McCarthy Praises Parr Excellence - Ipswich Town News
Boss Mick McCarthy says he’s delighted with the impact Jonny Parr has made since joining the Blues on a free transfer following his release by Crystal Palace in the summer.
While fellow full-back Tyrone Mings has grabbed most of the headlines, the 25-year-old Norwegian international has also impressed his manager and was unbeaten in his first eight games in a Town shirt - he tasted defeat for the first time at Cardiff on Tuesday - and scored his first Blues goal in the 2-0 home victory over Brighton.
"He’s been excellent,” McCarthy said. "I was delighted to sign him when I got him. I thought we’d got a really good full-back.
"I remembered him rampaging up and down the line here when Crystal Palace were running all over the top of us [at Portman Road in April 2013] until Richard Stearman tackled him and he had to go off.
"I knew him before that but it stuck in my mind how well he’d started in that game and when he was available on a free I thought he was a great shout.”
McCarthy was also keen on Parr’s versatility: "I knew he could cover both sides. That was a difficult one at the time because I knew I’d got Tyrone Mings and I wanted to give Ty his head and let him play, so my first question to Jonny when he walked through the door was ‘Are you happy to play right-back, because if you’re not you might as well do one!’.
"He said ‘No, no, I’ll cover both, I prefer left, but I’ll do right’. He’s been excellent, he’s been a really good signing for us."
The Town boss added: "He's a really good athlete, he looks after himself, he does things right. We’ve got good pros in the place.”
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