Joe Pateman on influence of Norwich City fans in play-off push

But in the most unpredictable season in the most unpredictable league, I don’t think many of us will stop crossing our fingers until May 4.

Last Saturday’s euphoric victory against the bluer, quieter, and more sour side of East Anglia has given Norwich City further indication of where our fate lies if we do make the play-offs.

If we do face Ipswich Town, I would fancy us to beat them and be there to have the party we’ve been promising if Ipswich 'mess’ it up. Easter Monday’s showing against Leicester City, who demonstrated the quality that money can buy, indicated that we might not make it past two legs against a side that can boast a bench with three England internationals.

Kieran McKenna with City boss David Wagner (Image: Paul Chesterton/Focus Images Ltd)

After 15 years of derby delight, the mental edge against our rivals is clear to see. Not just in the stands, but distinctly on the pitch and plainly in the dugout. For me, you would be able to see more class at schools during the lockdown than in Kieran McKenna’s post-match interview following the 1-0 victory.

For any of those potential games to be possible, this weekend's trip to Deepdale is critical. The game itself almost seems like a mini play-off semi-final. In form, Preston North End have hammered home seven goals in their previous two home games and will be hungrier than ever to make the Championship play-offs for the first time in 16 years, which is even longer than the last time we lost to Ipswich.

Our away woes will absolutely be of concern for some of us travelling to Lancashire today. While the performances have been decent, three points have rarely been claimed by David Wagner’s side.

We have registered only five away wins this season, but, bizarrely, only Leicester City have scored more than the 35 goals that we have fired in on the road this season. Scoring goals doesn’t seem to be a problem, but only League One-bound Rotherham United have conceded more.

For a period, the booing and chanting “how bad must you be? We’re winning away” were direct contributions to our misery away from home. The body language of the players spoke more than a thousand words, and points were lost. This nonsense in the stands is mostly over.

More recently, the away conundrum has been harder to put my finger on. When Gabriel Sara was pounding down on goal against Sheffield Wednesday on Tuesday night, it should have been 3-0 and game over. It would have been a hoot at Hillsborough.

Wagner did attempt to freshen things up, but when the newly-introduced Liam Gibbs limped off, it almost seemed typical. The lack of options will lead to tired legs, and tired legs will lead to conceding goals. I do believe that the wafer-thin squad at Wagner’s disposal is somewhat tricky to manage. This will become even more difficult if Josh Sargent is not able to feature in the next game.

There are some that still don’t understand that Wagner keeping us in contention for promotion is a miracle, considering the lengthy injury spells for key players that he has had to endure.

The magnificent atmosphere from Saturday’s derby carried through to Tuesday night. For a long time, our fans have been sensational, and recently, the real fans have helped carry the players' tired legs an extra yard at times. With all of us in full song across the next four games and maybe beyond, something special can happen.

One thing is evident to me, we haven’t had this much excitement at the business end of the season that we are able to witness first hand since Daniel Farke led us to the title in 2019.

Hopefully, the celebrations will be similar.