The players have nobody to blame but themselves as with hardly any exception, individually and collectively, they failed to perform.
City were a shambles in defence, anonymous in midfield, clueless and then wasteful in attack. Quite simply, the fans turned up and paid good money but the team failed to give us 100% effort and commitment in return. There was a complacency and arrogance about it all as players seemed to be bask in their hype and positive publicity. Sounds familiar?
The play-off semi-final was lost at home to Stoke in similar circumstances. Players believed the job was done after winning away and then failed to perform at home. They spent all summer telling us how they had learned their lesson. Yet after just 2 games and 2 wins into the new season with fans happy Sam singing their praises in the media, oops, they did it again.
In all honesty, it's an attitude that has been matched by some fans too with talk of "promotion by Christmas", "we'll be Champions by a record margin". Reality will now hit home with everyone ... it better had because we are going nowhere otherwise. The best teams and best players in the world still only win through by making the difference in quality and class count and giving 100% effort and commitment. In other words, doing the job professionally.
If there's a positive to be taken from this, it is that it happened so early. City kicked off seeking club history - 3 successive wins at the start of the season. Many felt it was a formality we would be top of the table at 4:45pm. Realistically, that's how it should have been. The Cobblers barely have 16 pro's, some are of variable quality. Any of City's substitutes would be a star player in their team.
Cardiff named the same team that overcame Port Vale in midweek. Hindsight is brilliant but maybe this is where the problems started. Chris Barker deputised as emergency centre-half for the opening two games with Scott Young injured, Spencer Prior suspended and James Collins lacking experience. Prior was available and played well in midweek reserve action. He is undoubtedly superior in that role but was made to sit on the bench. It turned out to be a major mistake.
Barker looked exactly what he was - a player out of position. Northampton's two able and experienced strikers, Forrester and Gabbiadini, shouldn't have troubled us unduly but bossed us. We made them look class. Gabbiadini, 34 and overweight, looking ever closer to swapping a football career for one as a pub landlord, bewilderingly looked faster and ran us ragged. He is a class act with great skills but if we have the quality that we claim, it should not have happened.
The warning signs were there immediately. Legg brought the ball down outside City's area, Whalley and himself hesitated then Gabbiadini stole in and fired inches wide in the 1st minute. Two minutes later, Gabbiadini's free far post header which was just blocked. City nerves were jangling, misplaced passes, wrong options and poor positioning saw some players arguing and animated - features that were common throughout the afternoon.
As they appeared to weather the early storm, City were stung by a breathtaking 10th minute goal, one of those very rare once a season type of occasions where just about every City fan applauded its quality. As frequently happens, it came from City attacking!
Andy Legg's corner and long throw were snuffed. Cobblers keeper belted the ball away and City were nowhere as Forrester somehow won a header against Gabbidon and the ball fell to GABBIADINI with no City player in sight. It allowed him to show why he operated in top level football as, with nothing on, he spotted Alexander off his line and unleashed a stunning inch perfect 40 yard drive which found the gap between Alexander's fingertips racing back and the underneath of the crossbar. It was magnificence, a stunning strike that would be proclaimed in any level of football..
The goal visibly shook Alexander, another to give a poor performance. He had little to do overall but did not dominate his area as he can, rarely communicated to players in front and his distribution, a big weakness in his game, was poor.
City's credentials were in question and they met the challenge initially with a major response. A spell of sustained pressure had them level within 5 minutes. They spread the ball wide, possibly for the first time this season, and attacked Northampton to win a series of free-kicks, throws or corners. None came to much, their quality was suspect at times, before Rhys Weston tore though their rearguard and let fly with a drive that deflected inches wide.
Kavanagh took another poor corner, one of many, but the ball fell City's way. Andy Legg crossed, Leo challenged Harper and as the ball dropped loose, GRAHAM KAVANAGH showed outstanding skill and calmness to be first in a crowd on the edge of the area and perfectly loop a header over Harper and under the bar for 1-1.
At that stage, Ninian buzzed (the crowd was announced as only 25 more than midweek, there must have been a helluva lot of complimentaries and sponsors - enough said!!) and a feeling that City had showed their character and bottle to fight back so quickly. Gabbiadini's fire seemed to faded too as a charge down the touchline ended with the ball hitting the back of the Grange End and some belly size-ist taunts.
Leo came close to 'doing a Gabbiadini' as he spotted Harper out of goal and scissor kicked from nearly 30 yards, clearing the bar by a fraction. The whole ground was singing, the Grange End was bouncing and Sam, from the Directors Box, got up on request and started doing it too but things calmed again.
In searing conditions, with water bottles placed every 10 yards around the pitch, it was no surprise that the pace and opening intensity of the game wilted but Cardiff were guilty of being too casual and not making things happen. They failed to carve any more major chances in the opening 45 whilst Northampton found more, the biggest escape was a Forrester free-kick near the edge of the area which clipped Barker's head and went a couple of inches wide. Alexander had two routine saves and watched a couple more efforts go wide.
Half-time: CITY 1 NORTHAMPTON 1
Cardiff came back fired up. They could, should, have taken the lead in the opening exchanges. Firstly a Kav free-kick was scrambled away for Leggy to return a 25 yard blaster which clipped the top of the bar, half the ground momentarily thought it was in. A minute later, following quick passes, Leggy broke clear but went wide and Harper bravely charged out to smother when a goal looked on.
Then it went disastrously wrong as City capitulated again in the 50th minute. We've become used to crazy goals conceded but they are rarely more kamikaze than this one as we gifted Gabbiadini a goal of true comedy genius. A quick Cobblers break caught City. Twice, Danny Gabbidon cleared from goal, the first time at a shot which was going wide then a header as our keeper and defenders were spectating and in disarray. There was a cheer as the header cleared high in the air, we looked to have luckily survived but this is Cardiff City! Defence (4 or 5 of them) remained static and watched the ball instead of reacting to it. Alexander, Barker and Weston were all closer to the ball than the sole Northampton player, GABBIADINI but they unforgivably allowed him win it, then a scramble and his poked shot beat Alexander, went through Gabbidon's legs, hit the inside of the post and then along and over the line.
Cardiff failed to show a positive reaction this time. Barker and Gabbidon did not gel at all, Prior (or Young if fit) must return next week. Rhys Weston was too enthusiastic getting forward which Northampton exposed, Barker made one superb chase back and tackle to stop things getting worse.
Midfield was awful, Leggy was the pick and awarded man of the match and if the others who run and given as much as he did, we would have been fine but he was man of the match by being average compared to most others being awful.
Peter Thorne sacrifices a lot of his game for the role he is asked to play and was hardly in the game and it was a similar story for Andy Campbell who had a single ball played in front of him all afternoon. Leo huffed and puffed but too much of it was to no effect, he also fell into an old habit of arguing with many of his team mates as frustrations grew.
It is unfair to single anyone when it was a woeful team display but as a £1 Million Captain and playmaker, it's not unreasonable to expect Kav to show us the way but his performances must surely come under scrutiny. He may be Captain and a spokesman but it's been a long, long time since he has been a true leader on the pitch. Today, he was short on perspiration as well as inspiration. Another old habit was evident as he parked himself in front of the back four playing far too deep, a role where he causes no trouble to the opposition and problems to his own team. It must have been hell for a 3 man midfield to perform against 4 in this heat anyway but one of them drops away from that battle reducing it to 2, no wonder we had problems.
Kav has never been dropped by Cardiff City and never really been substituted either, many joke it must be written in his contract, some wonder if the joke is a truth. We just cannot afford to have any player performing like this, let alone one who is potentially our best. It's not as if there are no options, Des Hamilton and Layton Maxwell are itching for a chance. Kav must produce, his game has been average or poor ever since he tired to avoid suspension towards the end of last season. For a man who spent Friday night pleading with his team mates to produce at home and not let us down, I hope he spent Saturday night looking at his own part in our downfall.
Northampton were happy to close shop and settle for that well known Ninian Park visitors formation of 7-2-1, hold out and leave it to City to change the game. They showed little sign, Leo's overhead kick went straight at Harper, so it was Lennie's turn to intervene. He introduced Prior for Barker and Earnie for a despondent looking Campbell on the hour (although Earnie left City reduced to 10 men for a short spell as he was made to remove jewellery that was deemed dangerous on the field of play - another example of sloppiness, they should have been covered or removed before the game). Later, Maxwell was brought on for Whalley who had another very quiet match.
City went 3-5-2 with Gabbi-Prior-Weston in defence and Croft and Legg pushed wide on both side, it remains glaringly obvious that we lack and badly need options in this position. Nobody was able to get around Northampton's packed defence reducing City into a Route One style, always looking for Leo with balls pumped forward from wide on either wing or down the middle. But chances arrived almost every minute. You felt that if City scored, they would go onto win, then you felt they would snatch a draw, then you realised we had blown it and it just wasn't our day.
Northampton will be indebted to their keeper, Harper, who was easily the game's man of the match. He could do no wrong with a combination of good catches, great saves and pure luck, even the deflections fell in his favour.
City will reflect on a couple of bad misses, notably from Earnie who hit one effort straight at Harper at an ideal height from him when through on goal, either side would have scored. He placed another header wide from 6 yards and another over. Leo did the same. Kav hit an effort through a melee of players and hit Harper who didn't know much about it, Leo and Gabbi were inches wide and there were numerous scrambles and clearances. On another day, two or three would have gone in but City should never have got into this situation anyway.
Gabbiadini came close to a hat-trick as he met a cross, unmarked of course, but didn't catch it right and it glanced wide of goal before he was subbed for fresh legs and more spontaneous applause from City fans, he returned the compliment. It was his day but we should never have allowed it.
City even threw Spencer Prior forward for the closing minutes which meant we were more Route One than before. It was desperation and it showed. Northampton rode their luck but stayed calm and you have to accept that they deserved it. The fans were gutted, many players were too as they know they let themselves, and us, down. Danny Gabbidon is an honest pro and cares but he'd do himself a massive favour if he's not seen walking off the pitch laughing and joking, albeit encouraged by an opposition player, after such a dire team performance and result. It took me ages to laugh about anything after that.
Lennie Lawrence's first away win managing City was at Northampton five months ago so it is with some irony that his first home league defeat was to the same team. Excluding play-offs, the was Lennie's first taste of defeat in Division Two in 16 games so, whatever the faults and problems, it is best to keep this in context. He and the players have the talent and ability to put this behind us. Two winnable games over the forthcoming Bank Holiday weekend present the perfect opportunity to prove it. There has to be an inquest into the formation and the performance of certain players and the team but, most of all, I hope they all respond in the right manner.
I ended the day watching the Joe Calzaghe fight at Cardiff Castle. Joe didn't fight and perform as well as he can against an inferior opponent who came simply to survive and make life awkward for him. But Joe beat him soundly, never stopped going and never gave his opponent a chance or any encouragement. He had extra class but it was his extra work-rate and commitment that ultimately won through. If only Cardiff City had copied his example earlier on.
Report from FootyMad
A double strike from Marco Gabbiadini sent Cardiff floundering to defeat at Ninian Park.
He netted contrasting goals in the tenth and 50th minutes to earn a shock victory for the Cobblers and while the Bluebirds equalised through Graham Kavanagh five minutes after Gabbiadini's opener they were unable to draw level despite coming close in the latter stages.
Former Sunderland striker Gabbiadini fired in a blistering 35-yard drive past a helpless Neil Alexander for the opening goal but City skipper Kavanagh brought the sides level with a looping header five minutes later.
It was Gabbiadini once again just after the interval who toe-poked the ball home from just five yards after the Bluebirds' Danny Gabbidon had headed a Jamie Forrester shot off the line.
City boss Lennie Lawrence changed to a five-man midfield as City chased the game but the Northampton defence with keeper Lee Harper outstanding, kept the homeside at bay.
Lawrence was full of praise for the 34-year-old Gabbiadini: "I saw him play like that ten years ago and he is the sort of player that once he sees a big crowd he has to show them what he can do.
"Our defence never got to grips with him or Forrester all afternoon and they dominated our defence.
"I don't know whether it was the hot day, whether my players think they are superstars or because Cardiff were near the top of the league, but I have to get the right mentality throughout the side as lessons have not been learnt from most of last season's home displays"
Northampton boss Kevan Broadhurst was understandably delighted with the result: "We started brightly and once we got in front we dropped off and competed well. At half time we thought we could win and though we were under a lot of pressure at the end we managed to hold on and earn what is a massive result for us."
External reports
BBC Wales (inc audio)
The Football Echo
Wales On Sunday - Report
Wales on Sunday - Reaction
The Western Mail