‘Supporters play a massive role’

CARDIFF CITY will take to the pitch seeking victory as they host Burnley in the Welsh capital on Sunday. The Bluebirds, owned by Berjaya Group founder Tan Sri Vincent Tan, will play the Clarets for the first time in the Premier League in front of TV cameras. The highlyanticipated game will precede a run of fixtures that includes visits to Tottenham Hotspur and Liverpool in October. Forward Danny Ward spoke in anticipation of the upcoming home match, focusing on points available after three matches against Premier League giants (Arsenal, Chelsea & Manchester City) in succession.

“The last couple of games haven’t gone our way,” Ward said.

“Overall though, I think we’ve shown that we can compete at this level, and we’ve now got a few goals under our belts as well.

“Hopefully now we can take a few more of our chances. You don’t get as many opportunities in this League, so you have to take them when they do come and that’s something that we’ve been working on.

“We’ve shown that we can hold our own against the big teams, but we want to go that step further too.

“There have been a few mistakes in our games, but it’s about how you bounce back that matters.

“The lads are all behind each other and we have been giving 100%.

“I think we’re growing because we’ve realised that when we come up against the best teams, we have had spells of play where we’re on top and have shown that we can cope.”

The backing shown to the Cardiff City squad from the Bluebirds supporters has been remarkable; results and disappointments put aside, their fans’ pride in attitude and determination has been evident from the stands.

And it’s not a factor that is lost on Ward or his Cardiff teammates.

“The supporters really do play a massive role,” Danny added.

“I’m sure if I can score a few more goals in our upcoming games, I’ll hear their chants even more.

“Cardiff City Stadium was a fortress for us during the 2017-18 season, and when the fans are making the amounts of noise that they are making, it definitely helps.

“Having everyone on our side and behind us can put more pressure on the opposition, even when we’re playing the biggest teams.

“The fans help us by getting behind us. That extra boost is great as we look to get a result here at home.”