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McCarthy: Derby Defeat No Huge Setback - Ipswich Town News

Town boss Mick McCarthy says Saturday’s home defeat to Derby is no huge setback for the Blues, who remain one point off the top of the table in third behind the Rams and leaders Bournemouth.

"We’re one point off the top still,” McCarthy said. "I keep reminding people, when we won the league at Wolves we won one in 11 at one stage.

"It was the same then, we came off after matches and I think Reading and Birmingham were vying for the top spot with us and it would be Reading nil and Southampton, who got relegated that year, three. You’d think ‘where did that result come from?’. And it was the same with Birmingham.

"It’s what you end up with on May 2nd, so getting too high when you’ve won or too low when you’ve lost is not my bag at all.

"I thought we played well on Saturday. The goal came against the run of play and it was just a mistake, and all teams make them.”

He says the Blues will be looking to get back to form as soon as they can: "That’s what we’ll be trying to do. It’s not guaranteed, is it? We don’t know.

"I said before we played Derby it could be a stroke of luck, it could be a stroke of genius, it could be a bad decision or it could be a mistake which costs you the game and we’ve not had much of that, we’ve been really consistent.

"It is just getting back to winning ways. We’ll see where that starts, whether it’s Wednesday night or Saturday.”

The Town boss says the defeat won’t have an impact on the team he selects on Wednesday but may have on the side he picks at the Den on Saturday.

"Not the selection of this team, maybe the selection of the team at Millwall, bearing in mind we’re operating with about 17 fully fit players who have got to play Saturday-Wednesday-Saturday. The saving grace for us is that Millwall are playing at Bradford on Wednesday as well.

"I can’t envisage Millwall going up there and picking a weakened team, they’ll want to go and beat Bradford and stay in the FA Cup.

"It’s not like I’m picking a weakened team, they’re all first-team players, whoever plays.

"It’s not easy having to play on the Wednesday night. I was thrilled when I heard that they were playing on Wednesday night and not on the Tuesday, I’m not sure why that is. Ours is because Southampton played on Sunday.”

Meanwhile, Town fans for once might have been pleased to see a Norwich City victory on Saturday with the Canaries beating the table-topping Cherries 2-1 away to keep the Blues within a point of the top of the table.

"That just tells you everything about the league that we’re playing in,” McCarthy said. "They go down to 10 men and everybody says ‘here we go, they’re going to get battered’ and Cameron Jerome comes up with a wonderful strike.

"It doesn’t bother me what Norwich do. It’s what we do that bothers me. But I was quite pleased they beat Bournemouth.”

Regarding the appointment of 33-year-old former Hamilton Academical boss Alex Neil as Norwich’s new manager, he said: "It’s just a managerial change. Bob Peeters has gone [from Charlton] today.

"Good luck to him. He’s had a great start, that’s for sure. I don’t make much of anything, it’s just a club that’s changed their manager.”

Asked about Neil’s lack of experience, he added: "I think it’s always the same, why are people too young or too old, who’s to say?

"What they have got is a very, very experienced coach there, who got a great result at Bournemouth on Saturday with 10 men, in Mike Phelan.

"Any young manager who is inexperienced coming in has got a great sounding board and somebody to help in Mike.

"Good luck to him, Alex Neil, he’s new into the game, he’s now a fellow manager of the LMA and good luck to him. Except when he plays us.”

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