Town skipper Luke Chambers is relishing a rare opportunity to re-establish his central defensive partnership with colleague Christophe Berra in this week’s home clashes against Brighton and Huddersfield, two teams currently sitting third and second in the Championship respectively.
A hamstring injury to Adam Webster in the 1-0 weekend defeat at Leeds has ruled him out of the Portman Road double-header, Chambers replacing him and relinquishing his right-back role to Josh Emmanuel as Mick McCarthy’s injury-hit team seeks to go into the forthcoming international break on a six-point high.
Chambers said: "I have a chance to go back in the middle, something that I’ll probably be a bit rusty with but, hopefully, something that I can enjoy and help the team do well.
"Hopefully I’ll fit in there nicely and easily, but I haven’t played there for a while. It’s going to be an interesting experience again but one I’m looking forward to and hopefully I can enjoy it. I’ll just be trying to help the team win games and do well.”
Chambers agreed that Webster’s arrival in the summer from Portsmouth led him to think his chances of a return to a central defensive role would be even more limited.
But he added: "I’ve always said I would like to play centre-half but I’ve played at right-back for, what, three years now? I don’t even know if I can say I’m a centre-half any more because I’ve been playing at right-back for so long.
"Whether I’m everyone’s favourite playing in that position is up for debate but I’m just trying to do my best for the team and help them be successful. I feel we’ve been fairly successful in the last few years when I’ve played there.
"I played right-back at both Northampton and Nottingham Forest and as things stand now I’ve probably played as many games at right-back as I have at centre-half.
"If it’s a debate it’s for everyone else to talk about. I’ve played 200 games in four years at this club so I must have been doing something right there.
"People might think I do a job there — whether I do as good a job as a lad who’s played right-back his whole life is for people to decide for themselves.
"All I can do is try to improve and try to do the best I can for the team. I’m probably always going to divide opinion but it’s just one of those things.
"I will play where I’m asked to play and without fuss. I want to play my part in making the team successful, like we were a couple of seasons ago when we made the play-offs.
"I don’t think we have conceded too many goals over the last four or five years since I’ve been at the club. Before I came here the team was finishing 15th or thereabouts for three years.
"I think it has been a positive time since I came to the club so it’s a bit of a downer when everyone talks about me playing at right-back.
"But if the manager is choosing me to play there he must think I’m the right player for that position and we haven’t been languishing in the bottom half of the league.
"I enjoy playing there but I think as a team we need to offer each other a lot more options when we have the ball, whether it’s me on the ball at right-back or someone else, to make our jobs a bit easier — and to make it easier to watch for everyone.”