England new boy on top form: Scunthorpe 2-4 City

This was absolutely a game of two halves. I was listening to this on the radio and the opening 15 minutes was electrifying.

City were 1-0 up after 58 seconds courtesy of Jay Bothroyd, whose goal tally this season has earned him a a deserved call up into Fabio Capello's squad to face France. They were two up after nine minutes when Chopra added to his tally, and by the sound of the commentary, Scunnie had no idea what was hitting them. However, Chris Burke who was tearing them apart had to go off as early as the 13th minute, and things settled - only temporarily though as City pressed again and again, and Bothroyd scored again on 34 minutes.

The Iron grabbed one just before the break which gave them a glimpse of getting something from the game.

In the second period it was all Scunthorpe right from the whistle, and they bombarded our goal. Heaton was called into making several good saves, as our defence was tested to the limit. It caved in in the 73rd minute when Scunthorpe made it 2-3 and all of a sudden minds were turning to last years match at Peterborough were we let a 4 goal lead slip. However, thanks to a deflected Koumas shot off Seji Olifanjana's arse, City put the game beyond doubt in the 79th. The win takes us top again as QPR only drew. Superb, but ultimately, and needlessly, nailbiting stuff.

And to top the day off, there was confirmation that Jay Bothroyd, given a place in Fabio Capello's preliminary squad to face France, was indeed in the final squad.

This is brilliant recognition for a striker that's growing in stature with every game, and currently scoring goals for fun. It's also a tribute to the work Cardiff City are doing, and it puts us well and truly on the map. More importantly, it sends out a message. If you're good enough, you'll get your chance. It doesn't matter if you're not (currently) playing in the top tier.

A lot of people (Robbie Savage for one) think it's ridiculous that Bothroyd is in the squad ahead of people like Bolton's Kevin Davies, but watching Bothroyd week in, week out, I know who I'd rather have in the England team.

Congratulations Jay!

Blooobirds!