Tommy Oar, almost knocked out on his on his full league debut for Town, has talked of the difficulty of getting past loan wingers Ryan Fraser and Ainsley Maitland-Niles to claim a regular berth in Mick McCarthy’s starting line-up.
He has clocked up eight senior appearances but his first Championship start, in the home clash with Huddersfield three months ago, was marred by an early injury that saw him concussed and unable to continue beyond the interval.
Oar, a likely starter in tonight’s FA Cup third round replay at Portsmouth, said: "That was obviously disappointing but I guess you have to give full credit to the boys who have been playing and have done fantastically well.
"Everybody wants to play but all I can do is make sure that I prepare myself as best I can and that when I get my opportunity I do as well as I can.
"We all know Ryan and Ainsley are on season-long loan deals from Bournemouth and Arsenal respectively but it doesn’t really mean that much because we still see them as Ipswich players and they have obviously been fantastic for us this season.
"I think the main objective is the same for everyone — to try to get to the Premier League and reach the play-offs at the end of the season. However the manager has to do it we have to do it. We win and lose as a team as well so it’s all part of it.
"Ryan has been excellent. He’s so energetic and so direct when he gets the ball. He’s brilliant to watch and I guess he’s very similar to me in a lot of ways — in the way I like to play for example — and it’s great that we are both in the squad because we can pick things up from each other. He’s a good guy as well.”
Oar is a creative player who would like to score goals on a regular basis and he added: "When I was in Holland my goalscoring was the main part of my game where I had to improve.
"My strengths were more putting in crosses or coming inside and putting balls through. To get my first Ipswich goal was very pleasing and hopefully I can use that as a foundation to go on and get many more.”
But Oar is also aware of his defensive duties, McCarthy being a manager who demands that his wingers track back and help their full-backs when the opposition are in possession.
He added: "When I was in Holland I played a lot in midfield so it’s not something that is completely foreign to me. I guess over here it’s more about winning the individual battles, your headers and tackles, that kind of thing, whereas in Holland it’s a little bit less in your face and more stand-offish and technical.
"That’s probably the one side of the game that I still have to get used to but I think I’m slowly getting there.
"Coming to England has been a very smooth transition because everyone at the club has been very friendly in helping me to settle in.
"It’s a close-knit team and a good bunch of boys so from that perspective settling in has been no problem at all, so it has been really good.
"The football is obviously very different to the style they play in Holland — much more direct and faster.
"With time I am getting more and more used to it and training better and better. With more experience of playing games I can transfer that to the pitch.”