Even if Town boss Kieran McKenna opts for wholesale changes to his starting line-up against Colchester in the Carabao Cup tomorrow evening, incoming striker Kayden Jackson believes there should be no excuses if things don’t go according to plan.
Asked how difficult it was for players in a much-changed side to produce the goods, and whether it may be a mitigating factor in the club’s poor record in knockout competitions in recent years, Jackson replied: "In the past that has possibly been the situation but now I feel there are no excuses based on the high level at which we train every day.
"We’re all in together, we can all interchange and with the high-intensity training he puts on the gaffer is very keen on this side of things.
"If lads are not fit on a Saturday anyone can come in and do a job, which we saw on Saturday when Cam [Burgess] came in to replace Luke [Woolfenden] and didn’t look out of his depth.
"With the gaffer’s high standards, plus the intensity of day-to-day training, there’s no excuses for the lads. We’ll come in and do our best, and hopefully that will be enough. We might need a bit of luck along the way but we’ll just control what we can control.”
Jackson was also asked about the quality of the current Town squad, compared to others he has been a part of in the past, and he answered: "It’s definitely right up there and you have seen it briefly this season.
"There’s a new rule now with five subs per game and it will benefit us. When we’ve made subs in the past it has maybe taken away a bit of quality, from the game and the team, but in our two league games so far this season the substitutions haven’t seen the level of quality go down.
"I think we’ve probably lacked that a little bit in the past and there’s the cup games we’ve had in the past few seasons, where we’ve maybe made too many changes and struggled.
"Hopefully, tomorrow night, that isn’t the case. I don’t know what team the manager is picking, or how many changes he is making, but I’d like to think that however many of us come into the team we will show our quality.”
If, as expected, Jackson starts tomorrow night against the U’s, he fully realises what is at stake, adding: "From my own perspective it’s massively important that I stake my claim for a place but whether it’s me, Freddie [Ladapo[ or Ty [John-Jules], we just want to be out there helping the lads, whether that’s pressing, scoring goals or assisting, just doing whatever we can to help the team. I just want to show the boss what I can do but that goes for everyone on the playing staff.
"There are also the local bragging rights. Our fans don’t want to lose to their local rivals, especially when they have a few ex-Ipswich players in their ranks. It’s important, whoever we play, that we go out and do our best, play the way the boss wants us to play and we get the win. Tomorrow night will be no different.
"Would I like a cup run? Of course, I’m all for it. Some teams struggle to juggle the two — league form alongside a cup run — but I think we have the squad to do it.
"We want to create a winning environment at the club, whether it’s league games or cup ties. Over the last four years we haven’t won nearly enough games and if we can win as many games as possible this season it will be good.”
Colchester head coach Wayne Brown, a former Town defender, may also ring the changes but regardless of whether veteran pair Luke Chambers and Cole Skuse are involved, Jackson took the opportunity to pay tribute to the duo on their Portman Road record of close on 700 appearances between them.
He said: "These guys did a lot for the club and me personally. You always need people like them to help you settle in at a new club. I was leaving family behind at the other end of the country and they were a massive help to me. I will always be grateful to them and people like Gerks [retired goalkeeper Dean Gerken] for what they did.
"Chambo and Skusey had exceptional careers here and were able to play as many games as they did for a reason. To be honest it’s strange not having them around because they were such a big part of the set-up. It will be good to see them tomorrow because I always enjoy spending time around them.”
Jackson said he had sympathy for the long-serving duo — and others — because of the circumstances in which they exited the club last summer after years of sterling service, which was highlighted when they reached the Championship play-offs in 2015 during an era when manager Mick McCarthy could never spend big in the transfer market.
He continued: "There are a few players who were in the building before and if they were still here now things would be unbelievably different. Without going into too many things, the club wasn’t run half as well then as it is now. I’m talking about the infrastructure, day-to-day training, basically everything is at a different level now.
"I do feel for these lads, especially in terms of the service they put in and the way it kind of fizzled out in the end, with the impact of Covid alongside everything else.
"They had unbelievable careers and I’m sure a great many people are grateful for what they did on behalf of the club and what they are still doing around the community. Things happen for a reason and I’m sure they are incredibly proud of everything they did in an Ipswich shirt.”
Midfielder Cameron Humphreys, still only 18, is also likely to be involved tomorrow night and Jackson added: "Cam’s ability is there for all to see. Last summer he was playing against Crystal Palace and didn’t look out of place against Premier League midfielders so there’s no doubt he has the quality.
"He also has the right attitude to go with it and there aren’t many young players who combine the ability with the work ethic as he does.”