New signing Frazer Richardson has spoken of the team spirit and togetherness in the Town squad and admitted: “It hits you smack bang in the face when you walk through the door.”
Such qualities can be a major plus at any club as right-back Richardson, on loan from Middlesbrough until the end of the season, was quick to confirm
Richardson, who made his debut as a late sub during Saturday’s 1-0 victory over Bolton, said: "My time at Southampton was the best of my career. It’s a fantastic feeling to get promotion from any league and to go from League One to the Championship was just as enjoyable as when we went up to the Premier League.
"It takes a lot of hard work and a lot of discipline to keep you right for that amount of games. Consistency is what’s required and it’s just about keeping going and trying to pick up the three points whenever you can.
"But it wasn’t just about the back-to-back promotions. It was the team spirit at the club. All the lads were really good friends off the field and we used to do a lot together, like going out for meals and going to the cinema, stuff like that. We all seemed to do it as one and I’ve already heard about the players’ cinema club here at Ipswich.”
The Championship is notoriously tight, of course, and Richardson is convinced the right team spirit can take you a long way towards your goal.
Indeed, he added: "It can take you all the way and I’ll stand by that. I’ve said it for a couple of seasons. When you’ve been at a club with such a good camaraderie and team spirit you know what it is worth.
"It’s not just off the field but on the field because you need to work hard for each other — cover your team-mate, work your nuts off, so to speak, to get on the end of a cross or to get a cross in or to get back and slide tackle.
"All these things come together to make team spirit. It’s really important and it can take you all the way. Obviously you have to have the little bits of individual quality to win games but 90 per cent of it is the work ethic of the team.
"So far it’s been really good. You can just see that there is a bit of a buzz about the place at the minute and the lads can’t speak highly enough of Mick and the coaching staff.
"There’s a great feeling around the club and, although it’s still early days, I can liken it to the times we had at Southampton.”
Photo: ITFC