Freefall or Rollercoasting?

It is inevitable as we reach the more or less half way point of the season, the early confidence of four wins on the trot have been replaced by a more grounded and realistic mindset. Being honest few expected Cardiff to reach Christmas unbeaten bestriding the rugby universe like a team of Blue Stormtroopers despite Obi Dan Kenobi’s best efforts, being honest few quite expected the lack of wins (& worryingly in parts performance) that has only slightly abated since beating Bath last Saturday.

As we stand on the verge of the return European game against Bath (on a Thursday evening, really??) and the frenzied ‘Welsh derby’ period it is worth reflecting on the journey thus far and to see if there are any wider pointers for 2017. Deep performance analysis will be left to the excellent Dan Pearce who is infinitely better equipped to hone in on player performance and game plan, stuttering or otherwise. Rather focus will be aimed at the pulse, the rhythm and general feel of what the Arms Park is like at the moment. At the start it is correct to be reminded, the 3-year journey is only half way begun and that to misquote Jane Austen, Cardiff rugby seemingly only exists to make sport for our neighbours.

There is little doubt that frustration is fast becoming the go-to emotion the Cardiff rugby supporter feels when leaving the Arms Park. This is generally positive as it shows the beating heart of that most fervent desire, success, is alive and well in the swell of the supporter psyche. That it has replaced despondency and at times suppressed rage is evidence of a journey well begun. For now it is correct that we are frustrated as it shows that better is possible but the building of excellence is never quite fast enough.

That the crowds feel like they are on the up, in number and positivity, is pleasing and adds to the feeling that the journey is attracting a few interested attendees whilst the noise that is generated by a full throated partisan Arms Park crowd still knocks spots of the efforts of the other three teams. That it still takes time to ramp up to carefree abandon is stoically typical and in a way charming. There has always been a degree of realism amongst Cardiff supporters, not for us is the blind admiration for any player who pulls on the jersey. Admiration must be earned and once earned it takes a lot for it to be lost, witness the euphoric response to Nick Robinson coming back (around Christmas too, the King reappears!) or the unbending joy most take in Dan Fish’s exploits or the work Steve Shingler and Gareth Anscombe must still do truly gain our affections (they are not alone on that journey).

The one element that unites the majority of supporters here is that there is a demand to see standards as well as effort. Effort without standards is a jarring combination, as is standards without effort. The demand, whispered for so long amongst supporters but now almost audible is for the two to combine and drive Cardiff rugby forward and up. In Danny Wilson there is the feeling that Cardiff has, for now at least, the correct pilot at the controls.

For all that the doubt many feel about whether a real corner has been turned or whether the arc is agonisingly long and treacherous to a point of being impassable is merited. The jarring run of defeats is real and potentially telling in a way that the exhilarating run of victories at the start of the season could not be. The old adage of winning papering over cracks could have been written for Cardiff but the club and those of us who passionately support need to be reminded that in sport, like life, winners never quit whilst quitters never win (thanks Vince).

So, as we stand here; 2017 beginning to become visible like a patchwork quilt ahead of us, we need to ask are we heading to terra firma ‘sans parachute’ or are we on the trough of the rollercoaster? The former is some way from the truth whilst the latter doesn’t adequately reflect the current situation but very much like a few of Cardiff’s recent performances, we have to accept it ... for now.