Boss Mick McCarthy says he and assistant Terry Connor have been working on improving the attacking side of midfielder Luke Hyam's game in training. And the duo’s efforts at Playford Road paid off on Saturday with 21-year-old involved in both striker David McGoldrick’s goals during the 3-0 home victory over Leeds.
Hyam powered a header against the crossbar for the first, the on-loan Forest man following up to nod home, then after the break he provided the pass for the frontman’s second of the afternoon.
Speaking after Saturday's game, McCarthy said: "We’ve been at him, TC really gets at him, and it’s funny as we did a bit of work with him after training on Friday, playing around, somebody getting in the box and doing it. Terry’s excellent at that, banging on at them.
"We’ve been the lowest scorers and we’ve been at them since we came here to try and be positive. It’s easy to be positive when you’re winning games, of course, but get in the box, shoot, do more positive things, and he’s certainly bought into it.”
Like his predecessor Paul Jewell, McCarthy believes Hyam should be viewed as more than just a holding midfielder: "He’s got far more than that. He’s got the energy to get up and down the pitch. He has remarkable energy levels. I’m delighted, he’s a good player.”
The Blues boss was also pleased for McGoldrick, who scored his third and fourth goals for Town — his 20th and 21st goals overall this season — despite not being at his best: "I was delighted with him because early on in the game I thought that their front three were causing us far more problems, our back four wasn’t as solid as they have been.
"I didn’t think Dids was as good as he’s been, so it’s nice when you play like that, especially as a frontman, and you get a couple of goals. It’s great if you follow up and you finish, and the second was a great finish.”
McCarthy also had praise for Jay Emmanuel-Thomas, who netted the third goal having come off the bench: "He’s been doing really well, he’s contributed because he made a super block against Leicester that kept the points for us, he created the chance for Carlos against Bolton two weeks ago and he’s come on today and done well.
"I just thought there were some wide open spaces for him to use and he did it. I’m pleased with him. He’s doing really well.”
The Town manager was also happy with Scott Loach on his return to the side with the former Watford keeper making some important saves, particularly prior to the game-changing sending off of Leeds defender Tom Lees: "It’s just as well he did because we would have lost otherwise.
"I just said to him, ‘Have a bit more belief in yourself’. He’s such a lovely young man. That’s all right, it’s nice being a lovely young fella off the pitch, but you can be an arrogant so and so on it, and I think as a goalkeeper you need a bit of that.
"They say they’re all bonkers, but whether they’re bonkers or not there’s just something that stands you out as the number one.
"His saves did that for him today but I think he can have more of a positive character about him in his demeanour — ‘I am number one now, there’s nobody going to nick that, there’s no Hendo coming back here’. Make himself number one and let’s hope he does that.
"He is [the number one at the moment], there’s nothing going to change that, only the way he plays and he looked like a number one today with the saves he made, which is good.”