Norwich eager for revenge over Fulham after opening day humiliation

Norwich goalkeeper Mark Bunn admits revenge will be in the air when Fulham visit Carrow Road tomorrow.

The last time the two sides met was on the opening day of the season at Craven Cottage when Fulham inflicted a humiliating 5-0 defeat on Norwich in what was manager Chris Hughton's first Barclays Premier League game in charge of the club.

Since then Fulham and Norwich have enjoyed a mixed season and the latest encounter has acquired an extra edge as they are locked together on 28 points in 13th and 14th places in the league respectively.

Bunn was not at the club to witness the Craven Cottage demolition, joining Norwich later as understudy to John Ruddy, but he watched the game and knows the hurt it caused among his team-mates.

"It's not nice to get beaten by five so I think the boys will want to put it right with a good result," said Bunn. "Hopefully we can get a win. I think the lads will be trying to erase that memory.

"It's always massive when you play teams around you. It's vital you get the three points. It is a must-win game for Norwich.

"The last thing we want to do is get sucked into the relegation battle. It is a big game and with two home games coming up hopefully we can get two wins. When you get two wins you can go half way up the league."

Bunn goes into the game on the back of a fine penalty save last weekend from QPR's Adel Taarabt, a spot-kick he had given away when he brought down QPR striker Jamie Mackie.

It saw Norwich draw 0-0 following another 1-1 draw against Tottenham, results which arrested a poor run of five defeats in six matches.

Bunn, who has been thrust into the front-line due to Ruddy undergoing surgery in a lengthy lay-off, said: "We had a good performance against Tottenham, should have won and a decent result away at QPR. You can't disrespect a point.

"I was unfortunate to give the penalty away, I thought he went down easy but it's always good to save penalties and I always do my research to see which way they go.

"I wasn't really expected to play straight away (when I joined) but when the chance came (with Ruddy's injury), I had to step up and I think I have done well. I've been happy with the last two games.

"It's the away games we have struggled in this season but the last two games we have kept it tight. Through the season I think we have shown what a good team we are. We've just had a few bad results against the bigger teams."

Hughton describes midfielders Anthony Pilkington and Alex Tettey as "touch and go" for tomorrow's match with hamstring and knee problems respectively but reports a clean bill of health after his players returned from the midweek internationals.

Loan signing striker Kei Kamara has commenced training following his move from Sporting Kansas City in the MLS but is unlikely to feature against Fulham.

And while Hughton insists the 5-0 defeat will play no part in his preparations, he admits: "You are always conscious of where you are (in the table). We've had a mixed season. But we've had two good draws against Tottenham and a resurgent QPR.

"The performances were better and we have got to get back to where we were in our good run."

On Kamara he added: "We could throw him in but we have to do the right thing. We still need to asses him. It's about the right impact he can make. He's a little bit behind in sharpness and match practice but we are delighted he is here."

PA