Like most of you I guess, although I was optimistic about the season ahead I did not see this one coming!

Top of the table at the end of August. Still in the Capital One Cup and looking forward with anxious anticipation to that encounter next month away to Manchester United at Old Trafford. It seems that life as a Town fan is not all doom and gloom after all!

From the days of destruction under Roy Keane and Simple Simon we now have in place a manager and managing director who understand what this club is all about.

After a deep depression appeared to hang over Portman Road for what seemed like an eternity, there is finally some warmth again to light up our lives! The sun is shining again on Town!

Ian Milne and indeed Marcus Evans have done their bit as well to make this club strong again and not just on the football field but with some sound investments and a common sense application to the administrative side of the game.

Of course success is measured on the field ultimately and we have to applaud the pragmatical style of Mick McCarthy as manager and his no-nonsense approach and sometimes brutal honesty too, which players seem to appreciate more than most.

This togetherness is indicative of a well-run club and what a breath of fresh air it is from the bad old days that in truth are not that long ago. In not much more than two and a half years Mick McCarthy and Terry Connor have turned this club on its head!

Having supported this club since I was knee high to a grasshopper, times like these are very rare but when they happen they are overwhelmingly memorable.

I placed my usual crazy bet on the Blues to win the Sky Bet Championship at odds of 20/1 before the season unfolded. I had seen the Blues play in Dusseldorf and I was suitably impressed with what I had seen to continue this fools folly but as the odds are shortening day by day I am feeling a lot less like a fool.

This time around though, perhaps there is no real need to feel pessimistic at all! Here are my ten good reasons to be cheerful!

1. We are top of the table at the end of August!

2. We are still in the Capital One Cup!

3. We are undefeated in all competitions!

4. We have won five of our six games and the other one was a very near miss!

5. Our squad is stronger and more robust than I have ever known!

6. We are still recruiting quality players - Polish defender on his way!

7. Brett Pitman and Ryan Fraser have made me forget all about losing Tyrone Mings!

8. We are not selling in the transfer window!

9. David McGoldrick is finally finding some form!

10. We play Manchester United at Old Trafford next month!

I have supported the Blues for more than 45 years and as I get older and perhaps a bit more cynical with time, I was beginning to wonder whether I would ever see the Blues in the Premier League again in my life-time? Now at least there is real hope!

The season may still be in its infancy and I am still not entirely convinced by either of our goalkeepers but that apart I am exceedingly optimistic for a pessimist. I really am starting to believe that this is our season and the Mick the Man jigsaw is almost complete.

Freddie Sears I believe will top score this time and if they stay injury free we could have all four of our recognised strikers in double figures for the season and now too, even the midfield is finally finding the net as well!

All we need to do is to retain our unbeaten start to the season and make this an unforgettable month is to a win or a draw against The Seagulls on Saturday, which will either either increase our lead at the top of the table - or if we draw, we will still go into the international break still undefeated.

Nice start isn't it!

warbeat78 added 22:02 - Aug 27 Wish it was saturday tomorrow i'm thinking its going to be a very special day for fans coybs!!
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BlueKush added 22:18 - Aug 27 I hope 8 is true. If it is we'll go up i reckon.
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Blue_Again added 03:02 - Aug 28 Win on Saturday is vital I think. If we do I think the momentum will take us through till Christmas at least
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TR11BLU added 06:40 - Aug 28 Great blog, well written. From the same era, I too didn't think the good times would return, but there is a very good feeling around the whole club. I'm confident we will beat Brighton tomorrow and your bet, we'll see......
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Tractorog added 12:39 - Aug 28 Nicely written and argued but... Football fans are either way to optimistic or too pessimistic depending on the last results. Its is enjoyable, but a bit premature to be forecasting the season after so few games. Brighton's defensive strength will be a real test, but even if we win, please try to temper your expectations otherwise this site becomes like the message board for a bunch of over excited puppies, making a lot of noise, achieving little and leaving a trail of excrement all round the place.

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Tractorog added 12:43 - Aug 28 I did not mean to imply your blog was excrement. Sorry.
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rickw added 15:46 - Aug 28 I was confident of being up there in the league, I didn't expect to win in the cup at all though. Saturday vs Brighton will be a good test without Murphy, Berra, Bru + Bishop
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Daleyitfc added 16:58 - Aug 28 and Tiffany Porter looked like she might win the hurdles when she'd only jumped a couple of them. Far too soon for optimism : we've just signed 2 dead-legs to add to our ever burgeoning wage bill.
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topguy added 17:42 - Aug 28 Well a day couldn't go by without a negative comment to keep us grounded, but we have made a start better than even MM or any of could have thought, the two new lads to join are not just dead wood, both young lads, one an ex polish youth international who was club captain, and the other called the wing wizard, an aussie international with European experience, with the quality to open denfences up, and with toures performance on tues a big improvement, no longer do we worry if fraser or niles are unavailable, so I say bring it on, now we have a few flying wingers and if our strikers just hit 10 each, that's 40 gls like having 2 20 gl a season strikers, with the midfield chipping in this season, we can be full of confidence come xmas I can see us up in at least the top 3, but with unlike last year a squad capable of pushing on with no need at the moment to add to numbers, and all strikers now commited for 2 years, wheres the negative really.

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SpiritOfJohn added 18:17 - Aug 28 Agree there are lots of reasons to be cheerful. We haven't been remotely excited about our team for a long time so it is natural to celebrate the green shoots of recovery when they start to sprout - let's hope it bears fruit. Although it is somewhat strange that a pessimist should annually back us to win the league. I fancied a flutter on Murphy to bag a hat-trick against Brentford as he seemed to be overdue a goal. Shows what I know!

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blueherts added 12:53 - Aug 29 Yep - lets see after 15 games - but this is undoubtedly the best squad we have had in years The final third is the strongest we have had in eons and 2 have real wingers who can take people on and score goals is such a plus Great credit to Klug , Milts etc and all involved in the Academy - we are now seeing some real talent coming through in the shape of Kenlock and Emmanuel Mick has signed some good youngsters and to think we culd be without Berra Bish Bru and Murph and still be optinistic just shows how far MM AND TC have bought us Long may it reign and I think our attacking force will break down the Seagulls

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BrightonEye added 10:52 - Aug 31 Reading these comments post-match Just goes to show what a funny old game we all support. We all do it: absurdly high expectation levels after a few good results, followed by equally absurd pit of despair criticism after a defeat.
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Pessimistic added 17:28 - Aug 31 I could not agree more Brighton Eye. You played some good football though and we deserving of your victory.
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BLUEBEAT added 15:10 - Oct 26 No.
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