Cardiff club captain Mark Hudson is promising the Bluebirds will not wilt in front of an expected Carrow Road full house ahead of Saturday's Championship showdown.

The second-placed Welsh side head to Norfolk above Paul Lambert's men only on goal difference and bidding to end a wretched away run of four consecutive league defeats.

Cardiff were hammered at Watford and Bristol City over the festive period but Hudson believes his side have turned a corner after a battling FA Cup draw at Premier League Stoke.

'Our away form is not a worry to us,' said Hudson. 'If we play like we did (at Stoke) and stick together we will earn the results we need. We have a belief among this group of players that we can get to where we want to be. Our first priority, of course, is promotion.

'That is what we are aiming for. Cardiff needs Premier League football and our last two performances have shown we are capable of getting there. It's important we bring in one or two more players and the manager has said he is working to do that.

'The spirit in our squad is excellent, but we all realise there is a need to be doing better. Hopefully the win against Leeds and the draw at Stoke will kick-start that. It's Norwich up next and we will have to be at our best.

'It will be a different type of game and we know how good Norwich can be. They played well against us at home even though we won 3-1. The task is to get bodies across the line and ready for the Norwich match.'

Former Canaries' keeper David Marshall's return after illness coincided with a battling rearguard action at the Britannia that saw Hudson again forge a makeshift central defensive partnership with Kevin McNaughton in the absence of Chris Riggott and Gabor Gyepes.

'I thought Kevin was fantastic,' said Hudson. 'I raved about him to the lads after the game. He has come in alongside me and done a great job. Naughts can play anywhere across the back and shows his versatility and his qualities. He's a big, strong boy, puts himself about, works hard for everybody around him and wants to do the right thing.'

A Stoke FA Cup return follows this weekend's Carrow Road league tussle and Hudson is relishing the chance of a decent run for the beaten 2008 finalists alongside their Premier League ambitions.

'We had to stand up to any pressure and we did that,' said Hudson. 'We showed a bit more grit and worked to defend for each other. Overall maybe we rode our luck a little at times. We will have more opportunities to create chances at our stadium.

'We will have fresh bodies back and available and there is a chance to make progress. There were plenty of good individual performances against Stoke.'