Chief executive Simon Clegg paid tribute to Town’s 9,000-strong following at the Emirates Stadium for last night’s Carling Cup semi-final second leg and said it was a proud night for the club, despite the Blues falling to a 3-0 defeat and losing the tie 3-1 on aggregate.
Clegg was impressed with Town's largest travelling army since the trip to the San Siro to face Inter Milan in 2001: "I thought the fans were fantastic today and the players appreciated the support they were getting from the fans.
"It was disappointing in some regards because we came here with a one-goal lead and I thought the team did incredibly well to hold on for another hour. There was some good defensive play, but it wasn’t to be and two goals in quick succession like that hurts you badly.
"But the players were there in their own right and should be very proud of their achievement. I think it says a lot about the football club, they showed a lot of passion and they made the club proud and I hope they made the fans proud.
"It was a proud day for everyone at the club, the owner, myself and everyone. It was a great occasion. It’s an awesome stadium to play in and I think the boys raised their game, certainly for the first hour. They had a couple of chances, but it wasn’t to be.”
The Town chief says everyone at Portman Road now needs to concentrate on climbing the Championship: "We need to focus on the day job. Wembley was a fantastic dream and we were nearly there, but not on this occasion. Onwards and upwards and we’ll get back to the business of moving us up the league.”
Clegg flat-batted questions regarding the Blues’ transfer dealings, although he confirmed that two deals, understood to be the loan move for Jimmy Bullard and the £150,000 signing of Andy Drury from Luton, are close: "I think that we are near on a couple of situations and I would expect people to be hearing some movement on what our intentions are over the next couple of days.”
The chief executive says Town are conscious of Portsmouth target David Norris’s position — the midfielder is out of contract at the end of the season and can talk to other clubs having turned down his initial two-year offer from the Blues — with the 29-year-old’s wages appearing to be the sticking point, Town having been keen to reduce costs over the last year and with attendances down this season.
Clegg hopes the matter will be resolved in the near future with manager Paul Jewell set to meet with Norris and Gareth McAuley, who is also one of the 21 players whose terms are up in the summer, later this week: "We will talk responsibly with all the parties involved and get the situation sorted out sensibly. When the time is right, a statement will be made.”