x

Jewell Laughs Off Play-Off Questions - Ipswich Town News

Town boss Paul Jewell wasn’t getting carried away after the Blues recorded their fourth win in a row by beating Cardiff 3-0 on Saturday, despite receiving the inevitable questions about the play-offs at the post-match press conference. The weekend win saw Town into 16th in the division, 11 points behind Birmingham in sixth.

Asked about Town’s chances of making the play-offs given their recent form, Jewell laughed: "I was waiting for that! Ten minutes it’s taken for someone to ask about the play-offs!

"We’ve been in a relegation fight for a long time, since December when we lost seven games in a row.

"We’re trying to put as much daylight between ourselves and the bottom of the league and take every game on its own merits. The only thing on our minds now is trying to get a result at Brighton.”

The Town manager knows that his side have gifted opposition teams points all too frequently this season but says there’s nothing that can be done about that now: "There’s no point in looking back. It doesn’t matter, it’s happened and we have to learn from the good experiences and the bad experiences, try to keep our feet on the ground and try and see games out.

"We’ve had periods in games this year where we’ve come under the cosh and conceded. But in the last four games, when we’ve come under the cosh, we’ve actually got stronger and there’s a lot more desire in our team at the minute, and that’s down to confidence.”

Jewell was delighted for Michael Chopra, who scored his 12th goal of the campaign, his fifth in four games and his second of the season against his former club: "He’s had a stuttering start to his career here for one reason or another but he’s starting to get the sparkle back in his game and it was pleasing to see him score a goal and his industry and his workrate is good.

"He’s got 12 goals for us, which is a decent return for someone who hasn’t played an awful lot of games this year and probably hasn’t played to his best, but he’s starting to get there now.”

In addition to being pleased with the spirit in his squad, Jewell also cited the importance of the club’s fans: "I think it's there for everyone to see.

"I think the supporters deserve a lot of credit for that because we’ve put in some abject performances at home especially, and they never turned on the team.

"They stuck with us and you can feel the atmosphere coming back at Portman Road where the fans are excited and appreciate the efforts of the players.

"But I’ve got to tell you, the players and the staff appreciate the effort of the supporters every bit as much because they’ve got us through a really, really difficult time.”

Jewell admits that there are good signs for the future in the current youthful side but was at pains to point out that there’s still a lot of work to do: "We’ve got more youth in the team at the moment but it’s important we just keep our feet on the floor.

"We look to improve all the time, we’ve started building for next season already, we’ve not given up on this season, but we’re not getting complacent either, thinking that everything’s hunky dory.

"There’s lots to be improved on but I have to say the players deserve a lot of credit because they’ve come through a really tough time.”

Elsewhere, former Blues boss Roy Keane has been linked with the Wolves manager's job which was until recently his old sparring partner Mick McCarthy's.

What to read next:

Young: Changes Will Be Talked About But It's a Squad Game
Town full-back Ashley Young has dismissed suggestions that seven changes to the Blues’ starting XI was a step too far after the 3-0 defeat to Charlton Athletic at Portman Road.
McKenna: Our Reaction Was Nowhere Near Good Enough
Boss Kieran McKenna admitted the Blues’ 3-0 home defeat to Charlton Athletic was a “terrible result” and that his team’s reaction to going behind was “nowhere near good enough”.
Palmer Set For Scans
Town boss Kieran McKenna says keeper Alex Palmer will undergo scans on the injury which forced him off in the first half of this evening’s 3-0 home defeat to Charlton.
Ipswich Town 0-3 Charlton Athletic- Player Ratings and Reports
If you saw the match, please give us your player ratings and a mini match report.
Ipswich Town 0-3 Charlton Athletic - Match Report
Town suffered their biggest home Championship loss since April 2018 as newly promoted Charlton Athletic netted three times in the second half to shock the Blues 3-0. The home side had been the better side in the first half, albeit with the visitors having two of the period’s three best chances, but the Blues fell apart in the second after Sonny Carey had given the Addicks the lead on 52 with Macaulay Gillesphey and Miles Leaburn adding goals on 55 and 64 to inflict the Town’s first Portman Road defeat of the season and their biggest Championship loss on their own turf since the 4-0 loss to Aston Villa more than seven years ago.
Ipswich Town 0-0 Charlton Athletic - Half-Time
The Blues and Charlton remain locked at 0-0 at half-time at Portman Road, Chuba Akpom having hit the bar for the home side.
Gray Rejoins Braintree on Emergency Loan
Young Blues keeper Henry Gray has rejoined National League Braintree Town on an emergency loan.
Seven Changes as Blues Host Charlton
Town boss Kieran McKenna has made seven changes for this evening’s game against Charlton Athletic at Portman Road.
Ipswich Town v Charlton Athletic - Chatroom Open
Join us in the chatroom to discuss the game as it unfolds with hundreds of other Town fans.
[Podcast] Blue Monday - New Podcast Now Online
A new podcast from the Blue Monday team is now available.