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Free Willie(ams)
Written by samblueips on Thursday, 3rd Apr 2014 22:15

For much of this season, Ipswich were dire to watch. On numerous occasions, ninety minutes felt much longer. It was the only time in my fourteen years of being a season ticket holder that I had felt that way.

I found it peculiar, given the fact that we were doing far better in the league than in previous years. At first I wondered if, at the age of twenty-two, this was just a maturity thing, if the childish buzz of being at a live match had eroded. But the longer I observed what was happening on the pitch, the more I realised it wasn’t me. It was them.

While defensively Town have been the best I have seen them in years this season, and I value the grit and guts Mick McCarthy has injected into our play, defending isn’t all that entertaining, and neither is grit. Constantly seeing long balls pumped up to isolated strikers, no more than three passes made consecutively, and a complete neglect of some of our more creative players, has made for as consistently drab an entertainment level as I have ever known at Portman Road.

Seeing the news that David McGoldrick – our only player to have consistently offered creativity this year – was sidelined to the end of the season, only darkened my outlook.

But that has changed.

Going to Portman Road on Saturday reminded me of why being a football fan is so enthralling. The pain of seeing opposition fans celebrating, the excitement of seeing my team bearing down on goal, the uncontrollable outbursts of fury and joy as the game twisted and turned. The existential desire for an attacking opening. The sore throat. While the result wasn’t ideal, I walked away as satisfactorily exhilarated as I have felt for a while (at the football).

Partly, this was down to circumstance, with Ipswich close to the play-offs and facing a rival with only a few games to go. But contributing to this, and standing as an independent factor in the improved entertainment of recent games, has been Jonny Williams, or Joniesta as he is known by some.

Williams didn’t have the greatest of games on Saturday, but he gives Ipswich a midfield flair they have been lacking throughout this campaign. His head is always up, looking for a forward pass. He runs at players, and turns, and throws in step-overs. Moreover, he provides a link between our midfield and attack, which have seemed so dislocated this season.

Williams’ presence seems to have given a buzz to the whole team. Aaron Cresswell is showing more of the attacking swagger he demonstrated at the beginning of the year. Luke Hyam and Cole Skuse are finding a fluidity and tempo that have been missing for much of this season. And Frank Nouble - Frank seems to have gone from another world to out of this world with the help of Williams.

Perhaps it is just coincidence. Maybe all of the above, and the team on the whole, would have found their form without Williams. Maybe we’d be doing just as well without him. But the conviction of the fans who sang ‘We want you stay, we want you stay, Oh Jonny Williams, we want you to stay’ on Saturday makes me think that there is consensus on his impact.

As we sang that chant, the signs seemed to be ominous. In all honesty, I thought I had seen the end of Joniesta.

But with a little help from Marouane Chamakh’s physiotherapist, and the stars, it looks like Williams will play a big part in a play-off, and dare I say promotion, push in the coming weeks.

This is the stuff that loanee legends are made of.

COYB.




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Garv added 22:35 - Apr 3
This is basically how I've felt all season and how I'm feeling now. We're still not great, but Williams has been a huge plus.

Disagree on the comment about Hyam and Skuse though!
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danger_matt added 23:59 - Apr 3
"The existential desire for an attacking opening"

Discuss...

(agree on the Williams, great loan signing, in the nick of time too)


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gazzmac4 added 09:40 - Apr 4
I believe Joniesta has been brilliant for us in the short term. Certainly an excellent signing that has given us a boost just after arguably our most creative player of the last 5 years picked up a season ending injury.

However the more positive side of his signing for me has been the hope it gives me deep down that we are a promotion challenging team in the making. Proof that with the right attacking midfielder(s) playing in our midfield we can be a real attacking force.

Mick has done a terrific job and has made us very hard to beat. The back four and even DG have been excellent this year and there is a real desire and passion about the whole squad that we havent seen for a few years. Everyone is working hard for each other and this has paid dividends.

But for me the biggest plus is the fact that we can clearly achieve something if we bring in the right type of attacking midfielders for next year. We may reach the playoffs this year (frankly the longer it is still a possibility is brilliant as we move into April) but the signing has given me real belief that we can be a serious contender next year.

I hope and cross my fingers that i am right! COYB's!!!
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Blue041273 added 14:39 - Apr 4
Stoic acceptance of bleak times has been the Ipswich way for too many years now and the damage to the image of the club caused by these years in the wilderness is incalculable. However, there is a real uplift in mood in PR at the moment with the recent positive performances giving all of us cause for optimism and daring us to dream that something special might be about to happen. Of course the dream way well turn to dust but isn't it wonderful to look forward to a Saturday game with real positivity again. Long may it continue.
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GerkensBeard added 17:46 - Apr 4
Good blog and I don't think you can overestimate this kids ability. From day 1 he came into the club he injected excitement and then on the pitch itself he added that much needed creativity. But not just creativity he is an absolute star turn in this team and the championship. He adds so much more than just creativity, the whole team are playing better with his influence, his passion when he's celebrated goals and got the crowd going, our crowds atmosphere has reached another level this season and as much as the opposition have tried to stop him... They can't.
He certainly warrants his nickname Joniesta and having watched him in interviews he seems like a top lad. And the way I look at the rest of the fixtures starting with Saturday I think to myself, if we defend well and be resolute, Jonny may well produce some magic. He is a match winner and can only dream of what our team would've been with him and Didsy in it.
But sadly all good things must come to an end. Jonny Williams we will never forget you, and after you leave us I will always keep an eye on you and hope you have a fantastic career because boy do you deserve it.
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MVBlue added 14:52 - Apr 5
Very well written piece.
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Warkys_Tash added 22:23 - Apr 9
Samblueips. Agree with your comments re Joniesta - reminds me of how Marcus Stewart lifted us right before our last play-off triumph, coming back from the physio table just in the nick of time. He is pure class.

However, I disagree with ''On numerous occasions, ninety minutes felt much longer. It was the only time in my fourteen years of being a season ticket holder that I had felt that way.' - Really? Only time? I think there were considerably darker and dire footballing days at PR under Keane & Jewell, or have you forgotten already?! :-) That's not to say that I don't agree with you that some of the games have been dire this year. I believe we have a proper football manager now, who will get us out of this division, even if it means grinding it out. It's not always pretty or what we want to see & sometimes the tactics appear negative but over a season may just get us over the line. After 8 years without so much as a sniff of the play-offs, 6 ugly 1-0 wins would be welcome. I would take that in a New York minute. Would you?
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samblueips added 14:17 - Apr 10
I'd bite a hand off for six ugly wins, and I am very much caught up in potential play-off hysteria at the moment, so I won't dwell on the negatives!
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Nthsuffolkblue added 18:11 - Apr 15
You have held a season ticket for 14 years and this is the first time you have felt it was dire to watch?!!!

I stopped attending during Keane's reign despite having a season ticket because I realised I was spending so much time and money travelling to watch something I was not enjoying!
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RomfordBlue added 08:20 - Apr 28
Whilst agreeing that the entertainment level has been very low on numerous occasions this season, NOTHING can be as bad as the Keane era. He alone (apart from Evans who brought hin in) is to blame for the low depths we sank to. Mick may not produce the excitement we hope for, but at least we are not all as depressed as we were during the Keane era. Think we should erect a Keane statue so we can all deface it!
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