Hat-trick hero Lee Evans laughed that he’d had worse nights in football after his goals helped the Blues to a comprehensive 6-0 pummelling of Doncaster Rovers at Portman Road, their first home win of the season.
Evans had missed Saturday’s game against Sheffield Wednesday due to a hamstring problem but there seemed little sign of that injury as the Wales international netted in the 31st, 70th and 76th minutes to claim his first career hat-trick.
"Not bad, I’ve had worse nights!” he joked aferwards. "The hamstring felt alright. From the Lincoln game, I had a little tear in the last 10 minutes and unfortunately we’d made all the subs at the time, so I tried to carry on with it.
"We had it scanned up, there was a little grade one tear so unfortunately I had to miss the game at the weekend, but thankfully I was able to make it tonight.”
Evans, who joined the club on a free transfer after leaving Wigan at the end of last season, was especially pleased with the hat-trick as he felt he hadn’t done himself justice with the Blues in his first few games.
"It’s meant a lot,” he said. "I haven’t showed the Ipswich Town fans what I’m about yet and hopefully tonight is a step in the right direction.
"I want to play better, I want to play as well as I can for this football club. So yes, tonight was a great night.”
He admitted he’s not normally a free-scoring midfielder: "No, and they’re normally long-range ones, so a header and one at the back stick is a bit different.
"But to be fair, my little girl told me tonight I was going to score, so it was a really nice feeling to get some.”
The 27-year-old had to cast his mind back a few years for the last time he scored three times in a game.
"Going way back I think, kids’ football,” he pondered. "I remember the game actually, for Malpas FC in Newport when I was about 15. A long time ago.”
He says the match ball will take pride of place, unless his children get hold of it.
"It might end up in the garden tomorrow, but I’ll try and hide it from them!” he laughed. "That will get framed definitely.”
His children weren’t at the game: "Not tonight, it’s a bit late for the kids, they’re normally up there in the box. They were fast asleep unfortunately, it’ll be a nice surprise for them in the morning, I’ll make sure I show them, don’t worry!”
Reflecting on the finishes, he added: "They were good. I think I’ve saved the best one for last. Fantastic. It was just fantastic to get a first win of the season at Portman Road, that’s what we needed and what a way to do it.”
He feels he can find the net on a regular basis, even if he's not promising further hat-tricks: "Definitely. It’s a bit of my game, I’ve been able to score the odd one, but I’d like to get a few more, however, sometimes in the position I play it’s a bit harder.
"But having someone like Sam Morsy next to me, who will sit in and cover when he sees me going forward, does give me a little bit more licence to get forward.”
He added: "The goals are not going to come like that all the time, it was just the performance, being on the front foot, getting in people’s faces and then trying to get forward and make the box and just be solid.
"The clean sheet’s just as pleasing tonight, we’ve looked a lot better defensively in the last three games and we’re going to need that again on Saturday.”
The former Wolves and Sheffield United man praised his team-mates for creating the chances that led to the goals.
"It was fantastic,” he enthused. "We’ve got really good forward players who are going cause teams problems and just as pleasing as the goals tonight was the clean sheet.
"We’re all looking more solid now as a unit, we’ve been working hard on the training ground on that and thankfully it’s showing on the pitch.”
Morsy made his Blues league debut as skipper against Rovers, reviving a midfield partnership with Evans from their days at Wigan.
"I think he had a really good performance tonight, showed what he’s about,” Evans said. "He’s strong in midfield, wins the ball back and uses it really wisely when he has it.
"I think we played about 80 or 90 games at Wigan together, so the first one for us at Ipswich has gone quite well for us tonight!”
Was it case of picking up where the pair of you left off with the Latics? "It’ll take time, but it was a good start. I know what he can bring to the team, he knows what I can bring to the team, so it was pleasing that tonight was the first time we got to play together again. They won’t all go as well as that, but tonight was a great start.”
Does he feel the Egyptian international allows him to play more his natural game? Prior to Morsy’s arrival did he feel he was having to do too much of the defensive side?
"Maybe, it’s different. Me and Rekeem [Harper] we’re probably similar. As you’ve seen with him coming on in the last few games, he’s been brilliant going forward, so we probably weren’t as much defensive-minded between us.
"But he’s been great when he’s come on, he was great again tonight, hit the post, nearly scored, I saw him wheeling away to celebrate.
"It’s a team game, we’ve got a fantastic squad which is going to be tested with another touch game on Saturday.”
Regarding the scenes at the end where the players celebrated with fans, he added: "We just wanted to send them home happy with a good performance and tonight was probably past our wildest dreams.
"It was just about sending them home with a performance they can be proud of and we need to build on that now for Saturday at Accy, a really tough game.”
He says last night’s win and the previous two results, the 1-0 victory at Lincoln and the 1-1 draw with Sheffield Wednesday, can be the platform from which Town’s season can take off.
"Three unbeaten, that’s how we’re looking at it,” he said. "After the Bolton game [which Town lost 5-2] there were some tough words being said, tough words that we needed.
"And yes, we need to try and put a run together because we haven’t had the best of starts. Hopefully this can be the start of our run.”"
Evans admits he wasn’t anticipating the Blues putting anyone to the sword in the manner they did Doncaster.
"Not really, to be honest, not the way that we’ve been at home,” he said. "It was about just getting the win really. It wasn’t about trying to give anyone a hammering.
"The most pleasing thing tonight, the goals are pleasing, but the most pleasing thing was the clean sheet, we’ve looked a lot more assured in the last few games, which is pleasing.”
At 2-0 it was clear Town weren’t going to settle for that scoreline and even at 6-0 they were still looking for a seventh.
"At half-time I think the words just were to come out and not give them a sniff in the game because obviously at 2-0 the next goal is the most important goal,” he said. "And thankfully we got it and then it turned out to be a more comfortable night in the end.”
Does he feel he’s going to be a marked man from now on? "I’m not sure about that, I they’ve got to worry about Macca up top rather than me!”
Regarding Macauley Bonne, who added two more last night to take his season’s tally to seven, Evans said: "He’s been brilliant. I’m quite close to Macca off the pitch and I know how much it means to him playing for this football club. He’s delighted and long may it continue.”
He says Ipswich-born Bonne’s passion for the club is rubbing off on the rest of the squad.
"Definitely, I think we all know how much this football club means to him and he’s going to do everything he can to be successful,” he said.
"I think it’s the same for all of us, you don’t have to be a fan of Ipswich growing up. As soon as you come here you see another amazing crowd tonight, a fantastic crowd for a Tuesday night which really got behind us, especially in the first half when we needed it.
"To send them home happy is what makes us happy and we can’t wait to get going again.”