King's Lynn 2 Norwich City XI 0
13th July 2010
KING'S Lynn Town began a new era on and off the pitch in the best possible way on Tuesday night.
The club's newly-assembled squad marked their home-coming in style with an impressive victory over a youthful Norwich City outfit at The Walks.
Goals from Jack Defty and Brady Stone allowed Lynn to get their home friendly campaign off with a bang after a burst of fireworks had greeted the two teams onto the pitch.
Norwich included fringe first team players Jens Berthel Askou, Matty Gill and Owain Tudur Jones in a line-up of youth and academy players, but it was Lynn who ran out winners with a very encouraging performance.
Joint Linnets boss Gary Setchell said: "We played some really good football, but what pleased me more was our work when we didn't have the ball against full-time players.
"No disrespect to Long Sutton Athletic, but the players knew they needed to step it up from Saturday and they did that.
"Our two centre-halves and midfielders were magnificent and Jamie Thurlbourne once again showed what a great left-foot he has got with some of his balls into the box."
"All of our players worked their socks off and I'm hoping that everyone who was at the game went home happy with what they saw."
Setchell's thoughts were echoed by joint boss Kevin Boon who said: "We gave our whole squad of 19 players a go and they all gave 110 per cent.
"When we signed the players we took them all out on the middle of the pitch and asked them if they could play in front of the crowds we might get at home.
"Against Norwich, in front of more than a 1,000-odd fans they proved that they could."
Town should have been out of sight by the time Defty handed them the lead following a soft penalty decision eight minutes before the interval.
Lynn were by far the more dangerous in the opening exchanges with Steve Spriggs proving a handful for the Canaries' defence.
Spriggs teed-up former Wroxham team mate Danny White early on, before twice being denied by fine saves from Norwich City goalkeeper Remy Matthews.
It was then Thurlbourne's turn to get into the act and twice in the space of a few first half minutes the left-sided player crossed for the dangerous Defty to head over.
Defty was then bundled over before the striker picked himself up to tuck away the resulting spot kick.
Eight minutes after the restart Thurlbourne's dipping corner was bundled in off the body of Stone.
Canaries keeper Matthews then denied Defty with an acrobatic stop after a peach of a cross from Thurlbourne on the left.
City offered little threat to a solid-looking Lynn back four during the 90 minutes, with the muscular Patrick Drmola wasting their best two chances.
King's Lynn Town: Street (Hails 75), C. Defty (Buhlemann 58), Alsop (Newton 66), L. Thurlbourne, McNeil (Plumb 75), Stone, Spriggs (Doherty 53), White (Kelly 53), J. Defty (Moreira 82), Cubberley (Smith 58), J. Thurlbourne.
Goals: J Defty (37), Stone (54).
Norwich City XI: Matthews (Gunn 83), Jones (Florence 45), Gordon (Sturman 77), Gill (Tudur Jones 45), Askou (Francomb 45), MacKenzie (Stephens 45), Dobbs (Brindley 45), Clunnan (Loza 45), Drmola (Oakley 61), Ball (Dobbs 75), Oakley (Dawkin 45).
Referee: J. Turner (Lynn). Attendance: 1,456.