Paul Parry The Cardiff City Fall-Guy

Cardiff City's imporved strength in depth is a huge plus point this season, but was always bound to take its toll and leave certain players frustrated on the sidelines. One such example has been Darren Purse, kept out by the good form of Johnson and Gyepes in defence - Purse is rarely involved with the matchday squad these days.


Sunday saw Dave Jones instigate somewhat of a re-shuffle with a trio of Scotsmen Gavin Rae, Ross McCormack and Chris Burke recalled to midfield. That meant that McPhail and Whittingham dropped to the bench but the axe fell heavier for Welshman Paul Parry - who was dropped entirely from the matchday squad.


Parry is our longest serving player, and although inconsistent can be a real hanful. Of all our wide options, he is the only one with pace and the desire to get behind the defender and cross from the by-line. At times this season he has been a potent attacking force but too often his contributions are sporadic and lack a final product.


Parry's versatility is anotehr reason why he normally makes the squad, he is able to play on either flank or up-fron while he has also covered at right-back during one recent game. However, he was left out to accomodate the inclusions of Quincy and Peter Whittingham on Sunday. Personally, I would rather see Parry included at the expense of Whitts at present, the former Aston Villa man looks a shadow of his former self and has not put in a decent 90 minute performance for some time.


One thing is for certain, every player must now perform to keep their place, only last season it would have been inconceivable to see the likes of Purse, Capaldi and Parry not even making the matchday 16.

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