Former loanee Richard Chaplow says his time with the Blues at the end of last season gave him back his hunger for the game after his disappointing spell with Millwall. Chaplow, 30, is set to face Town this evening when they take on his new club Doncaster Rovers in the Capital One Cup second round at the Keepmoat Stadium.
Chaplow made three starts and three sub appearances for the Blues with his only goal the last-gasp winner at Watford. He was released by Millwall in the summer and has made one start and one sub appearance for League One Rovers this season.
"The cup tie will be tough,” the midfielder told the Yorkshire Post. "I have been down there very recently and so know what it is all about. I know what a competitive bunch they are. They know their roles and jobs on the pitch. Mick will have them at it.
"I enjoyed it down there, a fantastic time. I joined an environment that was thriving. I can’t speak highly enough about Mick and the lads and the coaching staff. They were exceptional.
"I felt very privileged to be part of that. I always wanted to play in a Mick McCarthy team. It gave me a taster of what football is supposed to be like.
"Coming off the back of a successful time at Southampton and then not so much at Millwall, it gave me the hunger back.
"For whatever reason, it didn’t get going at Millwall and I found it a struggle to get going, especially with the atmosphere round the place. At Ipswich, it was very easy because they want to win games.
"I feel to have joined a club in Doncaster that is very similar to Ipswich. There is a hunger here.
"I have always been hungry on a personal level, but in an environment that doesn’t seem to thrive on the same ambitions it can be hard.”
Reflecting on this evening’s match, he added: "Anything in the cup is tasty. We will be looking to take the game to them and get our fans cheering.
"Everyone was disappointed after Saturday [when they lost 3-0 at Port Vale]. We were a bit off it in terms of pressing and closing down. We didn’t create enough chances in the final third.
"But we take the lessons of losing and try to be better for it. It is the only thing we can do.”