Kane Vincent-Young netted a late header but a goal in each half from Kurt Zouma and Daniel Chester saw Premier League West Ham United to a 2-1 friendly victory over the Blues at Portman Road.
New signings Dominic Ball and Freddie Ladapo were in Town’s first-half XI with the former QPR man lining up in the centre of midfield alongside skipper Sam Morsy in front of a back three of Janoi Donacien, Luke Woolfenden and Cameron Burgess with Wes Burns and Matt Penney the wing-backs. Christian Walton was in goal.
Sone Aluko and Conor Chaplin were behind lone out-and-out striker Ladapo, who joined after leaving Rotherham earlier in the summer.
Among the 11 Town subs were George Edmundson, Kayden Jackson and Arsenal loanee Tyreece John-Jules, all involved in their first pre-season fixture following injuries at the end of last season.
Absent were Joe Pigott, who is understood to be closing in on a loan move to Portsmouth, and Kyle Edwards.
For West Ham, Flynn Downes made his first appearance in a Hammers shirt, while their other former Blue Aaron Cresswell skippered.
Downes was on the end of some early boos from his old fans after clipping Aluko’s heels after the Nigerian international had turned him and was skipping away on halfway.
Town had an early spell in charge but the Premier League side soon took over, keeping the ball competently but without threatening.
On 12, Aluko inspired a spell of Town possession which ended with Chaplin curling a deflected shot wide.
The Blues should have gone in front in the 16th minute. After a poor Downes touch on the edge of the Town box, Morsy dispossessed him and sent Ladapo away on goal in the clear from halfway.
The striker looked to have dallied too long as defenders closed in but beat keeper Lukasz Fabianski with his low effort but saw the ball strike the outside of the Pole’s left post.
However, it was West Ham seeing most of the ball but still without threatening until the 26th minute when Michail Antonio was found on the right of the box and hit a shot from a tight angle which struck the outside of Walton’s left post.
Before Town could take the goal-kick, referee Keith Stroud signalled a drinks break in front of the new dugouts.
It didn’t take too long for the Hammers to take the lead following the restart. Following a 31st-minute corner, Antonio crossed from the left to Zouma, who had lost his marker. Walton saved the defender’s first effort but the French international smashed the rebound into the roof of the net with the keeper grounded.
Neither side threatened again before the half-time whistle. Unsurprisingly the Premier League side had seen most of the ball with the Blues back in their own half for the most part but with few threats on Walton’s goal.
The Blues did have spells on the ball, however, with Aluko showing his cleverness in possession, while Ball showed what he’ll add to the Town side, putting a foot in when required, keeping it simple and having a presence in the middle of the park.
Town’s only real chance was Ladapo’s one-on-one which he will know he should have taken and the Rotherham man showed his pace on a couple of other occasions.
Aside from their goal, West Ham’s only other opportunity in a not overly-enthralling half was Antonio’s shot off the outside of the post.
Town made three changes ahead of the second half with Lee Evans, Greg Leigh and Corrie Ndaba replacing Ball, Penney and Burgess.
Following an early corner the result of a deflected shot from distance, Evans failed to deal with a ball in from the left, but Ajibola Alese hit his first-time effort wide.
Almost immediately, Town broke up the other end and Chaplin headed Donacien’s right-wing cross straight at Fabianski.
On 50, Evans shot over from distance with the second half starting in a rather livelier manner than much of the first.
Four minutes later, Antonio was sent away on goal in almost identical circumstances to Ladapo in the first half. Again the striker was guilty of taking too much time and Ndaba got back to take the ball off his foot as he was about to take it past the advancing Walton.
Three minutes later, Morsy was found in some space five yards outside the box and hit a shot straight at Fabianski.
As the game passed the hour mark, Cresswell curled a 30-yard free-kick wide of Walton’s left post.
Town made the expected hour-mark substitutions with Jackson, Edmundson, John-Jules, Idris El Mizouni, Rekeem Harper, Cameron Humphreys and Kane Vincent-Young taking over from Ladapo, Woolfenden, Chaplin, Aluko, Donacien, Morsy and Chaplin in the 61st minute.
Two minutes after the changes, West Ham doubled their lead. Ndaba got caught in possession on the left, then Vincent-Young gave it away on the right as Town sought to clear their lines.
Harrison Ashby hit a low shot which hit the post and the ball fell loose to Chesters, who stroked into the empty net.
Town had the ball in the net in the 67th minute through Jackson but the striker had fouled Zouma prior to lifting the ball over Fabianski.
After another drinks break, Hladky took over in goal from Walton in the 73rd minute with the Hammers still having their original XI on the field.
Two minutes later, Town pulled a goal back. Harper’s cross from the left was hooked into the air towards the far post by Jackson and Vincent-Young nodded across Fabianski and into the corner of the net.
Cresswell hit a low volley following a corner from the right which Hladky saved down to his right, then the Blues broke up the other end and John-Jules wasn’t too far away from Evans’s looped ball from the right towards the far post.
The goal had livened up the Portman Road crowd and with West Ham tiring - they still hadn’t made a substitution - Town were suddenly on top and looking for an equaliser.
On 82 Antonio’s lovely flick wrong-footed Edmundson and sent Oko-Flex through on goal from the left but Ndaba got across to make a perfect saving challenge.
West Ham finally made a substitution in the 89th minute with Oko-Flex replaced by George Earthy. Moments later, a supporter interrupted play by running on the pitch but was quickly led away.
Moments before the whistle, Vincent-Young looped a second header towards goal from another ball in from the left but this time Fabianski.
That was Town’s last chance to find a leveller and over the 90 minutes the Premier League side deserved the victory having been in control for most of the match and having created most of the chances.
The second half was more entertaining than the first with the Blues presenting a greater attacking threat in the final 20 minutes or so with the visitors starting to tire against the fresher Town subs.
It was a very different test for the Blues than the majority of their League One games are likely to be with the higher grade opposition dominating possession and them forced to defend in their own half.
Nevertheless, Town had some good spells and Vincent-Young’s goal and the late flurry gave most of the 13,121 fans something to shout about.
The Blues are next in action at Plough Lane on Saturday when they face AFC Wimbledon in the first game of a double-header with the Tractor Girls taking on their counterparts later in the day.
Town: Walton (Hladky 73), Donacien (El Mizouni 61), Woolfenden (Edmundson 61), Burgess (Ndaba 46), Burns (Vincent-Young 61), Morsy (c) (Harper 61), Ball (Evans 46), Penney (Leigh 46), Chaplin (John-Jules 61), Aluko (Humphreys 61), Ladapo (Jackson 61).
West Ham: Fabianski, Cresswell (c), Zouma, Fornals, Antonio, Downes, Coventry, Oko-Flex (Earthy 89), Alese, Ashby, Chesters. Subs: Hegyi, Casey, Forbes, Woods. Referee: Keith Stroud (Hampshire). Att: 15,129 (West Ham: 1,528).