Town’s game against Watford at Vicarage Road remains 0-0 at the break.
Boss Mick McCarthy made three changes from the team which beat Bolton 1-0 on Tuesday with Kevin Bru replacing Teddy Bishop, who has sore shins, in midfield.
Luke Varney and Chris Wood came into a three-man attack alongside Daryl Murphy, while Jonny Parr, who was a doubt having taken a kick on Tuesday, missed out and Freddie Sears dropped to the bench.
Michael Crowe, 19, was the sub keeper with Dean Gerken not risked having been knocked unconscious at Middlesbrough last week and Paddy Kenny ill.
Watford made three changes from the team which beat Wigan 2-0 in midweek. Miguel Layun, Daniel Tozser and Odion Ighalo replaced Gianni Munari, Matej Vydra and Gabriele Angella.
Neither keeper was particularly troubled in the early stages. Bartosz Bialkowski spent more time dealing with inflatables blown onto the pitch from the 2,200-strong Town following behind his goal than Watford attacks.
Town, who had started brightly, had the ball in the net in the 10th minute when Murphy fed Varney but the on-loan Blackburn man was offside.
On 12 Adlene Guedioura skipped away from Bru midway inside the Town half before unleashing a powerful shot which flew just over Bialkowski’s goal.
Three minutes later, Tyrone Mings surrendered possession inside his own half, allowing Watford to break towards the Town area. Mings was fortunate to see Ighalo’s shot strike Tommy Smith before the left-back cleared the danger himself.
For Town, Murphy saw a promising effort from the edge of the area blocked, then for the Hornets Troy Deeney headed wide from a cross from the right.
On 28 Murphy picked up his first booking of the season for a late tackle on Guedioura, although the Algerian seemed to make a lot of not very much.
Two minutes later, Joel Ekstrand, the Watford player whose wild lunge forced Jonny Williams off with a groin injury from which he is still to return at Portman Road in November, twisted awkwardly and appeared to injure his knee.
The Swedish defender was treated on the pitch before eventually leaving on a stretcher with Gabriele Angella replacing him. Angella’s first contribution was to catch Wood with an arm and pick up the game’s second yellow card.
Varney, playing on the right of what now looked a 4-4-2, forced Heurelho Gomes into his first serious of the afternoon on 41, bringing the ball in from the flank and hitting a powerful shot from the edge of the box that the keeper pushed past his post.
A minute later, Guedioura broke through on goal from the Watford midfield and seemed certain to score until skipper Luke Chambers slid in to block superbly.
But it was the Blues ending the half the stronger, a Bru cross from the right following a corner taking the Hornets several attempts to clear, then the Mauritian international screwed an effort from distance well wide.
Neither side threatened again before referee Andy D’Urso blew his whistle to signal half-time.
Town manager McCarthy will have been delighted by the half-time scoreline and his team’s performance.
After an evenly balaned opening, the home side started to string a few passes together but never particularly threatened Bialkowski’s goal until the Guedioura chance that Chambers blocked.
But by that stage the Blues were starting to get on top, forcing set pieces and with Varney in particular looking a danger on the right.
Watford: Gomes, Motta, Cathcart, Ekstrand (Angella 34), Hoban, Tozser, Watson, Layun, Guedioura, Ighalo, Deeney. Subs: Bond, Munari, Paredes, Pudil, Vydra, Anya.
Town: Bialkowski, Chambers (c), Mings, Smith, Berra, Skuse, Bru, Tabb, Murphy, Wood, Varney. Subs: Crowe, Clarke, Anderson, S Hunt, Chaplow, Benyu, Sears. Referee: Andy D’Urso (Billericay).