Cardiff learn a life lesson and earn a derby point

This time it will be different. With new players and a new approach, this time Cardiff would not only match Swansea, but better them. Lay down a marker and change the narrative. Then it starts and that old familiar feeling swiftly returns.

The first 40 minutes on Sunday were depressing, in both their familiarity and futility. Cardiff stood off Swansea and let them play. Like REALLY stood off. Harry Darling had 10 yards of space for about 60 yards in every direction, at all times. If anyone actually dared go near him, he fell to the ground and earned a free kick. Another early goal conceded and another sinking feeling.

Around the 40 minute mark, Cardiff showed signs of life and in the second half, the game got increasingly scrappy, which always favours Cardiff. After somehow giving Swansea two-thirds of an empty pitch and still allowing them plenty of space in the final third, they started to venture forward. Swansea didn’t like it, they never do, but it still feels like a radical, new discovery every time.

Callum Robinson, Rubin Colwill and Ollie Tanner may have their faults, but they all have that derby day swagger and quickly added attacking impetus. The equaliser was a sweeping passage of play displaying all too rare, real quality. They have it in them, they just tend to keep it well hidden for some reason. By the end, Swansea were on the ropes, as unlikely as that felt 50 minutes earlier.

Everyone has a theory for how to beat Swansea. We have to show them less respect and get into them, but the last time we did that under Mark Hudson, Robinson picked up a swift dismissal. We have to press like our lives depend on it, but we’ve done that in the past too and Swansea simply moved the ball faster and won comfortably.

It’s the game that most clearly highlights Cardiff’s inadequacies. A low tempo side with no clearly defined press. They actually looked terrified in the first half, of the occasion, the crowd and the ball. They struggled to string three passes together and often reverted to their base instincts. It surely doesn’t always need to be this way though, does it?

Cardiff may be Swansea’s easiest opponent, but that is partly due to an ingrained inferiority complex and treating it like any other game. This is the first derby since the days of Dave Jones that hasn’t cost the losing manager, on either side, the sack. Its high stakes and makes or breaks reputations. Everything about it is different, amongst the churn of the Championship season.

It was for this reason that I would have been reluctant to select Jesper Daland to make his debut, but I would have been very wrong. The Norwegian made a stellar first impression and thrived on the occasion. He’s big, strong, has great feet and plenty of confidence. He took the game in his stride and was clearly Cardiff’s best performer on the day.

I guess the moral is that fortune favours the brave. There is so much fear surrounding this fixture, but we all need to be a bit more like Daland. Rather than fixate on the potential repercussions, instead strive for the glory and confidence boost on offer. Swansea are not Real Madrid, but it certainly felt that way for much of the first half, and most of the games in the recent past. If you instead stand your ground, they may well topple over like one of their centre halves.