Town boss Paul Jewell has confirmed that the Blues could look to try to sign Portsmouth defender or midfielder Joel Ward in the summer. The 22-year-old, one the Blues’ three Pompey targets in January, spoke to the Town manager last week and was interested in what he had to say but the crisis club ultimately decided against allowing any more of their players to move on.
Jewell said: "We spoke with Joel Ward on Sunday and the agent did say that if they got a result on Tuesday Portsmouth would probably keep the squad in the hope of getting out of trouble because they’ve got some good players and it’s not all lost for them.
"That’s something that we might try and revisit for the long-term for next season.”
In January Jewell also tried to sign keeper Stephen Henderson, who is now with West Ham, and central defender Jason Pearce, who may also be a player the Blues look at again in the close season.
The Town boss says the talks with Ward went well: "He was really interested. He was impressed with the set-up and what we had to say.
"We’d like to bring him here, he can play in a lot of positions and he’s young. But there’s a lot of work to do on that.
"It’s up to the clubs to come to an arrangement and I’m sure they’ll be a few other clubs trying to get him as well.”
As for exits, Jewell says the club received no interest on deadline day: "I don’t think Ipswich Town’s phone number is in the book because no one rang us!”