Boss Paul Lambert felt Sheffield Wednesday’s final-minute winner, netted by sub Lucas Joao, was a “really poor goal to lose” as the Blues were defeated 1-0 at Portman Road by the Owls, who recorded their first double over Town since 2006/07.
"Sheffield Wednesday were better than us in the first half, they should have been a couple of goals up and we rode the storm,” Lambert admitted.
"In the second half we regrouped and the second half we got more of a foothold in it. But the goal’s poor, it’s a really poor goal to lose, especially at that time of the game.
"The second half was a lot better, in the first half we waited for things to happen rather than making things happen.
"Sheffield Wednesday were better, they missed chances in the first half, we hung in and regrouped and the second half was a lot better, but the goal was really disappointing.”
The Town players, including stand-in skipper Cole Skuse, as well as the home crowd felt Will Keane was fouled in the build-up to the goal, a view with which Lambert agreed.
"I thought there was [a foul],” he said. "It was a strong challenge and in the modern game you blow on somebody now and it’s a foul.
"Looking at it, I think it’s a foul, that’s my view on it. The referee [Oliver Langford] was in a good position to see it and he called it the way he saw it. But we still shouldn’t have lost the goal.
"Myles Kenlock should have done better with it, that’s the reality of it, he should have done better with it.
"He’s a young lad, he’s learning his trade, he’s 22, he’ll learn from it but he probably should have done better with it.”
Was he frustrated that his side didn’t create many chances? "I thought the second half was a lot better than we were in the first half. We’ve played better but not got anything from it, but that goal at the death was a blow.”
The Blues were without both first-choice centre-halves, skipper Luke Chambers and James Collins, who has a hamstring problem, due to injury.
"Luke hurt his foot against Villa last week,” Lambert added. "We tried it yesterday to see whether he was going to be any good. The two of them started training and the two of them had to pull out.
"It’s the first time I’ve ever encountered losing two centre-halves in one day, so that was a blow.
"The two of them felt [their injuries] after the Villa game, so we gave them all the time we possibly could, we tried it yesterday and they couldn’t [get through training].”
Lambert is hopeful both could be back for the East Anglian derby against Norwich in eight days’ time.
"I don’t know [how long they’ll be out for], I’m hopeful they’ll be back for next week, hopefully all things going OK, hopefully they’ll be OK.
"[Losing their experience is a blow], that’s the way it is. You can’t make excuses for it. If you’re in there you’ve got to grow up quickly as a player.
"They’re not 17 or 18 years old. They may be inexperienced in terms of games but they’re getting to an age where they have to go and it’s important that they learn from mistakes.”
Given that lack of experience at the back, could wantaway full-back Jonas Knudsen come back into his thoughts? "It depends on how lads are. Like I tell you every week, Jonas made the view [clear] that he had the eye on something else.
"Nothing materialised but it was difficult for us to say, ‘OK, if you’re not going to be here, how can we use you?’ because he wanted to maybe go somewhere else that never happened.
"You tend to think you’re a better player than you actually are. Maybe he’ll start to realise what it is.”
Is he planning to have a clear-the-air chat with the Danish international about his situation? "I’ve spoken to him all the time, it’s not as if I’ve not kept him updated, and vice versa, his stance was the same - they had to wait to see if somebody came in for him.
"I think Jonas thought somebody was going to come in for him, but sometimes… it’s your career, you know, you have to judge it by yourself.”
Lambert confirmed that as reported on Thursday the Blues blocked an attempt to have Matthew Pennington’s loan from Everton cut short with Derby keen to recruit the 24-year-old on loan with a view to a permanent switch in the summer.
"That’s exactly what happened,” he added. "You’d need your head read to let him go. But that’s a problem when you have loans again, that’s a big problem when you have loans. You need lads that are your own team.
"With six loans it’s difficult, but if I’d have let him go and we’d lost two centre-halves we had only Toto left, and Corrie Ndaba maybe. As I say to you every week, you’ve got to have your own team.”
Sheffield Wednesday boss Steve Bruce, who was in his first game in charge having been away for a month since his appointment, was worried his team might pay for their earlier profligacy in front of goal.
"When you miss so many chances, how many times have we seen it where you think, ‘Is it going to be one of those days?’,” he said.
"But in the end, I think we must have had five or six wonderful opportunities and didn’t take them, which always puts you under a little bit of pressure.
"However, I thought we were comfortable in the game. My goalkeeper in the end made a save from a header [from Trevoh Chalobah], I think that’s the only attempt they had on goal.”
"Pleasing to win, I’m pleased for the players and also a special thanks to the two lads [assistants Steve Agnew and Stephen Clemence] who have been in here for a good month or so who helped me a long the way.”