Boss Mick McCarthy hopes the Blues can build on Saturday’s 1-1 draw at Birmingham after the international break. Middlesbrough and Yeovil are at Portman Road for back to back home matches following the free weekend.

McCarthy said: “I’ve said to the guys, I think you need sometimes need something to stop, not a rot, but a losing streak.

“We’ve played well in every game for all the game except for the second half against Leeds, and even then we had loads of pressure and loads of corners, we were still going.

“The pleasing thing [on Saturday] was that we didn’t lose it. I’ve seen that happen before when teams have been dominant and then lose. So I’m delighted we didn’t.”

The Blues manager is pleased to be going into the break having picked up a draw rather than a fourth defeat in five league games.

“It’s much better, of course it is,” he said. “I’m encouraged again by the way we played. We’ve done enough to win three games there.

“You’ve all watched it, I hope you write it as such. We were excellent, I thought it was a really good performance.”

McCarthy has said he plans to give his players some time off during the break, while Tommy Smith and Elliott Hewitt are away with the New Zealand and Wales U21 squads respectively.

Meanwhile, academy director Bryan Klug watched Colchester’s 2-1 home defeat to Leyton Orient on Saturday, in which former Blue Kevin Lisbie scored the winner against another of his old clubs.

Also in action for the O’s was 20-year-old winger Moses Odubajo, who was previously eyed by Town in January, while Colchester midfielder Drey Wright, 18, son of ex-Blue Jermaine, who came on as a late sub, is starting to attract the attention of Championship clubs.

The summer transfer window closes at 11pm today but it seems likely to pass quietly at Portman Road with Mick McCarthy repeatedly having said he has no plans to add to his squad.

On Saturday, the Blues boss didn’t entirely rule out the possibility of someone making a deadline day move for Aaron Cresswell, although he felt it was unlikely.

Josh Carson now cannot join Hibernian, where he spent last week on trial, with the Scottish transfer window having closed on Saturday.

McCarthy previously said that Chris Kiwomya may be interested in taking the 20-year-old Northern Irishman to Notts County, where he has also recently spent time on trial.

Photo: Action Images

Mark added 07:51 - Sep 2 Come on ITFC, surprise us all and sign a new goal-scorer today!
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jas0999 added 07:57 - Sep 2 Mark - agreed! The lack of a natural goal-scorer has been the difference between 4 points and at least 8 - if not more to date!
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Michael11 added 08:32 - Sep 2 Will be glad when 11pm comes and goes with Cresswell still an Ipswich player. It's normally boring being an Ipswich fan on deadline day! Two winnable home games now, if we can get 6 points then the league table will look much better.
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Keaneish added 09:01 - Sep 2 Agreed. Kevin Doyle on a season long loan is all I want to give us a natural left winger or another option up front.
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LankHenners added 09:17 - Sep 2 Agree Keaneish, I think a natural left midfielder is in order (rather than playing our centre-mids on the left). I've always said that we don't need a 20-goal-a-season striker as long as the whole team chips in with goals. I still stand by that but what I think we do need, considering that we are suspect to not being that creative, is a striker who can score goals (or at least test the 'keeper) from nothing: they can collect the ball at their feet, turn and fire it on target with minimal space. McGoldrick is a good finisher but is not the quickest and in my opinion seems to like to have a lot of space for him to shoot.

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brittaniaman added 09:19 - Sep 2 It is unfortunate that Marcus Evans has had his fingers burnt by the 2 previous managers, in which he has had to pay off these so called stars to leave,, and that was a fortune too, but we have also got a £1.5 mill player sitting on the bench where he will never get Fit ???? and a year of his contract has gone already ???? MM had the chance to put him on for a half hour on Sat. but no he had to put Edwards on instead who definitely needs the rest !!!!!!!! So to wrap it up do not expect anything to happen here today, except a training session !!

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NSL added 13:41 - Sep 2 You can build on that Mick by getting 10 - 12 points out of the next 5 games. Boro (H), Yeovil (H), Wigan (A), Brighton (A) and Barnsley (H). Perhaps we'll slip up at Wigan but should really expect no less than 3 points against each of the others, three of which are home games and Brighton are nothing special this season. If we don't achieve that then a quarter of the season will have passed and we'll be fully set up for mediocrity or possibly worse for the remainder fo the season! COYB

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Jimmy86 added 15:00 - Sep 2 Cant believe we not doing any business on transfer deadline day!!! The lack of backing by evans is pathetic and having only spent 20k is nothing short of a disgrace. Dont mean to be negative, but it clear we need a striker
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Keaneish added 15:42 - Sep 2 Not sure where you got your fixture list NSL but mi e says Brighton at home followed by Derby away! That said, I still fancy 10 points from the next 15.
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LankHenners added 15:49 - Sep 2 Wigan and Brighton the toughest tests next month but should be winning the rest and at least a point against the other two. We've got two weeks to sort ourselves out, let's hope Mick, TC and the rest make the most of it!
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Ipswich121 added 17:13 - Sep 2 Brittania man: I watched the U21s against Cardiff and Taylor looked incredibly slow, off the pace and a shadow of the player we played 1.5 million for(however, marriott I thought was a lot more impressive), I understand it will take time and I understand why mick has not played him much recently, if he was playing, just not very well then the fans would get on his back and we might never see that player play well again, so I understand MMs judgement completely on this one. I think others need to trust mick too. .....Although I still want us to sign a goalscorer today but like most people I agree it seems unlikely.

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Bown added 17:28 - Sep 2 billy sharp is coming to ipswich town on loan
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LankHenners added 17:40 - Sep 2 Bown - and you know this how?
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Bown added 17:45 - Sep 2 inside source
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NSL added 20:10 - Sep 2 LOL god knows where I got my fixture list from. But looking at the games we are really playing we have a chance to go on a good run. Maybe the first 5 games will not define our season but the next 5 surely will!!
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TimmyH added 20:17 - Sep 2 Makes me laugh when people look at the fixture list and believe we're going to get umpteen points from a certain amount of games, does it ever work out like that? No! it's the Championship.
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