Unsurprisingly George Burley was well-pleased with his side after their stunning 5-0 win over Sunderland. The Town boss felt the first half performance, when the Blues scored four, was amongst the best he'd seen in a long time.
Burley said: "I'm very pleased to get a third win on the trot. It's been a strange first half of the season when we've lost games we shouldn't have done, but we are now pulling closer to the pack. I'm very pleased for the fans who have stuck behind us through thick and thin this season. They have kept faith in us and never dropped their heads. It was a fantastic performance to beat a good side like Sunderland. To win any game 5-0 in the Premiership is a tremendous achievement. In the first 45 minutes we were absolutely outstanding."
Burley said that he told his players at half-time to try to keep a clean sheet: "I just said not to drop too far back, and try and keep a clean sheet. Full credit to the players they kept being professional."
The Town manager is already looking forward to Tuesday's game with Charlton, a game where even a draw could take them out of the bottom three: "There is still a lot of hard work to be done. We have a very hard game at Charlton next,
they've had a very good win today, so we will have to be on top of our form, which is always the case in the Premiership."
Sunderland boss Peter Reid said he was almost tempted to skip the post-match press conference and conceded his side were well-beaten: "We didn't pass it, we were out-fought and were playing suicide football in the first 45 minutes. We looked a soft touch, but I have said that a lot after away games. I could put a tape down of what I said after we lost at Leicester, which
was similar. At the moment I just dont know what I am going to get from my players. We had a great performance at Blackburn, and then play like this
a couple of days later. I'm not taking anything away from Ipswich - they've done well today, but
some of the goals from our point of view were comical. I could have taken any three of ten off. The exception was Kevin Phillips who was different class."
Double goalscorer Alun Armstrong, a Garteshead-born former Newcastle player, admitted that not all his family were going to be chuffed with his contribution today: "Most of them support Newcastle but I have some relatives who follow Sunderland, so I suppose they will give me a bit of stick! I should have had a hat-trick and I may not get a better chance. I scored two, but it's a shame not to get three. I had a bit of luck with the first goal. Michael Gray missed it and I stuck out a leg and it went in, but I had to be in the right place to score it."
George Burley confirmed that Marcus Stewart would go back into training on Monday and could well be available for selection in some capacity against Charlton. The Town manager added that there were no new injuries today and he will have the added bonus of returns from Sixto Peralta and Titus Bramble for the game at the Valley.