Stephen Hunt's second-half freekick saw Town's U21s to a 1-1 draw with Sheffield Wednesday at Portman Road on Monday evening.

Free agents Jack Collison and Darren Ambrose started alongside Hunt, Bartosz Bialkowski and Tyrone Mings, a Crystal Palace target earlier in the day.

Manager Mick McCarthy was present to run the rule over Collison and Ambrose, while Hunt continued his comeback after his calf injury.

Youngster Darren McQueen should have hit the target early on but dragged his left-foot shot wide, while visiting keeper Joe Wildsmith parried Alex Henshall's drive to safety later in the first half.

Town keeper Bialkowski was forced into a good save down low to keep Rafa Floro's dangerous freekick out, a save made tricky by the driving rain that engulfed Portman Road during the opening period.

Hunt struck shortly before the hour mark with a fierce left-footed effort after Ambrose had tapped a freekick to him, but Wednesday equalised five minutes later when Mani Dieseruvwe cut in and his shot deflected off Matt Clarke and wrong-footed the stranded Bialkowski.

Town - who lost Mings to a knee injury 14 minutes from the end - continued to press for a winner but a draw was probably a fair result.

Ambrose saw more of the ball than Collison, and although both would have been happy to get valuable match time, they played the full 90 minutes, neither really stood out against a very youthful Owls side.

McQueen's pace in attack was a constant threat, as were Henshall's runs at the Wednesday defence.

U21s: Bialkowski, Robinson, Mings (Kenlock 76), Collison, Sowunmi (Willbye 81), Clarke, Hunt, Ambrose, McQueen, Patterson (McLoughlin 81), Henshall. Unused: Marsden, Galvin.

Sheffield Wednesday: Wildsmith, Young, Floro, Beatson, De Havilland, Sanders, Stobbs, Meadows, Dieseruvwe, Croasdale, Betra. Subs: Tracy, McDonagh, Foster, Law, O'Grady.

Photo: Action Images

rambohambo added 21:44 - Sep 1 Mick get ur finger out of ur dirt hole and make us fans smile for something this transfer window has been a joke , bcoz ur tactics are far off making any town fan happy
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suffolkpunchdrunk added 21:44 - Sep 1 Is that the grim reaper behind the old fella?
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jas0999 added 21:45 - Sep 1 Shame. Sounds like Collison and ambrose are not the answer. I'm sure mick and the club have other options lined up. After all, squad is woefully small.
2

bluefeast added 21:51 - Sep 1 Hmm why was MM even there on deadline day watching players who are not the answer ,whats going on with our scouting system ,where are the lower league signings ,where is the creativity ,where is the flair and where is the fun , its entertainment we want , not dull and duller
2

patthegimp added 21:58 - Sep 1 Henshall, Bru, Bishop,Clarke , McQueen- not too bad for now
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patthegimp added 21:58 - Sep 1 Henshall, Bru, Bishop,Clarke , McQueen- not too bad for now
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Monkey_Blue added 21:59 - Sep 1 jas0999 Its a little harsh to write both of them off on the basis of one game...probably their only 90 mins for how many weeks? Collisons knee is a worry and Ambrose appears to have lost his spark for a long time, his ability will still be there and maybe mick can get more out of him, but his last good spell was at Palace.
2

Surco72 added 22:00 - Sep 1 If Ambrose and Collison are worse than Tabby and Nouble who both played for us Saturday they may as well retire . Anyone who watched game got a report?
1

budgieplucker added 22:24 - Sep 1 I don't know who James Ager is but a very very poor match report. Ambrose did stand out in the first half and was Town's best player by a mile playing from a central midfield role. Yes he did fade in the second half. McQueen far too lightweight. Henshall very good in spells but for me not ready for a full 90 minutes and is destined to share a slot with Cameron Stewart I feel. Good strike by Hunty but not sure he really offers anything that we currently don't have with other first team squad members. I am not necessarily suggesting Ambrose is the answer but he still is a very intelligent and talented footballer and offers far more than somebody like Hunt. When Darren returned before on loan (under Magilton I think) he really disappointed. I don't see him as a winger but unless we have anybody else lined up (Jonny Williams) I think Darren has more to offer as a squad player than some premiership youngster. On tonight's performance Collison would have great difficulty in dislodging Skuse or Hyam out of the side. Mings was going through the motions. Patterson had a few nice touches but we didn't have anyone to really lead the line or make runs into the channels. This makes it difficult for the midfield. Clarke looked assured in the centre back role and Sowunmi provides an athletic partner who looks like he may be another to emerge in the not too distant future. Part of the disappointment of these games is that the Town sides are too experimental and we don't seem to have a brand of football across the club and need more firepower in forward positions.

4

Lennyboy added 22:39 - Sep 1 I was there tonight and was a little disappointed in Collison. I thought he looked only to pass either back or a square ball. He picked up a little in the second half and played a few forward balls but as budgieplucker has said, he did not stand out. Both he and Ambrose were guilty of school boy errors in going for the same ball on occasions. Mings looked all at sea at times and this was the worst performance I've seen from him. One factor was the appalling weather during the first half, which may explain why nobody seemed to stand out. All in all, we do need to start to spot talent elswhere and I too question the quality of our scouts.

3

Monkey_Blue added 22:41 - Sep 1 Maybe people forget that Ambrose is only 30. I think anyone who'd been at Birmingham the last couple of years may have suffered a confidence dip. His ability wont have diminished. I was there for his debut at Arsenal and also can recall when I played in a football aid game at PR when everyone was asking about Bent, Paul Goddard saying Ambrose was the one with the most ability in the youths. If the wages aren't too high and he's motivated he could be the creative player we lack. I think he's different to what we have, where collision is in a similar mould to what we have...he certainly isn't a creative player.

2

BrettenhamBlue added 06:38 - Sep 2 Where did this match report actually come from? Ambrose was brilliant and gave a MOM performance. His running, crossing and technical ability stood out above the rest of the team. When was the last time we saw an Ipswich player beat 5 players with a superb solo run? His work rate off the ball was really good too. Outstanding player and really showed he has a lot left in the engine. Easily our best midfield player on the night, but made a couple of basic errors in the second half. Collison didn't have a great game. Maybe he just had an off night. Tabb/Skuse would be above him in the pecking order. Reminds me a lot of leadbitter.

1

tractorboybig added 09:01 - Sep 2 so, we have a creative midfield player and a dour defensive midfield player. I wonder which one mick will choose?
1

brian_a_mul added 10:49 - Sep 2 How bad is Mings injury?
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