Report by Barrie McAuliffe

The Bluebirds succumbed to their first defeat under the stewardship of Dave Jones on Wednesday night, but still put in a performance to encourage many of the doubterswho may have thought we were dead and buried after the 'stars' had left for pastures new.

A City goal opened proceedings via Ninian Park debutant Phil Mulryne, though Udinese found an extra gear in the second half, eventually winning by three goals to one.

For some reason however, despite a 3-1 defeat, we end the day feeling positive following solid performances from many in a new City shirt.

Team news saw the return of Gary Croft to the bench - Gary has been one to impress during his pre-season under Paul Wilkinson while Dave and the rest of the squad were in Scotland.

For the rest, it was pretty much as we'd seen on the road - Cox and Loovens were partnered at the back, with Barker and Darlington either side.

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Midfield generals Willie Boland and Jeff Whitley had their first chance to impress the Ninian Park faithful, suitably accompanied by new signing Mulryne and reborn winger Paul Parry.Up front, City pairing Alan Lee and Cameron Jerome were given the nod to start.

The first half was a continuation of the Scottish tour, as the Bluebirds looked impressive an unfazed by their Italian guests, despite the visors goal coming late in the half from a slip and mistake.

After two minutes Paul Parry signalled our intent, slotting Jerome through after given a nice ball by Ninian Park virgin Loovens. The Seria A defenders closed the move down however, though knew straight away that their Welsh hosts would be no easy opposition.

The City players did much to impress, with Parry again on form along with Boland and Whitley dominating in the middle of the park.

The first real chance of note came after sixteen minutes after Alan Lee was chopped down for a free kick while bearing on the Udinese goal. Willie Boland delivered a fine ball in to the mix, with the ball falling to the path of Jeff Whitley, who's shot was blocked by the Italian back line.

Udinese immediately broke back with an impressive run toward Alexander. Jermain Darlinton had other ideas however, tracking back at pace to clear the ball - though not before a few tricks to introduce himself to his new set of fans.

City were on the front foot for sure, though their guests still looked dangerous on the break.

The opener came to rapturous applause from the Ninian Park faithful after twenty nine minutes played. A neat Parry corner was cleared, but then Neil Cox did well to steal from the Italian defence. The new defender delivered a fine cross to the path of Mulryne, who with style from fifteen yards smashed the ball to give us a goal advantage.

Cardiff 1 - 0 Udinese

Cardiff continued to dominate proceedings, much to the delight of those who came on a cold, windy night.

Mulryne looked a solid prospect, refusing to shirk a challenge as neither did Whitley, who we both imagine could become favourites as the season progresses.

Udinese as expected however were not to be taken lightly and against the cosh they may have been would always be a danger if given half a chance.

Unfortunately for us the half chance was presented and converted after forty three minutes as goal maker Neil Cox make an uncharacteristic mistake as he slipped.

The slip couldn't have been in front of a worse player, with top scorer Di Michelle close on the ex Watford man to steal and attack Alexander one on one, making no mistake and striking well for the equaliser.

Cardiff 1 - 1 Udinese

The goal didn't dampen the spirits of the Bluebirds, with the half closing evenly. No further chances came however and both headed down the tunnel on even terms.

Half Time: Cardiff 1 - 1 Udinese

Substitutions for City came after the interval as Tony Warner, Neal Ardley and Andrea Ferretti coming on for Neil Alexander, Phil Mulryne and Alan Lee.

A Cardiff lead almost was restored immediately after the restart as good work and running from Jerome on the right resulted in a Jeff Whitley shot - though was narrowly wide to our gasps. If only. .

Minutes later another chance came as Jerome again the provider gave the ball to Parry, who's quick run resulted in a shot across the keeper, though again was just wide to give some breathing room.

Cameron Jerome was on solid form for the opening exchanges, dancing past his defender when afforded some space.

But just as we were starting to think we could get something, our Italian visitors finally stepped up a gear, showing exactly why they will contest for the Champions League this coming season.

A shot from substitute Zenoni cannoned into the Ninian Park turf and over the diving body of Tony Warner, who was helpless to prevent the goal, giving Udinese the lead against the run of play.

Cardiff 1 - 2 Udinese

The half was a less entertaining event than the first, with less chances coming for either team, though the goal definitely woke our visitors up as they went on to enjoy more chances and possession. Their class was now evident with some nice fluidity to their play, preventing the hope of a City comeback.

Jeff Whitley continued to be one of our plus points of the game, being applauded with every challenge - all of them full bodied, but fair. He will be remembered by both Ninian Park and Udinese physio in the morning.

With just under ten minutes to go, the game was put beyond us with some style that even left the Grange End applauding due to the quality on display. Barretto scored after a great run by Mirko Pieri, who skipped over the Welsh international on the touchline before dancing through to provide his team mate a golden chance, not missed.

Cardiff 1 - 3 Udinese

The game over, it was just a formality for the last minutes, though not many could argue being two goals down based on Udinese's superior quality after stepping up a gear.

We left, knowing that we had seen a quality opponent take the victory, but knowing we had also seen the start of what could be something special as the reborn Bluebirds began their life at Ninian Park.

Full Time: Cardiff 1 - 3 Udinese

Att: 4,468

Man of the match: Jeff Whitley

Starting XI: Alexander. Darlington. Barker. Whitley. Cox(c). Loovens. Mulryne. Boland. Lee. Jerome. Parry.

Subs: Weston, Warner, Ardley, Ferretti

Not Used: Koskela, Parslow, Fleetwood, Croft

Action pictures to follow on Thursday