MATCH STATS

NORWICH CITY Green, Fleming, Edworthy, Francis, Drury, Bentley, Holt, Safri, Charlton, Doherty, Huckerby. Subs: McKenzie (for Doherty, 82), McVeigh (for Safri, 75), Svensson, Ward, Helveg (for Edworthy, 90).

TOTTENHAM Robinson, Pamarot, King, Naybet, Edman, Brown, Pedro Mendes, Redknapp, Atouba, Defoe, Kanoute. Subs: Keller, Davies (for Brown, 65), Keane (for Kanoute, 71), Gardner, Jackson (for Atouba, 82).

SCORERS: None

TOP CANARY: Robert Green

ATTENDANCE: 36,095

REFEREE: Referee: H Webb (S Yorkshire)

YELLOW CARDS: Tottenham: Mendes (84), Redknapp (90). Norwich: Charlton (50), Safri (69)

RED CARDS: None

SHOTS ON TARGET: Tottenham 7, Norwich 2

SHOTS OFF TARGET: Tottenham 8, Norwich 5

CORNERS: Tottenham 13, Norwich 5

FOULS:  Tottenham 17, Norwich 9

OFFSIDE:  Tottenham 0, Norwich 6

Sunday September 12, 2004
RICK WAGHORN

I THINK it is now safe to say that the secret is out.

Time after time this summer, the national newspapers have run their quizzical eyes down the Canary squad and in the midst of their normal “Craig, Craig who?”
routines have plumped for Darren Huckerby as City’s star turn this season.

His name rang some sort of distant bell.

The fact that Robert Green could prove equally important to Norwich’s survival prospects on their return to the top flight escaped nigh on everyone outside this little corner of the world.

The possibility that the 24-year-old City No 1 could yet hold England’s 2006 World Cup destiny safely in his hands would never have crossed their minds. It has now.

“Green’s a giant,” ran the headline on the back page of The Sun on Monday morning.

The travelling Canary faithful have, of course, long recognised the fast-rising star in their midst and, if England coach Sven-Goran Eriksson has a sense of humour to go with his platform heels and winning way with the ladies, the watching Swede could be forgiven for breaking into a sly smile when Paul Robinson was greeted with a rousing chorus of “England’s, England’s No2!” by the City fans gathered in that far corner as Green wholly outshone his international team-mate.

Whether he nicked the day’s honours off his new England pal Jermain Defoe was, for some, a moot point. The Spurs striker was a little lively – as befits someone on the crest of a wave following his heroics in Poland the other night.

Leon McKenzie leaps above England centre-back Ledley King.

The best of many a lightning moment from the hosts’ star turn arrived in the 17th minute when he twisted away from Damien Francis on the edge of the centre circle before drilling an early shot against the base of Green’s right-hand post with the keeper’s outstretched glove a good six inches distant.

It signalled the start of a fraught 10-minute spell when the Canaries led something of a charmed life as Defoe and Frederic Kanoute let rip.

Kanoute was the next up to the plate as Defoe skipped away down the left and drilled a low cross into the danger area. All credit to City skipper Adam Drury, who arrived in the nick of time with a fabulous block tackle to leave the ball rolling gently into Green’s waiting arms.

Less clever was the misplaced clearing header four minutes later that dropped the ball on to Defoe’s feet, only for the covering Youssef Safri to dig it off the goalline with Green beaten. It also dug the Moroccan out of a little hole given that it was his sliced up-and-under that had put Drury in bother in the first place.

Throw in Jamie Redknapp’s poked effort wide on 34 minutes and Kanoute’s rising drive that whistled just wide of the upright four minutes before the break and Tottenham were well ahead on points, if not goals, come the interval.

Half-time: Tottenham Hotspur 0, Norwich City 0

At which point we ought to discuss one or two of Norwich’s other strengths, first and foremost the little matter of their fitness. Once again, the visitors finished the contest looking by far the stronger and as Spurs’ limbs and minds tired, so Huckerby came into his own.

Yes, Green was still adding to his England cv at the other end – in particular a wonderful one-handed claw off his line to keep out Thimothee Atouba’s drive in the 67th minute – but such chances apart, the game was suddenly a far more even affair as Huckerby started to let rip.

Safri’s international pal Noureddine Naybet went into the contest with the big reputation as the rock upon which Spurs’ unbeaten start had been built, but suddenly he looked distinctly leaden-footed as Norwich fired the ball out wide and gave Huckerby the kind of angle and space he craves in which to run amok.

Darren Huckerby makes Paul Robinson look like England's Number 2 as he chips the ball over the Spurs keeper and is left with an unguarded goal, only for Ledley King to deny Huckerby with a last-ditch tackle.

Just after the hour he had his first one-on-one with Robinson, having given Naybet the slip only for the Spurs No 1 to block Huckerby’s shot as he tried to roll the ball beneath him. The second, on 74 minutes, provided the moment of the match as Ledley King produced his own party-piece in front of the watching Eriksson.

Safri’s neat ball around the corner set Huckerby in motion as he blazed away through the inside-right channel. Robinson responded with a David James-like moment – haring out of his penalty area only for the City striker to lift the ball over him and leave an unguarded goal at his mercy.

Alas he had reckoned without King’s astonishing speed and timing as the Spurs’ centre-half raced across to cover as Huckerby waited and waited for the ball to fall.

Even then, Norwich were far from finished. For just as Spurs’ sub Robbie Keane was having a pop at Green, so Canary substitute Leon McKenzie found himself on the end of a last-gasp mazy Huckerby run only for another, desperate defensive tackle to balloon the ball over the bar with three points beckoning.

Given the opportunities that knocked for either side, a point each was probably the right result. As for the bigger points to be had, for me, as good as Spurs looked in the shape of Defoe and King, in between their midfield underwhelmed – again suggesting that, Arsenal apart, most of these Premiership teams have a big chink in their armour somewhere.

In short, they’re not all they are cracked up to be.

Result: Tottenham Hotspur 0, Norwich City 0