The sense of opportunity was palpable as Norwich City's young guns took to the pitch at Sixfields.

A pre-season opener featuring 45 minutes of virtually under-21 action is not uncommon, but the Canaries' current predicament underlined the carrot there if those players could take the chance ahead of them.

With gaps in the squad, transfer funds limited and a sporting director-head coach duo desperate to work on pathways for young players, everyone connected to Carrow Road knows some of them will be needed next season.

Whether it's Gulherme Montoia in the left-back mix, Brad Hills fighting for central defensive recognition or Ken Aboh hoping to earn a spot in the senior striking contingent, there were individual stories all over the pitch against Northampton Town.

But Johannes Hoff Thorup's first starting line-up as City head coach was not an especially weak one, and it wasn't especially short of senior players. Alongside the young trio of Hills, Montoia and the highly-rated Abu Kamara were season professionals: Shane Duffy, Jack Stacey, Gabriel Sara, Christian Fassnacht.

Soon many more will return, with Adam Idah back in team training and Scottish Messrs Gunn, McLean and Hanley all arriving after their Euro 2024 exploits. Add to the mix Josh Sargent, Jose Cordoba and Marcelino Nunez, all of whom have been away at the Copa America, and the number of gaps that need filling shrinks considerably.

Thorup's hopeful confession post-match that Ben Knapper was close to completing the signing of a left-back might have been expected, but it wasn't good news for Montoia or Lewis Shipley, who had both played halves in the east midlands.

The sheer density of centre-back options was also laid bear against the Cobblers, four different players featuring in the position across 90 minutes and one of them forced out wide in Waylon Renecke. The club captain isn't even involved yet.

The focus on youth is still strong, and next term's squad will represent more of the academy products supporters were desperate to see under David Wagner, but any illusion that it'd be easy to breakthrough is rapidly evaporating.

These prospects are used to scrapping their way up the system, producing exemplary performances to squeeze into ever-slimming numbers of hopefuls. That only gets harder as the real thing approaches, as many of them are about to find in disappointing detail.

Senior players like Grant Hanley will return as pre-season goes onSenior players like Grant Hanley will return as pre-season goes on (Image: Paul Chesterton/Focus Images Ltd)

Those who do emerge, however, will enjoy goodwill the like of which few have seen in NR1, with a fanbase desperate to see some of their own after academy productivity was put on the back burner.

They'll have come through a huge group hungrier than ever to prove they've got enough to play a Championship role. They'll be the cream of a crop more tantalised than perhaps any before them.

That's why the future looks bright for fans hoping to see high-quality young players wearing yellow and green, and it's why Thorup's current lack of options could well turn into a wealth of them.

City's youngsters are about to face a whole lot more competition, and they will need to step up to stay with the pace and earn the places in the squad many are rooting for them to receive.

The first signs were encouraging; the likes of Aboh, Uriah Djedje and Emmanuel Adegboyega all stood up well to League One opposition on Saturday. But in Belgium and beyond City will push through another gear, and those not yet ready may fall by the first-team wayside.

Those of them will experience the brutality of first-team football first hand, but the others may find out just how quickly things can change for the positive.

In any case it’s a good time to be coming through, with a sporting director keen to utilise academy players, a coach expert at developing them, and a fan base crying out to see more of them.