it was just, I just think it's the idea that anything like that without any kind of proof or like a snap or whatever, how anything like that gets fuel and friction is just beyond me. Why pass something on when you've got like my make down the butcher said.
00:46:09
Speaker
What happened at that actual time? Billy Gilmour was getting terrorised by a strange influencer who called herself Devil Baby. That's right, yeah. No truth, stranger than fiction. Yeah, absolutely. Any advances on those particular weird incidents?
00:46:26
Speaker
I mean, go on, Edie. Oh, sorry. Go on, Edie. For me, two fold. One is wonderful, the other is just grim, which is the first is, of course, the mobile phone mascot.
00:46:41
Speaker
Oh, yes. Yeah. Lovely. Lovely. Why would you do that? Like, oh, it's what all the all the kids are talking about, like, wireless phone. Fine. And maybe they thought there were much opportunities. I clearly like the one. And then the second thing I think was quite new, which is the of course, the world, the world, the wall of slurs, which is a study
00:47:07
Speaker
for absolutely that spinal tap level. Well, we found out recently as well that the guy who did it was like, are you sure this really isn't a good idea? The guy who actually painted it and they were like, no, no, yeah, that's what we want. You know, like, fuck, you know, like we really we were even challenged about it and then just plowed on regardless. Yeah, it's a case study. I thought you were going to go for the Christmas winter wonderland eating.
00:47:34
Speaker
It was fun, but it wasn't really like stand alone kind of. I mean, it came at a period where really dumb stuff was happening, so maybe it didn't quite stand out. But for me, like just the idea of spending. I mean, I've been involved in the production of a whole body mascot, and it's incredibly expensive to make a whole mobile phone and just like the mobile phone goes out there and just dances for the kids, just
00:48:03
Speaker
Was it because like mobile phones were such a big thing around that time? I remember like I got a free mobile phone Lilo, which I took to Ibiza and it like people were like loving it again. Can I borrow your Lilo? Like people that I didn't know were coming up to me and saying, can I borrow your mobile phone Lilo? And it was a good Lilo. It was like big and that's a great prop for like, you know, a photo, maybe not a selfie back in those days, but at least, you know, you can pretend you're speaking on it. Whereas what are you going to do? Like grab a human being in a mascot.
00:48:32
Speaker
costume while the stewards run to rugby. Can I just, can I share something? I really find mascots creepy. I find your point of like the whole human element. I just think a whole human dressed head to toe as another thing. I don't mean like fancy dress. I mean like the mascot element, like the boiler guy at West Brom.
00:48:59
Speaker
Like, it's just some, I mean, I know that's laughable, but there's just like Captain Canary, just like a huge, like animal with a whole human. I just find that just a weird. They had something similar, like on the, one of the fan zones back in the last season, I think it was, and it was a dinosaur and like kids were shitting their pants. Like, you know, the real proper looks like, yeah, it was really realistic. And I was like, what's going on here? Did it have feathers?
00:49:25
Speaker
um you know i didn't i didn't feel it but yeah i mean that is that is what scientists are saying yeah absolutely let's do some sort for those people just because i've been in a mascot and uh those things are dry cleaned once
00:49:39
Speaker
or twice a year and people run mascots in them. Run marathons in them. So it's never a pleasant experience. My friend Ben claimed to be one of the first Captain Canaries because he was on work experience at the club and he did report that that was a very, very sweaty experience. Anyway, one more question.
Legacy and Future Expectations
00:50:09
Speaker
This is an excellent question from Matt Rushbrook. And he says, so it's kind of topical. You're in charge of a new mural to be displayed outside Carrow Road. It must feature six ex-players, but no one already on a mural. So Justin Fashnew is out. Huckabee, Holtz, Pookie, all of those lot that are on the Barkley mural are out. You can only choose, you've got six in total. You can only choose one per five year period. So you've got 94 to 98.
00:50:40
Speaker
99 to 2003, 2004 to 2008, 09, 13, 14, 18, and 19 to 23. So there's a couple of very tricky periods there. I've had a good, it's one of the best questions that we've had for some time. I love it. So Matt, you have definitely won the merch if you want some merch. So get in our DMs and we'll sort you out for the best question. So let's start 1994 to 1998.
00:51:09
Speaker
A player that has not been immortalized on a mural, Ian Crook. Is he not on the line in Castle? No. Oh, okay. I thought we had to go less obvious in there. Oh, okay. Well, yeah, that's a shoe in there. Or you could have Darren Edie, I guess. Rule Fox? Yeah, Fox. I don't know when Fox left. He'd have been, yeah, maybe like left 95-ish. So yeah, that's a good shout as well. I think.
00:51:36
Speaker
The key to solving this conundrum is to go with the proper pub quiz players. So I haven't completed the full run, but I've managed at least to assign a footballer to each of the four first eras. That is what makes you think. What have you got 99 to 83 then? Okay. Right. You ready? If we want to go 94 to 98, that would be Craig Bellamy.
00:52:05
Speaker
Oh yeah, you just snuck in here. That's a great show. You want to go 99-03, that would be Mr. Peter Crouch.
00:52:13
Speaker
Oh, yeah, just just sneaks in at the start of O3. Well, yeah, just sneaks in. You have to be quite a big mural. Then obviously we could have D on Dublin for the next era. Yeah, happy with that. And then we could top it off with Harry Kane. And this is why I'm struggling with the next two, because this is not like we're not talking legends, but there's legends everywhere. You can't keep that stuff. Surely you need to place Jonas Gutierrez somewhere then.
00:52:44
Speaker
Is that like a household name? I think he's quite big. Absolutely blow people's minds in a pub quiz, don't get me wrong. Well, that's what I thought your selection criteria was. Well, no, it's more of a kind of like as well. It bridges the gap because people who've watched Holmes under the hammer but haven't watched sport would also be like, oh. Okay, yeah. I see where you're going with that. Shots leading to goals.
00:53:15
Speaker
Maybe we should offer that up on the socials to see if listeners can come up with a best of that. We'll see if we can get the best answer. In fact, let's just make this up on the spot.
00:53:29
Speaker
We'll give a prize to the best combination that comes in, the first person who says that combination, if you can get it in before the next podcast. So let's put that on the socials as to, you know, what is our best mural of, I think. I like the fact that you say let's when you definitely won't do it. No, no, no. When I say let's, I say it's effectively me saying, punt, please will you? Yeah.
00:53:50
Speaker
Right, come on then, we need to round off with predictions. So, Edie, I would like a guaranteed score line for Saturday's game and a guaranteed scorer for Norwich, if there will be any. I don't know about scorer, because I'm just not feeling anything yet, but what I am feeling is a one-all draw. OK. That's my feeling. I'm going to have to push you for a score, I'm afraid, Edie, because you've said that Norwich are going to score.
00:54:21
Speaker
Who's the, ah, who's the fella? I'm sorry, I still haven't yet. She's a knowledge player. Yeah, I know. This is why we get the idea of her expertise in this school. No, it's like. It's like a place for knowledge. No, there's like the, what's he, Swiss or German or something? Oh, fascinating. The new board, the new Swiss guy. Oh, yes, thank you. Sorry, it's absolutely at the... Okay, yeah, fascinating.
00:54:51
Speaker
Yeah, because then like the draw will be the reality and he will be like the sizzle that makes us dare to dream. The sizzling's where she'll end in a one-all draw and we'll be like nothing's changing but we're at a good time. Do you think we should make sure that he buys a house in this?
00:55:10
Speaker
I've lived in Dis. I would recommend against that. I mean, you know, it's a very nice place, but watching Rick Wakeman repeatedly switch on Christmas lights in the end can... That's it. The swathes of listeners that we had from Dis and South Norfolk are now all switching off in their droves eating. Well, nothing will ever beat the time that Rick Wakeman switched on Christmas lights that had been plugged into a nearby estate agent, thereby shorting the entire town centre.
00:55:42
Speaker
Come on then, Pump. Exact score line on Saturday and a guaranteed scorer. We're going to do a 1-0 win and Shane Duffy is going to score a big old header. Love that.
00:55:57
Speaker
I like how you went, yes, like, like it really happened. Like it might actually happen. Like any of my predictions have ever come true. If anything, it's just like, Oh no, we're not going to win one nil now. That's the one thing that we can guarantee. I've got them right. Bloody hell boy. Cause why not? Cause it could happen. I mean, yeah, it's within the realms of possibility, I suppose.
00:56:23
Speaker
I got four nil Sarge hat trick, and then a really, really badly bought down to earth the following week. I believe that we will get off to a winning start on Saturday. I think we're going to be too hard to beat. And I think we're definitely going to score. And I really fancy Sarge this season to bang in the goals and replace the ones we've lost from Pookie.
00:56:53
Speaker
And until I'm proven otherwise, I'm going to keep believing that it makes me happy. And you've made me happy, Punt. Today, you've made me happy as well. Edie, thank you so much for sharing this preview with us. Thanks for listening, everybody. We'll be back to talk about that 4-0 win, 1-0 win, or 1-1 draw. And in the meantime, Mike, there you go.