Town's foray into the world of Twenty20 cricket ended in an honourable ‘draw' after ‘bad light' prevented their match against Ipswich and East Suffolk at Chantry Park from reaching a conclusion.
The cricket side batted first and scored 147 all out (18.5 overs, 7.35 runs per over) before the Blues amassed 145 for 13 (22 overs, 6.59 run per over) prior to the ‘darkness' persuading the umpires to take the players off.
Town's star performers were Alex Bruce, who won the Blues' Man of the Match award for his 4 for 24 and 20, and goalkeeper-coach Andy Rhodes, who followed an impressive wicketkeeping performance with a feisty 29 not out.
The evening proved a big success for Ipswich and East Suffolk with a healthy crowd in attendance, while it was a PR coup for the Blues with players happy to be photographed, chat and give out autographs throughout. Ipswich and East Suffolk hope the game can become an annual feature of pre-season.
Ipswich Town: Alex Bruce (MotM), Billy Clarke, Wayne Coughlan (ITFC Kitman), Jason De Vos, Dan Harding, Danny Haynes, Graham Howlett (ITFC Academy coach), Alan Lee, Jim Magilton, Andy Rhodes, Matt Richards, Gary Roberts, Jon Walters, Gavin Williams, David Wright.
Ipswich and East Suffolk: John Abbott, Derek Bloomfield, Paul Bugg, Adam Button, Gavin Driver, Tony Gayfer, Henry Hazelwood, Keith Howlett, Matt Howlett (MotM), Alex Marshall, Gautum Popli, Paul Roberts, Alex Watts.
Ipswich Town Bowling Figures
| O | M | R | W | Econ. | |
| David Wright | 2 | 0 | 20 | 1 | 10.00 |
| Matt Richards | 2 | 0 | 27 | 0 | 13.50 |
| Alex Bruce | 3 | 0 | 25 | 4 | 8.33 |
| Wayne Coughlan | 2 | 0 | 9 | 1 | 4.50 |
| Jim Magilton | 2 | 0 | 21 | 0 | 10.50 |
| Jason De Vos | 2 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 4.50 |
| Alan Lee | 2 | 0 | 16 | 2 | 8.00 |
| Dan Harding | 2 | 0 | 12 | 0 | 6.00 |
| Gavin Williams | 0.5 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 6.00 |
Ipswich Town Batting Scorecard
| G Howlett | c Popli b Button | 16 | |
| A Bruce | c Gayfer b Button | 20 | |
| D Wright | b M Howlett | 4 | |
| M Richards | b Abbott | 7 | |
| J Magilton | c Bloomfield b Abbott | 9 | |
| A Lee | b Abbott | 0 | |
| G Williams | b M Howlett | 7 | |
| G Roberts | b M Howlett | 0 | |
| J Walters | b Bugg | 1 | |
| D Harding | b Popli | 7 | |
| J De Vos | b Bugg | 2 | |
| B Clarke | b Bugg | 0 | |
| D Haynes | not out | 19 | |
| W Coughlan | b Driver | 8 | |
| A Rhodes | not out | 29 | |
| Extras | 17 | ||
| Total | 145 for 13 | ||
Get the fastest and most comprehensive Ipswich Town news service at ipswichtown.footballlatest.co.uk.