"Bitterly disappointed" Town boss Mick McCarthy felt his team were the better side for the majority of their 1-0 East Anglian derby defeat to Norwich City at Portman Road but were unable to take their chances. James Maddison netted the game's only goal in the 59th minute.
"I’m pleased with the performance,” McCarthy said. "When you concede a goal and you’re playing against a team which can become compact and sit in, it’s hard to play through them. They did it well, to be honest, they’re a threat on the break.
"I’m pleased with my team’s performance, I’ve got no qualms about that, I’m just bitterly disappointed with the result.”
Asked whether he felt there was a lack of cohesion to his side’s display after going behind, he added: "I think that they’re a good side and when they can sit in and become organised and leave Cameron Jerome up front they’re very hard to break down and that’s what we’ve seen throughout all their performances.
"I tend not to look at my team and think there’s a lack of cohesion but I’ll take your opinion. And we still had a chance when Waggy shot over the bar.
"They’re a good side, they’ve got good players and for the majority of that game we were the better side and we just haven’t taken our chances and they have.”
Neither side had too many chances with the goal Norwich’s only real opportunity, while Jonas Knudsen hit the post for Town and David McGoldrick headed over in the first half.
"[Finishing] was quite clearly [the difference]. They scored and we didn’t,” McCarthy continued.
"We started the season and we were scoring goals. Today we haven’t. They’ve had the one moment of quality with Maddison when he’s finished it, got himself in a good position and he’s managed to score which we haven’t done today.”
Regarding the McGoldrick header, he added: "It was a great chance, maybe if it was Joe Garner that was heading it it’s in the net.
"But it’s the hardest part of the game, that’s why they pay fortunes to strikers, to score, but it was a good chance.”
Asked whether he was concerned that when his side don’t win they currently lose - the Blues are yet to draw this season - he said: "We’ve had six wins, six defeats, I have to tell you at the end of it I’d take 23 wins and 23 defeats with the tally of points that we’d get.
"If we’re benchmarking in terms of what we’re going to get and it ends up being near the 70 points mark, however we get them.
"However we could manage to get 70 points, to that level, we’d have done really well and we would be borderline play-offs depending on how it all goes.”
Town have lost six of their last eight in the league, is he concerned? "Yes, of course I am. I’m concerned we’re not winning games any more.”
However, he says he’s less worried that the downturn in form will lead to fans returning to expressing their frustrations from the terraces.
"I’ve been fully aware that that would return or materialise if some stage if we didn’t win games, whether it’s the first game or if the run of form doesn’t [improve] that will be evident again,” he admitted.
"But that doesn’t concern me. The concern is that we’re not winning games, not what people might think of me or might say or might shout. That’s of no concern to me at all.”
Despite the lack of victories McCarthy says he’s been happy enough with his team’s displays, but says that ultimately counts for nothing.
"That doesn’t really matter, you’ve got to win,” he said. "A scruffy old win not playing well would suit me fine.
"As has been proven in the past, if you’re playing well then keep playing well and you’re more likely to win games than not. I’d like to play well in the next three games and I’ll take what we get out of them.
"They’re extremely tough games. Burton’s going to be a tough game, we saw that last year when we were there. They’re scrapping away, they’ll be competitive no doubt, then we go to Cardiff, who were the leaders, and then Preston here. Really big games for us.
McCarthy says he’s hurt by the defeat, although he knows it will be even more painful for supporters: "I’m not pleased about it. I’d love to have given them something to shout about, to have be happy about and I think I certainly did my best and the players did their best today, but it just didn’t happen for us.
"It hurts me to lose any game but it’s never, ever going to hurt me as much as it hurts fans who have supported the club for 30 years.
"But as a professional and somebody who is very proud about what I do and how I do it, then, yes, I’m extremely disappointed and I’m always hurt when we lose.”
Midfielder Cole Skuse added: "It’s a tough one to take. I thought we were arguably the better side and created the better chances so that’s frustrating.
"We blinked first so to speak and once they got their goal they sat back and made it very difficult. Now we have to bounce back and put things right next weekend.”
Norwich head coach Daniel Farke, whose team are up to sixth, enjoyed his first experience of the East Anglian derby.
"It was brilliant, I think the crowd was great for both teams, a brilliant atmosphere with lots of support," he said.
"The game was full of passion and full of emotion and that’s what you’re always searching for as a football player and even as a manager, you’re a competitor and you’re looking for such a big game.
"And when you have a win in such a big game it’s always the sweetest feeling, especially when it’s such a close game and complicated game.
"Sometimes you have an easy game wth a 5-0 or something like that but to be honest 1-0 after such a big fight feels even sweeter and it’s great today.”
Farke admitted he had concerns regarding the frequency with which Town created chances in the first half.
"It’s so complicated to play against Ipswich because they always use these long balls and are able to create really a good surrounding for the second ball and they have many offensive players on the pitch who are able to score, even on the wings. It’s so complicated to defend.
"You have to accept this style of football and you have to be prepared for fighting for the second balls and to track the deep runs.
"In the first half I got the feeling that we were a little bit too nervous in possession, we were copying their style using long balls and fighting for the second ball.
"We spoke about it at half-time we had to be braver in possession and play more ground passes and more with ball circulation and good positional play and better structure in our possession. I think we did that in the second half.”