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Jewell Pleased With Away Point at Brighton - Ipswich Town News

Blues boss Paul Jewell was pleased with a point after drawing 1-1 away at Brighton but admitted to being disappointed that his side couldn’t hold on after going ahead in the first half through Daryl Murphy.

Jewell said: "Obviously you’re disappointed when you’re winning 1-0, but they’re a good team, Brighton, like most teams in this league.

"They have a way of playing which is very difficult to stop and I thought we stopped that for long periods and frustrated them.

"We kept our shape really well and counter-attacked excellently in the first half especially and we should have been 2-0 up. We had a wonderful opportunity at the start of the second half, their keeper made a great save from Daryl Murphy.

"They scored the goal, they had a lot of pressure, which they will have here, but I thought we stood up to the task well.”

The Blues boss says his team’s defending has improved in the last couple of matches: "We’ve conceded goals from set plays and stuff this season and we’ve taken a lot of flak and we can’t hide away from that, but I think the lads have shown in the last two games that the spirit is there, we just need to get that victory and I’m sure we’ll be on our way.”

Jewell was pleased to see Daryl Murphy net his first goal since he returned for his third loan spell but thought he could have netted at least one more.

He also had praise for his captain, the creator of Murphy’s goal: "Daryl scored a great goal and could have had a couple more.

"I thought Carlos Edwards was outstanding. For someone allegedly of 34, he looks like an 18-year-old. I thought he was brilliant tonight, Carlos.

"I thought the rest of the team dug in there and at times when we had to show greater aptitude and determination.”

The Town manager was happier with Jay Emmanuel-Thomas’s display: "I thought tonight he put in a good shift.”

Guirane N’Daw was one of Town’s stand-out performers with the Senegalese international settling into the side.

Jewell said: "It’s difficult. In the middle of the park, it’s a battle at the moment, but I thought we looked a bit more compact tonight and on the break at times we made really good opportunities at a difficult place to come.”

The Blues boss said Michael Chopra was replaced in the second half as he was tired: "Playing up front on your own is a difficult task and he hasn’t trained fully, he’s had two training sessions since we played Charlton. He was never going to play the 90 minutes.”

Jewell added that midfielder Luke Hyam is a concern for Saturday’s home game against Cardiff City: "I think Luke is a doubt for the weekend. He got a knee in his back on Saturday and they can take a while to settle down.”

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