Chaplin: He's Been a Good Boy So Far!
Wednesday, 25th Oct 2023 06:00

First-time father Conor Chaplin is enjoying the extra responsibility that comes with the role after welcoming a son into the world last week.

Chaplin, 26, admitted: “It has been amazing, really, really good and I’m loving it. I’m a hands-on dad, changing nappies and all the rest of it. I love all of it, to be fair, and I’ve been getting some good sleep, so he’s been a good boy so far.”

Five-goal Chaplin, who is Town’s joint-leading marksman alongside Nathan Broadhead this season, added: “It was good timing by my girlfriend. It couldn’t have been any better really because I didn’t miss any games and it was the perfect birth with no problems.

“The club have been very co-operative as well, leaving it up to me regarding time off. The manager and all the staff have been amazing, allowing me to come in for training when it suits me.

“I went in a couple of days after he was born because I wanted to get going again and there wasn’t much more that I could do to help. For the first few days, I just made sure I went into the training ground as late as possible and then left as soon as I could to get home. It has all been very smooth.”

Chaplin also revealed that the baby’s arrival will not affect his plans to remain at Portman Road. “That was the plan anyway,” he said. “Suffolk doesn’t change too much and it hasn’t changed my thought process. It’s a special place for us with the success we’ve had at the club and it just means that we’re going to stay as long as we can here.”

Turning his attention to tonight’s visit to Bristol City, where Chaplin will be seeking his third goal in as many games, he will also be hoping Town can continue their impressive start to life back in English football’s second tier.

They are sitting second in the table, five points behind leaders Leicester but with a game in hand following the postponement of Friday’s visit to Rotherham because of flooding in the area.

Kieran McKenna and his players have rewritten the record books after winning nine, drawing one and losing one of their 11 fixtures so far, which represents the best-ever start in the Championship by a newly-promoted side.

“Yes, it has obviously been very good,” he continued. “We’re all going well and we’re in a really confident rhythm at the moment, so long may that continue.

“It’s not just been plain sailing this season and we’re not naïve enough to think that, but we’re about a quarter of the way through the league programme and there’s no doubt we have made a good start. But that’s all it is at this stage and we have to make sure we continue in the same way.”

Asked if we have yet reached the point in the season when the league table starts to mean something, Chaplin replied: “Probably not yet, really. It’s important to get points on the board, no matter where we are in the season, ideally at the start and the back end. In terms of the table taking shape, I think it will be a little bit longer before that happens.

“We’ve not long had the summer transfer window and we’ve got the January transfer window still to come. That, along with many other factors, can play a major part in who finishes where. It can sometimes take 20 or so games for players to settle in and gel as a team, so there is plenty of time for teams who have maybe made a slower start to climb the table.

“We’re very fortunate that we’ve had an excellent time with our manager since he came in more than 18 months ago now. We’ve been doing the same things from one week to the next in training and from one game to another, and that’s what has put us in a good place, which is obviously something we are looking to continue.”

Tonight’s kick-off will be preceded by a minute’s applause to honour the memory of former Manchester United and England star Sir Bobby Charlton, who died on Saturday at the age of 86 following a battle with dementia, leaving Sir Geoff Hurst as the only survivor of England’s 1966 World Cup-winning side.

Chaplin said: “Sir Bobby’s football career was obviously before my time but I have seen a lot of him, particularly some of the great goals he scored for Manchester United and England, on the telly. He is undoubtedly one of the greatest, if not the greatest, English players of all time.

“It was an incredibly sad day for football to learn of his passing. He was such a leading personality for such a long time that he deserves the respect of everyone and a great send-off from the fans who enjoyed his huge contribution to the game in this country and also further afield.”

Photo: Action Images/Reuters

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