West Brom are in excelsis — but Norwich are in extremis.

The buoyant Baggies supporters sang songs in praise of their team and manager long after the final whistle after a win that could well secure their Premier League survival.

But Canaries boss Chris Hughton and goalkeeper John Ruddy both found themselves under fire from their own fans following a defeat that could easily condemn them to the Championship.

Hughton was hit by a cardboard Canary Clapper thrown by a fed up fan while England international Ruddy was subjected to a torrent of abuse from another as passions rose high among frustrated supporters who booed their team off their pitch.

A 16th minute goal from French right winger Morgan Amalfitano was enough to secure the points for Pepe Mel’s side after a torrid week following the dressing room punch up between two players after the 3-3 home draw with Cardiff last week.

Both players featured in this crucial six pointer though and this time the Baggies did all their fighting on the pitch as they leapfrogged a hapless Norwich side seemingly paralysed by nerves in what was a must win encounter for both teams.

Mel said: ‘The three points take us closer to safety and make our route a lot easier.

‘We have Spurs at home in our next game and if we win that then we could enjoy a very happy season.

‘The whole team displayed a lot of discipline and they showed that there is a real family spirit at the club while Morrison and Berahino both showed how important they are for us.’

Hughton admitted: ‘Frustration just built up and I can understand that. But it’s something we have to accept and deal with. But we were as poor as we have been for a while and now we are fighting for our lives.’

Norwich were furious with referee Mark Clattenburg for failing to award them a free kick in the build up to the goal when there seemed a clear foul on winger Robert Snodgrass.

But play was allowed to go on and Amalfitano superbly steered home his fourth goal of the season from an acute angle after skipping easily past central defender Seb Bassong.

Norwich did their best with striker Gary Hooper hitting the bar and Swedish forward Johan Elmander squandering two glorious opportunities to equalise.

But Ben Foster was a clear winner in the battle of the rival England keepers with Ruddy, making a succession of outstanding saves including one point saving parry from Snodgrass, Norwich’s outstanding performer.

—Daily Mail