Town fans left Portman Road disappointed after Plymouth grabbed a late leveller to claim a 1-1 draw from yesterday’s top-of-the-table clash at Portman Road, but centre-back Cameron Burgess says nothing in the race for promotion will be defined by the result.

Wes Burns gave Ipswich the lead in the 62nd minute with a thunderous strike, but Town couldn't hold out for the win with on-loan Norwich full-back Bali Mumba scoring a deflected 93rd-minute equaliser.

The result leaves Ipswich third, seven points behind the first-placed Pilgrims with a game in hand, while a 1-0 win for Sheffield Wednesday away to Wycombe means the gap to second has grown to four points. However, Burgess is resolute that Ipswich are still well in the fight.

Despite the disappointment of the result and the Blues failing to make up ground on the Pilgrims, Burgess says the outcome of the promotion race won’t have been defined by yesterday's game.

“One hundred per cent,” he insisted. “It never is at this time of year. I think it's about putting yourself in a position come the last few months of the season and that's our aim, and that's what we do one game at a time, the old cliché.

“A good training week next week and go again. I'm sure if we keep doing that and keep doing the right things, we'll be there or thereabouts.

“Peaks and troughs and swings and roundabouts and all the old sayings. It's really going to come down to just knuckling down, taking it one game at a time, putting in the right performances, and they give you the points at the end of the day.

“That's what all the teams at the top have done so far and it's just about keeping doing what we do well, and we'll see where it leaves us at the end of the season.”

Burgess was left especially frustrated with Mumba’s late leveller having deflected off him on its way into the top corner.

“That's two that's come off me now and gone into the top corner,” he recalled ruefully, Fleetwood’s similarly last-gasp equaliser having also caught him on its way through.

“But that's football. Sometimes it goes over the stands and sometimes it goes in the top corner, and you just have to take it on the chin, I suppose. It's just hard to take when it's in 90-odd minutes. That's the hard part to take.

“You try and do the right thing and sometimes it comes back to bite you a little bit and a bit of bad luck, and it goes in the top corner.

“It is very frustrating when you're the team that's leading and then you concede a late goal, and it's happened to us a couple of times this season.

“Another deflected shot that goes in the top corner. Overall frustrated, but we know it was a tough game overall and a bitter pill to swallow, but there are a lot of positives to playing against a top team like that.

“It was a great advert for the league, to be honest. Two top teams going at each other and it was a great game to be involved in. Two teams really going at each other and not holding anything back, and I think that lasted the full game.”

Unusually at Portman Road this season, Town found themselves up against a team looking to take the game to them.

“Something a little bit different to what’s happened in recent weeks, but not something we weren’t prepared for,” he added.

“We’ve seen that in the first game down at their place and we knew what they were going to bring. So it was something that we were definitely prepared for. But it was a nice one to be involved in.”

"Regarding the conditions with rain falling very heavily from late in the first half into the second, he said: “It’s the same for both teams. More so the wind than the rain to be honest, a swirling wind and trying to defend some of the balls in the air, it was difficult to read at times.

“A lot times when the pitch it wet it does make the ball move a lot quicker which seems to suit us as well and I suppose a team like Plymouth who also like to play football. Again, the conditions are the same for both teams.”

Burgess paid tribute to the atmosphere at Portman Road with the crowd a sell-out 29,069, the highest since May 2015 and the club’s biggest ever attendance in the third tier.

“A lot of things were a blur in that game with the atmosphere and the occasion and things like that. It just kind of flew past, to be honest,” the 27-year-old admitted.

“It was brilliant coming out of the tunnel. It was a special occasion to come out and see all the numbers and everywhere you looked there wasn't an empty seat. A great game to be involved in and proud to be involved in it.”

The noise hit its apex when Burns scored: “Some strike, wasn't it? He can certainly kick a ball hard, that's for sure. I don't think there's anyone stopping that. But a great finish and a great goal.

“Honestly, you couldn't hear much. Even talking to your teammate next to you, you really had to shout loud to get messages across. But that's what we're all here for and that's what we want to be involved in, and it was great to play in front of.

“Everyone has come to this club to enjoy that atmosphere. It's brilliant to play in front of and I know the fans know that, and they've definitely made their voices heard today.”

Photo: TWTD

Saxonblue74 added 09:59 - Jan 15 Couldn't agree more. It never ceases to amaze me how quickly perspective is lost by some.
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Suffolkboy added 10:05 - Jan 15 Of course he's got a point or two ; BUT the road ahead might be clearer if we could learn to add defensive certainty to our games . Naturally there's bad luck from time to time ,and frankly it's no more than we expect that the squad knuckle down in training ! Cliches are just that – we need to see greater resolution throughout the whole of a game with focus and concentration from one and ALL right the way to the final whistle ! Come on boys , get it right – you've become extra fit , much better footballers and enthuse us supporters dramatically – please turn 50/50 situations to our advantage and regularly put on the board the 3 points we crave . COYB

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Nomore4 added 10:27 - Jan 15 Every year without fail we hear this….every year we fail. Maybe…..we haven't been good enough, we need to improve massively if we want to achieve our targets….might change our fortunes. Less b@@@@@@t more facts.
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KMcBlue added 10:48 - Jan 15 Keep saying that until we are not promoted in May...
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Bazza8564 added 11:00 - Jan 15 One goal leads are always going to leave us on a knife-edge and whilst I agree with people who talked about Whittaker coming on FB last night saying "we don't need forwards we need defenders" I cant help feeling our inability to kill some games off this season is going to haunt us. Personally I would rather go into injury time with a 2 or 3 goal lead because we've got the best attacking unit in the league than try to defend a 1 goal lead with expensive defenders.....

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HopefulBlue69 added 11:06 - Jan 15 You forgetting Charlton Bazza.... The team need to have the mental toughness to believe we deserve the win and not having the fingers crossed and praying to the football gods that we keep them out in the final few minutes...
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ArnieM added 11:23 - Jan 15 No very true , nothing is defined this time of year. But what is glaringly obvious to most by now us our inability to defend a 1-0 lead (or higher!). We can't defend balls into our box. FACT!
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TimmyH added 11:38 - Jan 15 Correct nothing is defined but the trend of current matches is seeing us being overtaken by Wednesday and slowly being caught up by the likes of Derby and Bolton...a lot of water to flow under the bridge and going by history over the last decade or so Ipswich are largely poorer 2nd half of the season. Worrying thing also for some reason Ipswich what ever side whatever manager over the years have not been mentally tough...shudder the thought when the pressure really comes on March onwards.

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Ipswichbusiness added 11:54 - Jan 15 He is correct that one game doesn't make a season and that nothing is won in January. However, the League can be lost months before May and we seem to be making life very difficult for ourselves. Incidentally, what has happened to George Edmundson? Earlier in the season he was a regular pick, now he can't even get into the squad.
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anzum added 13:16 - Jan 15 A slice of reality for those feeling down after yesterday's draw. Town still clear 2nd favourites for league 1 with the bookies. 11-8 shef wed, 7-4 Ipswich & 9-2 Plymouth. Bet many wouldn't believe that.
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TimmyH added 13:29 - Jan 15 Ipswichbusiness - agree! same here thinking about Edmundson yesterday, he hasn't started for yonks and has certainly played second fiddle to Burgess. He started the season slowly and made some mistakes and was dropped but then came back in and was playing much better and played little since! strange.
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Linkboy13 added 13:31 - Jan 15 If we fail to get promoted do people on here think McKenna has under achieved bearing in mind the financial resources he's got at his disposal. I like Mark Ashdon but some people think he's God his signings have been ok but not all have been successful. What ever way you look at it the team is lacking in some department Ipswich teams in general seem to lack back bone or the ability to grind out a result. If we keep drawing to many games we might be struggling to hold on to a play off place.

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ArnieM added 13:36 - Jan 15 Not at all. I think we are very much Work-in-progress under KMc… it's only been a year. We need to be realistic. The squad is not complete in my view.
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Stato added 21:14 - Jan 15 Any talk of sacking McKenna is silly.any talk of him being a 3,rd try to get us promoted is equally silly. Further signings will come during January and thankfully we will buy our way out of McKenna's management shortcomings. Hopefully by the time we are in the championship he might realise that playing the same formation at home to the rubbish teams as you do away to Sheff We'd is not cutting edge management. Rotating the top 3 EVERY week while NEVER rotating his back 8 has also backfired on us and also needs a different approach. I could go on about conceding late goals and questioning the signing of injured players and why KM said the Cook squad was too big but his squad is even bigger but the fan boys won't have it. That's what he said it's a fact but nobody other than me is quoting it

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OliveR16 added 21:25 - Jan 15 I think that, given their captain was suspended and a star player recalled, Plymouth were brilliant (even their new signings didn't have tight muscles . . .). As well as being at home we had other advantages including financial so this was not a good day for us IMO. Plymouth are better, Wednesday are now better and Derby may be soon. The walk in the park is over, guys. But I'm glad I'm not a Pompey fan . . .

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ChrisFelix added 22:37 - Jan 15 I agree promotion is not achieved in January. But it is over 46 games & our recent record of 6 draws & 3 wins from the last 10 games isn't exactly promotion winning form
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dirtydingusmagee added 05:19 - Jan 16 if we dont go up, my fear would be losing McKenna, We need him regardless, We all want to be out of this league, but it may not happen this season, if that is the case [fingers crossed its not] we dont want to be starting all over again with new manager, new squad, new ideas.weve been on that roundabout . Mc Kenna is good enough ,we need to keep him on board . COYB, HALF THE SEASON STILL TO PLAY.

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bobble added 07:33 - Jan 16 We should have spent a mozza on a super goalie and possibly a brilliant defender///
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KiwiTractor added 08:38 - Jan 16 Unfortunately I disagree. Everything we have done recently makes me believe we will lose in the playoffs. We are mentally weak.
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billlm added 09:49 - Jan 16 Kiwi tractor, have to agree with that
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ArnieM added 11:34 - Jan 16 We've ALWAYS been a mentally weak club , even under Burley play off years. What was it , success at fourth attempt?
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BerksBlue15 added 11:57 - Jan 16 At the start of the year we'd have taken the spot we're in so we can't lose sight of that, we're four off auto promotion with Sheffield still to come to us, but I think there are only a few more games like this before people start to worry. Plenty of teams we've gifted points to and not sure how we stop that becoming a habit. A few that stick out: Sheff Wed away (2-0 up with 15 to play) Charlton away (2-0 up and 4-2 up) Fleetwood home (96th min equaliser) Plymouth (93rd min equaliser) Turn all those games into wins and that table looks very different: Town 59 Plymouth 57 Sheff W 54 We'll get there, but really need to demolish Oxford on Saturday to make a statement and get back to winning ways. Sheffield don't look like losing any time soon and Derby starting to click behind us. Let's not let this great start to the season slip away. Keep the faith. COYB

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Nobbysnuts added 12:08 - Jan 16 No but it can certainly be lost...so buck your ideas up or it will be another season of disappointment and excuses... our current points per game ratio is anything but promotion form.....watch out for Derby they are creeping up on us.....
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Carberry added 12:37 - Jan 16 This is a lame football cliche, that he has heard managers and team-mates spout and probably been told to say. Today (and other days) was the difference between 3 points and 1, they don't scrub off all the points in April and start again when it really matters, the dropped points are having an impact on our position, chances of automatic promotion and confidence. It's an excuse managers roll out at the beginning of the season while waiting for the team to 'gel'. And slightly worrying that a progressive manager like McK endorses this kind of BS.

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bobbyramsey added 12:42 - Jan 16 Stupid thing to say, it's almost as if points dropped at this time of year don't actually count towards the total in May.
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