John Tilson, NCISA It has fallen on my shoulders to pen this NCISA article for the second time in a month.I make no excuse for saying that it is both a burden and a chore.

John Tilson, NCISA

It has fallen on my shoulders to pen this NCISA article for the second time in a month.

I make no excuse for saying that it is both a burden and a chore.

If anyone can inspire me to be positive, and “upwardly mobile” - to quote our master of spin who currently occupies the chairman's office at Carrow Road - please do not hesitate to supply the facts and statistics to make me eat humble pie.

We are rock bottom, and five points adrift - fact.

Three of the five teams immediately above us have a game in hand - fact.

We are the lowest goalscorers in the Championship - fact.

Do I have to go on? Believe me, if you care to look any deeper, there are even more sobering facts,

Kathy Blake, the secretary of NCISA, keeps telling me we are not going to be relegated. I would dearly love her to be right. But what gives her that impression is surely optimism viewed through yellow and green glasses.

The evidence just does not stack up and, having loved Norwich City Football Club for 45 years, my heart is bleeding.

If we fall into League One, the axe will have to fall. And no matter how painful it is for those who will make the cost-cutting decisions, I ask the following few questions:

1. Can we afford a non-footballing member of staff on nearly £200,000 a year?

2. Can we afford to pay the chairman's company nearly £25,000 a year for time spent on club business?

3. Can we afford to employ people with such fanciful titles head of media or public relations executive?

The answers are simple - “No”, “No,” and “No.”

Look at the Sky Sports football schedule from last Sunday: Yeovil v Gillingham and Hartlepool v Bournemouth.

That is where we are heading unless there is a dramatic upturn in our club's fortunes.

I recently re-read an EDP article from before the start of the season, written by Chris Lakey.

It was an interview with Roger Munby. It was embarrassing to read and it must be a total embarrassment for Dr Spin.

“I would say to the fans 'Stick with it'. I believe the football club may have some pleasant surprises in times to come.

“What I mean by that is higher standing in the Championship.

“What counts in this league is to be cleverer.

“When you look at the league table, there is a lot more promise and there are some real differences now compared to last season [2006-07], and with that in mind I can't wait for next.”

Reading it made me cringe. I am sure that at this Monday night's supporters' consultative group meeting, I will not be flavour of the month with club officials sitting round the table. I hope that my rant so far has laid to rest the views of certain people who see NCISA as being cosy with the club. Football is all about opinions, so next week's author of this column may sing from a different hymn-sheet.

The one thing that will remain constant in our articles is that everyone in NCISA loves City - but maybe we don't love all the pieces that currently make up the jigsaw.