Boss Roy Keane was pleased with the performance and the result as his fifth-placed Blues beat Crystal Palace 2-1 at Selhurst Park. The Town manager felt Andros Townsend’s second half red card for a high boot was harsh.
Recalling last season’s corresponding fixture in which Jon Stead was harshly sent off, Keane said: "A good result, a decent performance. The big talking point, a bit like here last year, was the sending off and the first goal.
"I thought Andros was very unlucky to be sent off," the Town boss continued. "He’s not that type of player, sometimes the referee is looking to even things up. We made it hard for ourselves, but I thought we deserved it and we looked dangerous. It was a tough game.”
Keane feels his side weren’t at their best: "We could have played better today, we should have killed the game. We got involved in arguments which lifted their players and their crowd. When the game was 2-0 we should have tried to kill it off, but that will come with experience for the younger boys.”
The Blues boss says it was a risk to play Grant Leadbitter after the midfielder received a blow to the ankle in last week’s game against Burnley: "We took a gamble on it and if there’s any reaction on it tomorrow he’ll have to miss Tuesday’s game at Crewe, but it was an important game for us and he’s a big player for us, which we saw today with his goal and his overall performance.”
Keane says there is likely to be news on Jon Stead’s future before Monday with the club having accepted a bid from Bristol City, who are also on the verge of signing Bournemouth's Brett Pitman. Stead has been in talks with the Robins and other clubs this week, having previously turned down moves to Ashton Gate, Blackpool and Cardiff.
The Blues boss says Town are unlikely to appeal against Andros Townsend’s red card in the wake of the appeal against Stead's dismissal last season when an extra game was added to his suspension, but no final decision has yet been made.
Former Town manager George Burley thought his Palace team were the better side but had no complaint regarding Claude Davis’s red card: "The game hinged on one incident, but we’ve got no one to blame but ourselves.
"Overall, I thought we were the better team, I thought we passed it better. Ipswich with one up and made it difficult for us, but we were patient, passed it very well, showed some good passing movement through midfield and wide.
"Some of the younger players were exceptional, so overall I was pleased with the performance, but if you lose that discipline, as far as the sending off and the penalty are concerned, against a very good team like Ipswich, you’re going to struggle, and that was the case. There are no excuses, it was a red card and a penalty.”
Burley also had some sympathy with Andros Townsend: "For me it looked a bit harsh but I’m sure someone else would have got a better view. It was a challenge on the goalkeeper, but I thought it was a bit harsh.”