With the League One table currently looking healthier — from an Ipswich perspective — than at any other time this season it is hardly surprising to find Town forward Conor Chaplin in a positive frame of mind as he anticipates tomorrow’s home clash with Portsmouth, the club with whom he launched his playing career.
Town may be in their third season as a third tier outfit but the 2-0 midweek win against Lincoln took them to within three points of the play-offs as the form surge under boss Kieran McKenna continued to keep alive the dream of promotion back to the Championship.
It’s a situation that few might have anticipated at the half-way stage of the season, when McKenna arrived to trigger a run of nine wins and three draws from 14 games, so far harvesting 30 points from a possible 42.
The fact that they have also kept 10 clean sheets, seven in the present eight-game unbeaten sequence, also emphasises the dramatic change of direction.
But nothing has been achieved yet and over the nine games that remain of the league programme Town’s target is to close the gap on sixth place. "Things are looking good as they stand,” said Chaplin, who turned 25 last month and has netted nine goals in all competitions this season.
"When the boss came in, we all had a chat and agreed the season was still very much alive for us. Wes [Burns] did an interview recently and said we are firmly on track and that’s still the situation.
"Even taking into consideration the two draws, against Cheltenham and Morecambe in the space of four days, we’re on track.
"We’re averaging just above two points per game and the mood in the camp is good and positive, and everyone is excited about the game against Portsmouth this weekend.
"It’s a big game but they are all big at this stage of the season and with nine — at least — left to go it’s still all to play for.”
After the Pompey clash Town travel to take on Oxford on Saturday week and then Plymouth are the visitors to Portman Road seven days later. Chaplin added: "One of the reasons we have been so successful and so consistent under the new boss is that we’ve looked at one game at a time.
"Each represents a new tactical challenge and a new physical challenge, and our preparation in terms of taking it one game at a time has been the recipe for our good form and consistency, plus a few other things as well. That’s crucial so we’re definitely looking no further than Saturday and Portsmouth.”
Asked to provide an insight into McKenna’s style of management, Chaplin went on: "I can’t speak highly enough of the boss and the impact he has had on the club, the players and me personally.
"I think you could speak to every single one of the lads in the changing room and they would all say exactly the same thing, which is a rarity in football.
"Usually, if you’re not playing as much as you would like, you tend to be a little bit sour. But, genuinely, that’s not the case at all. Everyone in the building would only have positive things to say about him, not just for the way he carries himself but the way he is on the training ground.
"He’s brilliant, really, really good, in that situation and it’s the same in team meetings. Everyone is enjoying it and it’s a really happy camp. Our form and results obviously help but everyone is together and that’s a massive thing at this stage of a season.”
Having left his role as a first team coach at Manchester United to launch his management career with the Blues, is it the case that the 35-year-old Northern Irishman adopts a Premier League approach to his job?
Chaplin continued: "Yes, I would say so. In terms of attention to detail, he’s very methodical and the training sessions are put on to replicate match situations and game intensity, while we work really hard on our tactical approach in the days leading up to games.
"Everything he does has a meaning and a purpose, with a hidden message that becomes clearer as the game approaches.
"To be honest with you I’ve never enjoyed coming in each day to train as much as I am at the moment.
"It beats the way I felt at all my previous clubs. The sessions are brilliant and squad morale is really good, which isn’t easy when you’ve got so many training sessions.
"You are trying to make each one enjoyable but at the same time making sure everyone realises the importance of what they are doing. Players have to know the value of the sessions, not just as they relate to their own game, but in terms of the team, tactics, shape etc.”