Norwich City 1 - West Bromwich Albion 1

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Ratings submitted so far: 9

Brendan Clegg:

Extremely frustrating one that. Having got ourselves ahead we did enough to win the game but conceded a goal that looked both handball and offside to me. That’s our luck.

I was actually quite happy with the starting lineup - every change justified, not Bartley or Grant.

The style was very different though, it was clear to see that we were playing deeper and taking fewer chances in possession. Lots of no nonsense stuff or territorial punts. We elected to let Norwich have the ball and come on to us, and we made sure to win every loose or second ball.

The goal aside, which was a welcome surprise, you would say this was a very sensible away performance which in any normal season would be fine but we needed the win.

I think BTA made a difference simply by occupying their defence and winning a few balls - not saying he’s going to be great but more illustrating that any striker would be better than Grant up top.

After the goal I thought we squandered some really good situations on the break or after Norwich mistakes. Being honest, this is because Swift had a proper stinker. He tried to win a pen (maybe but would’ve been very soft) when he should of just steamed in to shoot first time. He miscontrolled a kick straight to him in a really dangerous position and generally he was slow and his final ball was poor.

So their goal was a sucker but at least we held on. The back four did okay although they almost played without pressure. In fact after their goal we had a rally and nearly scored.

The table looks bad and the draws have killed us. Hopefully this is the end for Grant and Bartley forever. Bruce can have no complaints if the axe is swung but he could reasonably make the case that the foundations have been laid with a better balance of squad and playing style. Can we afford to allow another manager to learn how bad Grant and Bartley are?

• Button - 6 Not chance with the goal but I have no faith at all.
• Furlong - 6 Got caught a bit and some aimless hoofs but okay defensively.
• O’Shea - 6 Kept it simpler and did okay.
• Townsend - 7 Stepped up and did a job for us including a crucial late clearance.
• Pieters - 7 I was impressed. Strong but some clever use of the ball.
• Livermore - 7 Gave it everything and made some crucial challenges.
• Molumby - 7 Likewise, covered a lot of ground
• Wallace - 6 Typically reliable both ways.
• Swift - 4 Wasn’t lack of effort but touch and decision making were off it.
• Diagana - 6 Some of his skills were outrageous but he did tire.
• BTA - 6 Did enough to warrant staying in the team and I felt he grew into it. Would like to see how he does when we go for it more.

• Subs - Understandably Bruce didn’t want to change too much so they were too late to mark, but Grant looked like he’d had a kick up the backside.