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McKenna: 100 Points and 100 Goals Would Be a Fantastic Achievement - Ipswich Town News

Town boss Kieran McKenna says becoming the first EFL team to score 100 goals and pick up 100 points would be a fantastic achievement.

The already-promoted Blues go into Sunday’s game at Fleetwood with 97 points having netted 99 times.

Town could win the League One title at the Highbury Stadium if they manage more points than leaders Plymouth take from their game away against Port Vale.

But regardless of whether they carry off the silverware, 100 points and 100 goals would be a brilliant achievement.

"It really would,” McKenna reflected. "Ninety-seven points is a fantastic achievement but to get 100 points and 100 goals, to be the first team in EFL history to do that, that would be an amazing achievement and something to be really, really proud of.

"On top of that, we’re not far off having the best goal difference in the history of the EFL as well.

"We spoke about these things this week. We know that winning the league isn’t in our hands and we like to control what we can control, and what we can control is trying to go out and deliver a performance on Sunday.

"And if we do that, then we know we’ve got a chance to really establish an incredible goal difference and points total.

"But we know that’s not going to come easy and trying to get a result in the game is going to take an awful lot of work.

"There are some nice targets there, it gives us something to focus on that’s under our control and that’s been the messages to the players this week.”

Town have never hit 100 points before in their history, their current total of 97 is already a record.

The Blues have scored 100 goals on three previous occasions, all under Sir Alf Ramsey, in 1955/56 (106, third in Division Three South), 1956/57 (101, Division Three South champions) and 1960/61 (100, Division Two champions).

The only club to previously have achieved 100 points and 100 goals in the top four divisions was Manchester City in the Premier League in 2017/18.

Town have set or are still in the process of setting plenty of new records this season, including nine successive clean sheets and 949 minutes without conceding a goal.

The Blues’ current league unbeaten run of 18 matches is the joint-second longest in the club’s history - along with a 1999/00 streak under George Burley - only bettered by 23 games under Sir Bobby Robson in 1979/80.

Their 28 league wins is already a new club record, beating the previous highest, 27, in the 1953/54 Division Three South title-winning campaign.

Town have also won a record number of games by more than one goal this season, 13, with their previous best 11 in the 1956/57 Division Three South title-winning campaign.

McKenna’s men have only failed to score three times in league matches, also a new record should they find the net against Fleetwood, four having been the previous fewest non-scoring games on three occasions.

The Blues have conceded only 33 goals, the second fewest in the club’s history behind the 32 shipped in 1998/99.

This season’s clean sheet total, 23, is the second best in the club’s history, 25 having been recorded in 1998/99.

Only eight teams this century have finished with a goal difference better than Town’s current club record figure of 66, the highest Manchester City’s 79 in the Premier League in 2017/18.

Overall, 66 ranks 28th of all time with 71 needed to put the Blues into the top 10 with Bradford’s 85 in Division Three North in 1928/29 topping that table.

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