Last-gasp equaliser says everything about Norwich spirit – Daniel Farke

Posted Sunday, February 18, 2018 by PA

Norwich manager Daniel Farke paid tribute to the battling qualities of his side after a last-gasp equaliser snatched them a dramatic 1-1 draw against Ipswich in the East Anglian derby at Carrow Road.

The Canaries looked set to taste defeat in the fixture for the first time since 2009 when Town skipper Luke Chambers headed home from Martyn Waghorn’s corner with just two minutes of normal time remaining.

But with five minutes of stoppage-time almost up Grant Hanley got to the ball before Town goalkeeper Biatosz Bialkowski close to the byline and produced a perfect cross for defensive colleague Timm Klose to head home and spark scenes of jubilation amongst the home fans.

“Obviously it was a big setback for us when we went behind so late in the game, but with this group I always know they have the mentality to come back, the fitness to come back and always have the ability to score a goal,” Farke said.

“The stats show that we have scored more goals in the final 30 minutes of games than any other team in the Championship this season – and this was another one.

“Sometimes a late equaliser like this feels better than an easy win, even though you are only getting one point.

“I thought it was a typical crazy derby game, with aggressive tackles, duels and the two late goals.

“To be honest, I don’t think there was much in it in the first half. We didn’t play as well as we can and I had to tell the players to go out there and be brave and pass the ball as well as they can.

“In the second half I thought there was only one team playing – I think we had 75 per cent of possession and 13 attempts on goal to their one, which they scored from.

“James Maddison had a couple of free-kicks which were well saved, Timm Klose was unable to score from two yards out, but they are the best team in the Championship for scoring at set-pieces and they did it again to us.

“Fortunately we still managed to get something out of the game – and that says everything about the spirit of the lads. I don’t think there is another dressing room in the country with more togetherness than us.”

Ipswich manager Mick McCarthy denied he had sworn and directed an offensive gesture towards the travelling fans while celebrating Chambers’ goal.

The Town boss had received criticism for his decision to substitute the impressive Dominic Iorfa late on, with the goal coming shortly after the switch.

“It was nothing like that,” he said. “It was just the emotion of the game taking over – I was just celebrating the goal.

“It was very straightforward with Dominic, he was cramping up so I took him off. I was just doing my job, which I happen to think I do particularly well.”

As for the game itself, he added: “I thought we played very well but we just let our guard down in the 95th minute.

“In the first half I thought we attacked and defended well and in the second half we worked really hard, got our blocks in and got our goal near the end. I would say we did our job well for 95 minutes, but unfortunately we couldn’t see it out.”

The point kept Ipswich above Norwich in mid-table and McCarthy added: “If I had had £300million to spend over the last few seasons I think I could have them (Norwich) languishing in 13th place in the Championship, to be honest.”