Cardiff City Score Mostly Tap-Ins !

Cardiff City have started the new season in solid fashion, with Malky Mackay managing to get a hastily rebuilt squad playing as a team, showing hard work and commitment and picking up a more-than-satisfactory 11 points from the 6 league games so far.

During those games, City have notched nine goals with both centre-halves and left-back Andrew Taylor all scoring. Winger Craig Conway and forward Kenny Miller have a goal apiece while Robert Earnshaw leads the charts with 3. The other goal came via a Peter Whittingham penalty against Brighton.

Interestingly, the vast majority of those goals have come from close range - an area we did not exploit last season, instead scoring goals from further out and more varied. In Chopra, Bellamy and Bothroyd - we had frightening techniques and ability but all liked to attack from deeper and none could be described as a 'poacher`.

Eanrshaw`s goal against Bristol City could only be described as a tap-in, while his other efforts (against Burnley and Doncaster) both came from about 6 yards out. Mark Hudson`s was scored from about 3 yards, while Gerrard stole in to convert from about 5 yards. Kenny Miller`s memorable effort was also close-range, firing home from about 8 yards.

That leaves on left-sided duo Craig Conway and Taylor as netting from anywhere properly outside the 6 yard box. Both hit good low efforts from the edge of the area and will have been pleased to get on the scoresheets early in the season.

The above means very little, especially this early in the season but for those worrying about the partnership between Earnshaw and Miller up-front for City - it`s certainly working in terms of goals at this early stage. It`s no coincidence that both players are natural poachers, and score many of their goals from close range. They may not be as beautiful as Jay Bothroyd`s powerful efforts, or Bellamy`s outstanding efforts against (e.g.) Swansea City and Doncaster - but they all count the same, and see us performing well at present.

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