Town boss Paul Jewell was again left shaking his head after more calamitous individual defensive errors handed Leeds a 3-1 win they hardly deserved at Elland Road. Jewell admitted that the mistakes against the West Yorkshiremen took things to a new level.

Jewell said: “I think we were in control of the game, then I don’t know what the goalkeepers were doing. You have to see it to believe it.

“For 70 minutes we were winning the game. We’ve restricted Leeds to very few chances, if any at all gilt-edged.

“One long ball and our goalkeeper decides he’s coming out for it and handles outside the box. With 10 men we were always going to be up against it but to give the goals away in the fashion that we did. I’ve said it so many times this season, but I think today is another level.

“We’re shooting ourselves in the feet time and time again,” he continued, clearly frustrated by more points having been thrown away after what had been a promising first half display.

“There was so much good about today, about the way we’ve played. We were good in all departments up until decision-making by Alex and Sonko that cost us the sending off.”

Meanwhile, stand-in skipper Sonko said sorry for his mistakes on Twitter: "I do want to apologise for today. My error cost us."

Jewell felt the goals were as bad as the red card: “The second goal is a long ball from the full-back that the goalkeeper should come and collect. The third one bounced on the edge of our box. They’ve scored three goals, and that’s why we are where we are.”

The Town boss is on the lookout for more defenders, having targeted Leicester’s Sean St Ledger and Portsmouth pair Jason Pearce and Joel Ward during the transfer window after a campaign blighted by similar capitulations by his backline: “It’s not just because of today it’s been because of the whole season.

“Having said that, I thought Tommy Smith did well and as a team we weren’t in danger for 70 minutes.

"Leeds were getting very frustrated. We passed the ball better than them, we created more opportunities, we looked in control of the match, we were controlling the tempo of the game. The gifts we gave them they haven’t had to work hard for. Again, it’s the same old thing.”

He says managers can’t legislate for the type of errors made all too regularly by his players: “As a manager, as a coach, there are certain things you can affect, but the decisions I’ve seen today, they’re just bad decisions which have cost us goals.

“I’ll always take responsibility as I pick the team but when people see the goals on TV they’ll scratch their heads.

“It wasn’t as if we were coming under severe pressure. It was just a long ball that our centre-half was going to deal with, he was going to head it back to Alex, and for some reason has decided to come charging out.

“It was windy out there, very windy and I guess even our goal was a mistake from their goalkeeper.”

Jewell says there have been no developments on transfers: “All the offers we’ve made have been rejected but we will be trying to bring in players, there’s no doubt about that.

“I don’t know about [improved bids] yet. We’ll have to sit down and speak about how far away we are from the other clubs’ valuations."

He says he doesn’t expect anything to happen regarding Sean St Ledger, who is back in Leicester’s plans, at least in the short-term, while there are no offers for any members of the current squad: “There are no enquiries for our players. We’ve made lots of enquiries and are pursuing other targets. It’s the same old boring lines I’ve got for you.”

Leeds boss Simon Grayson admitted his team had gained their victory largely by taking advantage of Town’s mistakes but felt the match was not dissimilar to the one between the teams at Portman Road earlier in the season: “That’s what can happen in football matches.

“We were poor in the first half, we never really got going. We would liked to have made a better start in terms of possession of the ball, closing them down and working them.

“We went a goal behind to a soft goal, it took a slight deflection but Andy Lonergan holds his hands up, he should have done better with it, and I think we were fortunate to be only one down at half-time.

“But in the second half we got to grips with things, changed it around a little bit, spoke to the players and gave them the belief that we could go and win the game, never mind draw it because we had to do a lot of things a lot better. We knew that we could still create opportunities and maybe win the game.

“The sending off obviously changed the game and it mirrored the game at Portman Road earlier in the season.

“For part of that game we were the best team, the sending off changed the game and Ipswich went and won the game.

"We’ve won the game off the back of the sending off and we’re delighted to have done that.”

Photo: Action Images

tractorboy2434 added 20:07 - Jan 21 Just why do you think that we have no signings, its because Evans is not giving Jewell enough money to sign anyone decent, which says to me either he does'nt care if we go down or he is keeping the cash for someone else, however if things stay as they are we are going down, the whole club is a joke and its time the supporters voted with their feet, don't go and perhaps the club might just wake up.

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GiveusaWave added 20:08 - Jan 21 Yet another disgraceful defence. 2 wins out of 16. When Jewell leaves he may well get the trophy of worst ever manager at Ipswich Town. . First 60 mins we matched Leeds in every area. Hyam and Drury should be singled out for praise, they were awesome. Scotland played well too. I was really hoping we could snatch a point. If we were being honest though, our defence (Sonko, Smith etc) looked shaky well before the goal. The goal came from another "nothing ball". Mccarthy and Sonko messed up and BANG, we were down to 10 man and under incredible pressure. The next 3 goals were just plain shocking. If you haven't seen any of them on the highlights yet, I mean REALLY SHOCKING. I thought I had seen Sunday League defending all season but this was the pits. Sonko and Smith were all over the place (how can we praise him when he was so outmuscled for the 3rd goal?) and our right side was (AS ALWAYS) being torn apart. Any lobbed ball into our area caused chaos in the defence. It was a complete JOKE. I could hear the Leeds fans from where they were----they couldn't stop laughing they were in stitches. A few of them were looking back at their phones (they'd obviously recorded the goals) and couldn't stop laughing at the debacle which is our defence. We are not just the laughing stock of the Championship,- we are the laughing stock of the league. THIS HAS TO STOP NOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Sign a RB NOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Sign 2 CB's NOW!!!!!!!!!!! SACK DEFENSIVE COACH NOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! SACK FITNESS COACH NOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! This has gone on far too long. We are a laughing stock and we have been TOO NICE for TOO LONG. When will this club learn????????????????????????????

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FornhamBlue added 20:09 - Jan 21 No point calling for Jewells head as long as you have Clegg in charge. Magilton replaced by Keane - improvement? Keane replaced by Jewell - improvement? So what next - bring back Duncan?! Can you recall under any other regime where a Manager was released by our Club and then had to take us to court to get their contract paid up? Falling out with our Landlords. Players leaving the club because of the way they have been treated - Healy, Murphy, Supple - McCauly maybe. All these people go off into the football world no doubt talking about bad experiences - our once proud reputation has long gone - at that is Cleggs fault (and Evans for not making the right decison now - maybe after the Olympics?!) And some clown was talking on here about the benefit of letting players before the end of their contract, essentially amortising their wages - not if you still pay the contract up in full you muppet!

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Premiertown added 20:09 - Jan 21 Tipping point reached?
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omuircheartaigh added 20:10 - Jan 21 21 points lost from winning positions. Jewell's failure to have any fitness coach in place at start of the season was a major flaw. This team's fitness is not adequate. The Manger's time must be up. Neither he or his coaching staff are succeeding here.
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petermorris added 20:13 - Jan 21 Priskin (h32) - what have you to say?
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FornhamBlue added 20:15 - Jan 21 If ME hasn't got the b*lls to get rid of Clegg then bring in Bryan Hamilton as Director of Football!!
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kerryblue added 20:17 - Jan 21 JEWELL OUT>WHOSE CONTRACT WILL YOU CANCEL NOW YOU HOPELESS CLOWN WORST MANAGER EVER AS FAR AS IM CONCERNED HASENT GOT A CLUE.
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StochesStotasBlewe added 20:18 - Jan 21 Jewll out, Clegg out, Hutchings out, McCarthy out. Evans, stop being a faceless owner, get a backbone, then get in FOOTBALL people to run OUR fast fading club. ENOUGH IS ENOUGH.
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DurhamTownFan added 20:18 - Jan 21 Listening to PJ's post-match interview, I felt sorry for him. You can't predict the kind of errors that led to all three goals. BUT, this KEEPS ON HAPPENING. We KEEP giving away soft goals aty crucial times in the games, and that tells me at least that something is very wrong with our mentality and our determination. Its up to the both the players AND PJ to correct this-PJ with motivational speeches and training drills, and the players by shaking themselves up a gear or two at important moments in the match. Like many, I am fast becoming disollusioned with our performances. We really are in a relegation scrap-make no bones about it. If we go down, things will get very tough for Town, and may stay that way for a long time (see: Forest, Charlton, Sheff Wed). I think the board will give PJ another 4-6 weeks. If we don't get 2-3 wins in that time, this alarming slump in form, energy and supporter enjoyment absolutely HAS to end.

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StowTractorBoy added 20:18 - Jan 21 There is a very thin dividing line between success and failure and after 70 minutes we looked very good team. A stupid error of judgement by McCarthy has without doubt cost us the match today. Why on earth he had to rush from his goal heaven knows but you knew that once we were down to 10 men that was it. McCarthy is another signing that has gone wrong but the ALB fans please get real he is hopeless as was again shown today. Send McCarthy back now PJ and you must sign 2 centre backs a right back and goalkeeper Loach who at least has some affinity to ITFC. Unlike others I would debate that there are 3 teams worse than us at present, Forest have doubled us, Doncaster outplayed us and Coventry have been excellent over the past 3 games. Lots of people are blaming Evans on here but he does not sign the players he merely pours the money in but it has not been spent wisely. I think PJ will survive the West Ham and Coventry matches but lose them both and the new Manager will again have to rely on the loan market when it opens, to get us out of this terrible mess.

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FornhamBlue added 20:21 - Jan 21 Don't kid yourself that for 70 minutes we were a very good team. We did OK and were holding our own against a very poor Leeds side who themselves are in the middle of a poor run. Must stick with Hyam, Drury, Martin & Scotland.
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ErikaTractor added 20:23 - Jan 21 Without radical change we are going to be saying goodbye to our championship status. Circus Defending once again. Thing is, the clowns have been playing for so long now that its not even funny anymore. JEWELL OUT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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petermorris added 20:24 - Jan 21 It's a huge scam.
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camposlocks added 20:31 - Jan 21 i supported Magilton 100%. I was saddened with the way ME treated him. After Keane arrived i still sang for super Jim getting threatened by tossers in the north stand along the way. This began me slowly not giving a f*!k about ITFC, So now i sit back on a saturday afternoon watching skysports news knowing that i havent wasted £70-£100 travelling down Ipswich. The only thing i miss is the Keane ITFC shirts. Hahaha.. Look at the squad Magilton left and what you have now, reserves and youth aswell. Even look at backroom staff. ITFC is note even fit for League 2.

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Ipswichbusiness added 20:31 - Jan 21 I didn't see the match. However, by the sound of it we were decent for about two thirds of it and then it all went badly wrong. OK that happens in football. The trouble is that it keeps happening to us. It has been going on for months with us conceding daft goals. Mr Jewell has been in charge for a year, he has signed most of the players and picked the team. Our form over the last three or four months has been relegation level. There is no sign of a change; even a couple of clean sheets would be nice. He seems to have no idea how to change it. Unless he can put it right quickly, there has to be a new manager.

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Taricco_Fan added 20:33 - Jan 21 Jewell and Clegg have made their beds, now they have to lie in them. Jewell needs to go on Monday morning, Clegg too. This club has lost it's soul and there's no way I'm returning to PR any time soon if this situation continues. Let's get in some people that care for the club and what it stands for.
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PSGBlue added 20:34 - Jan 21 Funny how these defensive errors don't happen to other teams week after week. Can't blame the keeper, PJ you are the one who let Fulop go and replaced him with a loanee who had to go back. Don't be surprised when Reading's reserve keeper stuffs it up, you bought him to Ipswich - Take some of the responsiblity PJ its your fault!
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itfctim1974 added 20:34 - Jan 21 always moaning about defensive errors, everyone apart from jewell the fool knows that our defence is crap and needs a complete overhaul! Jewell out Warnock in - stop the drop into league one now.
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planetblue_2011 added 20:43 - Jan 21 Is every goal keeper and centre back at this club doing this on purpose because this is getting ridiculous, its basicly happening every week. Its all you read every week, this club is getting a laughing stock. We need no dodgy loan keepers anymore we need to pay the cash for a decent number 1 and i mean DECENT!! To be honest I give up on centre backs. You won't beat mowbray, venus and mcgreal!! USELESS these players they should want to play for the club they play for. Us fans deserve more so BLOODY sort it out ITFC!!

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RetroBlue added 20:45 - Jan 21 Jewell ( and the Club) will pay a heavy, heavy price for not sorting out the keystone of the team , the DEFENCE, during the summer. PJ made minimal attempt to get in TWO CB's, a GK and a RB when a blind nan can see this is where he should have started his rebuilding!
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Drew added 20:46 - Jan 21 Calamitous defending? Really?!? At the end of the day Paul, you are the manager, you've had a year to bring in reinforcements, to bring in a coach to teach these idiots how to deal with a simple long ball and what not. The buck stops with you, and I'm afraid, you are just not good enough.
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RetroBlue added 20:46 - Jan 21 ....or even a "blind man" lol !
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sirburley added 20:49 - Jan 21 i just paid £50 for me and my boy to watch the west ham game,my crap wages and monthly outgoings dont allow me to go to many games a season,maybe 4 or 5 so i feel sorry for the fans who pay £400+ for a season ticket every year.Enough is enough,im no expert but to me its obvious,replace clegg with a football man ie royle,hamilton,venables etc,clear out the dead wood,invest in the youth and get in someone who is passionate about our club to manage it.We can all see it,why cant marcus evans see it?

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planetblue_2011 added 20:51 - Jan 21 Yes I do blame Jewell too!! Useless mangaments skills which is 0/10
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