 [Blog] It's Up to You BoysWritten by Karl_Fuller on Wednesday, 17th Feb 2010 10:07 Reading the forum on here last night and listening to the post match phone-in on Radio Suffolk suggested that many other fans felt the same way as me. Some I know have felt like this for a long time, some all the time perhaps since Roy Keane was installed as our manager. But I have always been in the pro-Keane camp as I have spent 30 years supporting the club and that means supporting the man in charge and the players that wear the shirt regardless of whether I have particularly liked any individual involved or not. Some have done better than others, some have been simply awful, but nevertheless, still warranted my supported merely for representing the ITFC brand. Since Keane's appointment, fellow fans, family and friends have wanted to knock him all too easily, questioning whether or not he is the right man for the job. So much has been said and written over the past few months, it does not need repeating here. I have always been behind him for reasons outlined above, but I have to say, it is getting more difficult week by week. I could not understand why we allowed Tamas Priskin to go out on loan to a relegation threatened rival club, I could not understand why we let Jon Stead out on loan at all! But for all the shenanigans alone this season in the transfer market, in team selections and in performances, I do feel that we have become the most predictable club in the land but then again, I have felt that for a few years now. I go back to the season when we were pipped for an automatic promotion place by Wigan and after our draw at Brighton, I made what turned out to be my last phone call to the Radio Suffolk phone-in, simply for stating that I did not believe we would get past West Ham in the play-offs based on our history generally in the play-offs and I just knew that pound for pound, West Ham as a club, as an area, and as the type of support they had compared to Ipswich and it's more genteel pace of life and type of supporter, we would not have enough fight and bottle to overcome the battle. I was labelled "an idiot" by the show's presenter and subsequently deemed not to be a real fan by following callers. It is not my fault that we are so hard to predict - for years we have set ourselves out in this way and no manager, be it Keane, Magilton, Royle or Burley has ever managed to turn us into a team or a club to be feared. I think back to the Grimsby defeat that signalled the ultimate end for Burley, the defeats at Layer Road suffered by Magilton and the unacceptable performance by Keane's men last night. I guess what I am saying is that no matter who the manager is, we just do not compete when it matters. My friend and I exchanged text messages yesterday afternoon knowing a defeat was on the cards, we have spoken this morning believing that we will not win at Sheffield Wednesday simply because they lost at home last night and will they lose two on the trot with Ipswich rolling up in town. I would love it if I'm wrong! Do I believe relegation is on the cards? You bet I do! And what do I base that on? Cast your minds back to the last season that we were relegated from the Premiership. With twelve games to go, the bookies had us at 8/1 to go down. I looked at the fixtures and saw that we still had the top clubs to play and knew we were gone. Similarly, we still have to go to Newcastle, Nottingham Forest and Swansea before the season is out. If Peterborough, who had scored one goal in five games prior to last night were beyond us, I do not hold out much hope for when we visit those three clubs vying for promotion. Many of our other games to come do not look rewarding either. Scunthorpe on a Tuesday night anyone? Nothing will change my love and passion for the club - in fact, somebody once told me that for the amount I lived, breathed and talked Ipswich, I should have been a Geordie so strong is my passion for my team and anyone who knows a Geordie will know what I mean. I just wish on more occasions that my passion could be reciprocated by our players. I thought Keane had lambasted the players recently for not showing their thanks to Town fans at the end of games. There were 2,700 Town fans at Peterborough last night, how many players thanked them at the end? Norwich went down last term with loanees not caring too much in the long term for the club, do Messrs Colback, Healy and Murphy worry more about the long-term future of Ipswich or themselves? I have found it hard over the years to be an optimistic Ipswich fan, but I do not believe that I am a pessimist either despite some of what has been written here. So what am I? Nothing more than a realist and I at the moment I realistically believe that for a combination of reasons we are in trouble. Keane has to stay and see it through, sacking him now will not improve the players we have at our disposal, a new man would have to work with the same tools in the main for the rest of the season. Like you, I hope that somehow Keane can find the mental strength that he undoubtedly held as a player and get this into the minds of our players before it’s too late. It's time for those in blue/red to stand up and be counted as now the team's future is in their hands, the supporters' future is in their hands. Championship or League One next term is down to them. It’s up to you boys. Please report offensive, libellous or inappropriate posts by using the links provided.
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