Norwich City manager, Paul Lambert, was full of praise for his back four in the wake of the Middlesbrough victory at the weekend.

Adam Drury is a "massive hole" to fill when he is out, as he is with a calf injury at the moment, but new dad, Steven Smith, is coping as he adjusts to the English game with so few appearances since his arrival from Glasgow Rangers.

Elliot Ward was back from his first career suspension. It came about for accumulated yellow cards. Talking about this career milestone, Ward stated that he was never called upon to tackle as much as he has done since being with Norwich. The card count might not be a proud record, but so long as he stops his man, the crowds will forgive him.

Leon Barnett, on loan from West Bromwich Albion is doing well at Norwich. Lambert might have a small kitty when he starts to play his hand in the transfer stakes, but if finances will allow, it is a safe bet to suggest that Barnett could become a permanent fixture.

Then there is Russell Martin. Perhaps a name change, to "Marmite" Martin is called for. You either love him or hate him. To be fair, there are occasional sparks of ignition where the hope is that R.Martin will start to fire on all four cylinders. However, in the main, his passing is nothing less than abysmal. The rare chances that he does complete a pass probably outweigh his lousy record for the most of each game.

His positional play, to be fair, is probably what Lambert ordered, but around the ground you can hear the shouts for him to get his backside in gear and stop being afraid of physical contact.

Like Peter Grant when he was a player, not manager, R.Martin points out who others should watch out for. Unlike Grant though, he loses his own man and stands like a rabbit caught in the headlights.

R.Martin was Lambert's first acquisition, so it looks like he is going to be around, frustrating supporters, for at least the rest of this season. He is probably popular with the press, as well, because he is rarely short of a word to give to the feeding frenzy that passes for press interviews on "press day" at Colney. Reminiscent of another player who looked busy doing nothing but always ready to act as spokesman, Andy Hughes, now of Leeds United. Unlike Hughes, however, there is only a smidgen of hope that R.Martin will suddenly come good.

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