How Norwich City can remain as the Pride of Anglia

And of course we know why.

Yes, Ed Sheeran’s Tractor Boys are pretty pleased with themselves for all but securing a return to football’s top table for the first time since some of the Class of '24 were born - or at least in proper short trousers.

But there’s no doubt of the real reason why the celebrations will be off the scale when promotion is secured against relegation near certainties Huddersfield on Saturday at Portman Road….

You've got it. It’s the fact they won't have to face the Canaries in the play-offs.

Before you think I'm heading into a bitter and twisted lament about Kieran McKenna's men gaining back to back promotions, you're only partly right.

Actually, I'm not bitter at all.

Some of you may scream at me for saying this, but Ipswich deserve to go back in the Premier League for the first time since 2002.

All us Canary followers need to get used to comments similar to those of very well respected football journalist Pat Murphy, who worked for the BBC for many years.

After Town won 2-1 at Coventry to leave themselves on the brink of going up, Murphy tweeted: "For me @IpswichTown is the story of the season. No parachute payments, spent just £4.7m in the past 2 seasons, shrewd loan deals, clear philosophy, terrific manager, front foot, expansive style, losing just 10 games last 2 seasons. As near as you'll get to modern football romance.

"In recruiting players from schools of hard knocks around the English leagues @IpswichTown haven't been tempted by European talents. McKenna et al realised there were many nuggets to unearth around the country, with much to prove. Might explain the team's never-say-die attitude."

Such effusive language about our old enemy is hard to read - and even tougher to include in my column.

There may be a few of you who are still clinging on to the hope that the Blues may still stumble at the final hurdle on Saturday.

Let's face the facts. That just isn't happening. It will be party time big style in Suffolk and the love-in from the national pundits will reach a new level.

I was cheering the Sky Blues on earlier in the week as loudly as anyone. 

But I've moved on now. They're going up and there's nothing we can do about it.

We can keep singing "15 years Norwich City......" I love that song. I love the decade and a half of domination. I chuckle that lots of Town fans pretend it doesn't matter when it so clearly does.

However, unless David Wagner's men can secure a play-offs spot on Saturday, win over two legs against almost certainly Leeds or Southampton, and then repeat the heroics of 2015 and triumph at Wembley, we'll be in second place in the Pride of Anglia stakes.

There was a slightly strange atmosphere at the end of City's 2-2 draw against Swansea last weekend.

The point left us virtually certain to be in the end of season bun fight. It meant we remain unbeaten at Carrow Road since November.

I spotted some other stats including City having only lost two of our last 16 matches, four in the last 23 and we're the third best team in the division at gaining points after being behind in matches.

Yet it was all a bit flat. Many fans headed straight for the exits and didn't stay for the end of season "lap of honour."

I wasn't alone in thinking it was quite a weird decision for all the players to head into the changing room and then come back out to thank supporters when we all hope the next game at Carra in just over a week will be a blockbuster semi-final first leg.

We need to go to the Midlands on Saturday to get a win and head into the play-offs with some real momentum.

If we play Daniel Farke's Leeds, we'll have to shrug off the baggage of losing to them twice this year.

We'd need to get at them - as QPR did on Friday - and hope they maintain their "bottlers" tag.

I think two matches against Russell Martin's Saints would be more of a chess match but I still want to see a real front foot intent.

If we can get through that, a finale at the home of football is there for the taking.

Go with me on some "ifs" but assuming all those hurdles are cleared, how would we fare against our great rivals next season?

I sense that McKenna won't change a massive amount in the way he approaches life in the top flight.

They will clearly have to strengthen, especially at the back as they have leaked a lot of goals this term.

His "we'll score more than you" mentality has served him well and it's a philosophy I can see him maintaining, albeit with a dose of pragmatism at times.

There will be so many people outside the IP1 bubble cheering them on - and if we do go up we'll almost have the opposite, with the inevitable snipers wishing us to go back down again.

All of that is to come (hopefully) - but the one thing we all want is to remain the Pride of Anglia.

OTBC.

Musical treats!

It's now 52 years since Norwich first won promotion to the old top division.

We've been sorting our loft out recently and among the many things I unearthed which I had forgotten about was a box of 7 inch singles.

And in them was a copy of Canaries in Song - backed by the Chic Applin Band - which was released in 1972 to celebrate the Canaries being Division 2 champions and going up to the top tier of English football.

It's signed by a number of players - not least legend Dave Stringer - and the A side is a rousing version of The Canaries from the first team squad.

The B side is the Norwich City Calypso which relates to some of the backroom boys.

It seems the days of club's releasing songs for promotions, cup finals etc has long since gone - and maybe that's a good thing!

But it's certainly a lovely bit of Canary nostalgia.

On The Stall is on the ball

If you haven't been to On The Stall City since it moved from Norwich Market to the Forum, then I'd thoroughly recommend you paying a visit.

I popped in this week as I was looking for a family present, and it was great to find what I needed as well as having a good catch up with Jacob Bowles and his parents Andy and Sharon.

Their new home gives them lots more room to display all the fabulous displays of City kits and other merchandise and with so many people visiting the Forum, they have a fantastic shop window.

As those who know Jacob will expect, he had some great views on where City are at and is confident of success in the play-offs.

With the season hopefully being extended, it ought to mean they remain busy with fans snapping up items to wear to cheer on their team.

And of course every time you buy something from there you are helping the brilliant Norwich City Community Sports Foundation.