Blues boss Mick McCarthy was remaining typically grounded after Saturday’s 2-1 win at Preston which saw his side retain the Championship's top spot. Ryan Fraser curled home a brilliant winner in the 63rd minute after Brett Pitman had scored his first Blues goal and Daniel Johnson had equalised for the Lilywhites in the first half.
McCarthy believes the squad which has got the season off to such a strong start has improved significantly from the one which began the last campaign: "It’s great after four games, but we’ve played well in them.
"I’ve no doubt I’ve got a better squad than this time last year, without any shadow of a doubt.”
He added: "Quite clearly we’ve made progress year on year from 14th to ninth to sixth. Let’s hope we continue to make progress and finish higher than sixth.
"I haven’t got the biggest squad of players but the ones that I’ve got are good players.”
McCarthy believes the experience of finishing in the play-offs last year will benefit his players this season: "It won’t hinder us, they all know what the league’s about.
"This game was a really tough one and we lost the scrap in the first half. I don’t think we lost it in the second half.”
Last year Town’s promotion challenge was often said to have gone under the radar but that’s not going to be the case this time around with the Blues the early pace setters.
McCarthy is under no illusions about how tough it will be to maintain the challenge for automatic promotion.
"I don’t think we’ll do what we did at Wolves [in their 2008/09 Championship-winning season], I think we were top for about 42 games,” he recalled.
"I can’t see that happening because I think the league’s tougher and the teams are closer.
"We could have lost this game today, we could have been behind by a couple of goals before we scored.
"Maybe it’s just the luck of the bounce sometimes that we’ve scrapped it out and we’ve ended up with the real bit of quality.
"I’m not stood here thinking that we’ve been brilliant and we’ve really thrashed Preston because we haven’t and Preston will be as good as anyone.
"They’ll all be the same, even the bottom teams you’ll have to go there and beat them, nobody will lie down and die.”
Town weren’t too many pundits’ picks for automatic promotion at the start of the season, but that doesn’t particularly concern the Blues manager.
"I don’t give a flying one whether they put us as favourites or whether we’re top, whether we’re not, it’s all bollocks. It’s all great for the media, it’s wonderful.
"You know what’s nice for us? We’re top and our fans saw us win away from home. Then we’ve got to go to Donny, we’ve got to play Brighton and none of them are easy. It’ll all be forgotten if we get beaten in any of them.”
Regarding Fraser, on loan with the Blues from Bournemouth for the season, he added: "He’s a proper footballer, Ryan Fraser. We’re delighted to have him, we’re blessed we’ve got him.
"The goal was worthy of winning any game. We kept it up the pitch, we won the first header, we kept the ball, worked the chance and it was a fabulous finish.
"It was a great bit of business, Tyrone Mings going there and us getting Brett Pitman and Ryan Fraser as well as £8 million.
"[Brett was] great and went and played in midfield. I’m delighted he’s scored his goal.”
The Fraser-Mings cash-plus-loan exchange and recruitment of Pitman on a free transfer are looking better and better moves for the Blues with each week that passes.
"It wasn’t [part of the same] deal,” McCarthy said referring to Pitman’s switch. "I think Eddie Howe wanted to repay Brett for how well he did at Bournemouth, so we got him on a free.
"And Ryan, they wanted him out to play some football and I’m delighted and really pleased that Eddie let us have him.”
He says last season Saturday’s match may have ended in a draw and that Fraser’s brilliant goal was the difference on the day.
"We might have ground it out and it would have ended one-all, but that goal just showed that bit of quality that Ryan’s got.”
Next week sees a top of the table clash against the second-placed Seagulls at Portman Road with the Sussex side - who are behind the Blues on goal difference - managed by McCarthy’s close friend and former Republic of Ireland team-mate Chris Hughton.
"I can’t wait to see Chris, he was one of my pals in the Irish team,” he said. "We were some of the ones that came over on Sunday afternoon and stayed in the hotel right early on when Eoin Hand was the manager, we were players together.
"I have the utmost respect for him as a man, as a former player, as a manager and he’s one of those guys I’ve remained close to, I spoke to him this week. He’s a really good pal.
"We played in the European Championships in 1988 when Ruud Gullit went over [to the flank] and he took care of him. I was so delighted to see the back of him, Chris took care of him.”
However, he says the match isn't about the two managers: "It’s not about me and Chris, is it? He’ll know full well about me and I know about his team. We’ll watch them all week in terms of our analysis and he’ll do exactly the same.
"I’m delighted he’s doing well, he’s a bit like me. I didn’t do all the coaching with Tottenham, but he got his job, he did well, then he got the tin tack, then he did well again. I’m glad he’s doing well again because he’s a lovely fella.”
Meanwhile, Town's U21s are in action against Cardiff City at Portman Road this evening (KO 7pm).