How long have you supported Norwich City?
My first game was in April 1971 on Easter Saturday and in those days we played three games in four days! I was only six, and as I'm now aged nearer fifty than forty I'd say I've supported Norwich for most of my life.
I've always lived in London and when I was younger I had to rely on Dad to get me to Norwich and pay for my tickets so my attendance in the 1970's was more infrequent than frequent. I now take my elder daughter who is a big fan, so maybe I'm making up for those "lost" years that I had.
We travel on the train from Liverpool Street with a group of city fans from the London Supporters Club, the Capital Canaries. I'm the home travel officer and organise the train travel for us all.
What is your present squad like?
We have a squad which is more than we had under Glenn Roeder last season. He filled most of the team with a bundle of premiership reject loan players the rest were City contracted players half of which could not get a game, due to all the loans. Gunn came in January and we had even more loans.
This season, after a number of new signings, we have quality in most positions, backed up by decent reserves who have done their bit when called up.
Which youngster has made the biggest impression in your team this season?
Two youngsters - Korey Smith played in the last game of last season at Charlton, was one of the best players on the pitch but didn't feature at the start of this season. Paul Lambert selected him in his starting XI in his first game in charge and he's never looked back.
The other player who has made an impression is Chris Martin. He broke into the side a couple of years ago, scored some goals, and it all went to his head. Glenn Roeder sent him our on loan to Luton where he had a year of first team football and he has returned a different player. He has scored nearly twenty goals this season and is one of the best strikers of a football I have seen at City for years. His recent young player award was fully deserved.
What's your manager like and will he still be there at the end of the season?
It's difficult to put into words what Paul Lambert has done for City. He was appointed by the new Chief Exec, David McNally after the opening day shambles, has installed a winning mentality in the team, and turned an ok-ish squad into a one that may well be champions.
We ended up with a midfield diamond formation when we played Orient at the end of September and Lambert has stuck with it ever since. It has proved highly effective, and brought out the best in our most creative player Wes Hoolahan, something that Roeder and Gunn failed to do.
Every time I hear news that Celtic have lost another game, Paul Lambert's name is mentioned as a replacement for Tony Mowbray, and it is inevitable that he will move on some time. But I don't think it will be for a while yet, and not to Celtic. When it does happen, hopefully he will have re-established Norwich City as a top half of the Championship club.
Are you happy with your chairman/backroom staff?
Paul Lambert has brought all his backroom staff with him from Colchester, Norwich are top of the table, so who are we to question? Most fans would say that our old boy Ian Culverhouse, Lambert's assistant, is the key man behind the scenes.
As regards the chairman, Alan Bowkett, it is his first season, and he has had to oversee the rationalisation of City's finances. He is a Norwich City fan, has been Chairman of an FTSE250 Company and specialised in corporate recoveries so his credentials should not be in doubt.
We also have a new Chief Exec who has impressed us all in the way he has steered us through our (not yet over) financial troubles and how decisively he acted in dismissing Gunn and appointing Paul Lambert. He is a breath of fresh air compared to his predecessor, Neil Doncaster who was out of his depth in the role.
Favourite ever player and why?
Darren Eadie. He came through the youth team and was a winger or attacker who had pace and scored goals. It's just a shame we didn't see the best of him in a City shirt although he was brilliant when he was with us.
Darren Huckerby is a close second.
Best ever Canary game seen?
Norwich 1 Aston Villa 0 - 24th March 1993 (Polston 81). There's been some great games at Carrow Road over the years, but this one does it for me. Not for what we did, but for what could have been. After beating Villa, City were top of the Premier League with a handful of games to go, and could have won it. We didn't.
Which team do you want to beat most and why?
Ipswich is the obvious answer, but as we don't play them this year, "Col Who" were the ones this season.
The rivalry was stirred up by their gobby chairman, Robbie Cowling who should have put Paul Lambert and his team on gardening leave until we had agreed a compensation package, but didn't and then started shouting to anyone who would listen that it wasn't fair as he had messed up. Lambert joined City and the rest, they say, is history.
It all came to a head a few weeks before we played Col Who and Gobby Robbie told Norwich that he would rather see rows of empty seats than City fans in his stadium and limited our allocation to one end of the ground. There then was a game of cat and mouse as the Col Who ticket office, initially dead chuffed at how ticket sales were progressing, suddenly realised that upwards of 1000 City fans had bought tickets in the home end.
As fast as tickets were cancelled they were resold, more than likely to the City fans who had previously had them cancelled! The pitch was a swamp, we won 5-0 and it was a sweet victory. Days out like that don't come around very often. It was reported that Cowling refused to shake hands with his Norwich counterpart at the end of the game.
Next year both teams will both go back to hating, and hopefully beating, Ipswich.
Favourite away ground and why?
I loved the old Highbury; it was a proper football ground. And for some bizarre reason Gillingham is an old favourite; an easy train ride from London, a five minute walk from the station to the ground. In between the station and the ground is a good away pub and a great chippy. You could say this preference is probably more to do with my away day priorities than the football. We've had some good results and games there over the years which does sway my vote.
And my least favourite? The MadJad at Reading. A soulless plastic bowl, miles away from civilisation built on a rubbish dump. A truly dreadful place, and the worst of a number of awful "new grounds". The Ricoh runs the MadJad as close second, a choice influenced by my daughter Gemma, who hates the place.
Any decent places for a pint?
The Compleat Angler is the recommended away fans pub, but far better is the Coach and Horses on Thorpe Road, just five minutes from the station. They brew their own beer and serve a decent chilli and chips, but it does get crowded there.
Your choices for this season's League One Champions, runners-up and the three play-off places and the four relegated teams?
At the moment it's ours to lose which is a great position to be in after our 1-7 home disaster to Col Who in August. Although Leeds have had a poor time of it since beating Man U in the Cup, I think they have plenty enough quality for the other promotion spot and will turn it round.
I thought Swindon looked an organised but dour team in the two games we played before Christmas, and now they have some goals up front I'll go for them as play-off winners edging out Millwall. The other playoff spots will be won by Colchester and Huddersfield. I've seen Charlton on the box twice recently, and they look to be struggling at the business ends of the pitch but ok in the middle, so maybe they will be the ones to miss out after their flying start.
As regards the teams for the drop, Stockport look doomed and basing my opinion on what I have seen of the other teams, Wycombe looked very poor, Tranmere showed almost zero adventure, tried to park the bus in front of goal and failed. Gillingham were very ordinary against us, even though we played for over an hour with ten men, so they are my four tips to go down.
Any opinions on Southend United, especially with their current troubles?
I'm not an expert on the financial woes of Southend - it's enough work keeping up with what's being going on at City over the last few years, so I am not best placed to comment.
All I'll say is that I don't want to see any club go out of business, even our most hated rivals, but it's coming to a stage where it will surely happen. Now that UK PLC is skint, our friends at HMRC need to collect every penny they can, and the days of football clubs using the tax man's cash as free banking are over.
Unfortunately I can see one club being made an example of. But - I don't think it will be Portsmouth as the Premier League will somehow get them through the season.
As long as the "Prem 2" league doesn't start, the Football League will be fine. As the TV money goes up though, the pain of relegation will become greater and the clamour for Prem 2 will become even louder, but mainly from the lower ranking clubs who exist as a result of the TV money. I hope it doesn't happen, if it does the Football League will be in serious trouble.