It was our first Saturday home game with a 3pm kick-off, a warm sunny day, and we easily beat the opposition to notch up our fifth win in a row to take us to the top of the Championship.

There was even an elevated platform next to the Barclay for the newly employed drummer to accompany the crowd and help ratchet up the noise. Carrow Road should have been rocking this weekend, and yet it felt subdued.

Of course, one of the reasons for this could be because we’ve still 38 matches to play. Most of us are seasoned supporters, aware that the Championship is a rollercoaster. We know that being the top of the table in September doesn’t guarantee you’ll go up. There’s also an argument that we’ve yet to play any of our likely promotion rivals, so as yet it’s difficult to assess what our final standing is likely to be.

Also there is the ease with which we have returned to the top of the Championship. We’ve yet to be convincing, and although it’s great to win games when not playing well, this leaves a niggling doubt about whether we really are good or have just been lucky so far.

A more worrying possibility could be promotion fatigue. So far this century Norwich City fans have experienced five promotions to the top flight, three in the last eight years. Such is the regularity of Norwich bouncing back that despite the abject performances that sent us down, as soon as our departure from the Premier League was confirmed last April we instantly became favourites to return the following spring.

Which brings me to another possible reason for the lack of enthusiasm for being back on top of the football league. Last season’s disastrous campaign is a fresh memory; the emotional trauma of those brutal defeats still stings. Another promotion means a return to the fields of pain, where billionaire owners buy up the best players in the world, and the rest of the teams are there to suffer at their feet and be humble in defeat.

The relentless dominance of the same big teams is not good for football, and as the gulf between the top teams and the rest is growing, it also appears to be between the top flight and the second division.

The fact we managed, though temporarily, to reach the top of the table after a poor start and without needing great performances indicates that the Championship isn’t as competitive as it once was.

Teams in this division were harder hit financially by the pandemic, which may be the cause, as they struggle to chase the Premier League dream.

Yet maybe we’re all still just waiting for a spark to bring the season to life. Four years ago, when we first went top, it was after scoring two injury time goals to beat Millwall 4-3 - an evening to remember.

The last time promotion was won as we watched from afar, with most games behind closed doors and without the crowd. The wins were more straightforward, but we were just grateful for the escapism the Canaries provided whilst our lives were turned upside down.

This is meant to be the joyful season, winning games and scoring goals to counterbalance the tougher times we go through when promoted. Yet there seems to be an absence of joy so far.

Luckily we have in our squad someone who is joy personified - Onel Hernández. His last gasp winner in Birmingham showed that there is still drama to be found in this league, and his passion for the club means his name is sung even when he’s warming the bench.

Hopefully in the next few weeks we’ll get a swashbuckling performance against a decent side, a real end-to-end game where we emerge worthy winners. We can sing ourselves hoarse in celebration as the euphoria of winning returns, without the fear of what comes next. And Carrow Road will be jumping again.