Norwich City column: Future looks promising for Canaries despite play-off chase coming up short

Typically speaking, the March international break represents an opportunity to draw breath ahead of the business end of the season, when the pressure turns up a notch and the excitement is almost palpable.

But not this time for Norwich City.

Defeat at Bristol City last Friday night was without doubt the final nail in the coffin of our already dwindling play-off aspirations.

A club so recently famed for its Championship prowess is now destined for a fourth consecutive season outside of the top flight for the first time in well over a decade. As is always the case, the yo-yo finishes at the bottom.

It is certainly a deflating feeling.

But in truth, when I cast my mind back to last summer, I really didn’t think that this season was destined to end in success – if it is that we are deeming promotion a success, and all else a failure.

The change within the club on and off the pitch, while desperately needed, felt too substantial for us to deliver a squad capable of seriously challenging. That’s before you even consider the sale of our most impressive talent, Gabriel Sara.

If we are to continue to carry out a post-mortem, luck also plays its part. Johannes Hoff Thorup has had a wretched time with injuries and suspensions, especially to key players.

As a result, it has a meant Hoff Throup has had to lean heavily on several young players, who have by no means let anyone down – but perhaps weren’t quite ready for the level of involvement they have been exposed to.

It has also made finding a rhythm or any kind of consistency a real challenge.

I’m fully aware there are some who would just label all the above as excuses, and truthfully, they may be right. You can’t hide from the fact recent performances can only described as poor.

But ultimately, I have seen enough to believe this long-term project will bear fruit – if we can just hold our nerve.