Town ended their pre-season programme by claiming silverware, a 1-1 draw with Werder Bremen seeing the Blues carry off the Innsbruck Cup in Austria. Having beaten RB Leipzig 1-0 in their earlier match, Town went behind to Justin Njinmah’s goal in the 12th minute, Greg Leigh grabbed a leveller in the 39th minute of the 60-minute match.
Boss Kieran McKenna fielded an entirely different XI from the first match with new keeper Cieran Slicker starting with first-choice Christian Walton missing out as a precaution due to a minor foot problem.
In front of Slicker, who was making his first start for the club having joined from Manchester City earlier in the summer, was a back four of Janoi Donacien, George Edmundson, Cameron Burgess and Greg Leigh.
Lee Evans skippered at the centre of midfield alongside Jack Taylor with Wes Burns, Sone Aluko and Kyle Edwards behind Freddie Ladapo.
Werder, who drew 0-0 with RB Leipzig in their opening match, included former Nottingham Forest and Sheffield United man Oliver Burke in their starting XI.
Last season’s 13th-placed Bundesliga side were first to threaten, a corner from the right cannoning off a Town player towards goal and Slicker did well to save down to his right.
The Blues keeper was in action again in the sixth minute, Niklas Schmidt hitting a strike from distance which the Scotland U21 international keeper tipped over.
The German side had presented the greater threat in the early stages and in the 12th minute they went in front. Burke crossed from the right, Slicker appeared to claim the high ball but it dropped from his fingers and Njinmah was able to nod into an empty net.
Burke had been Werder’s biggest threat and soon after the goal the Scotland international cut back from the right to Njinmah, who this time scraped a shot wide when he will feel he ought to have done better.
As the game passed the 15-minute mark, Slicker and Burgess collided as the keeper came a long way off his line to clear with the centre-half similarly looking to deal with it. The former Australian U23 international was able to carry on after treatment.
On 22, a ball from Burke from deep on the right made its way between the Town centre-halves and Slicker rather nervously bundled away ahead of Nick Woltemade.
The Blues had struggled to get going but in the 26th minute a move which started with Slicker ended with Burns whipping over a ball from the right towards Ladapo, who almost got onto it after a slip from Dikeni Salifou.
But Werder were continuing to look the more dangerous side, particularly down Town’s left and in the 28th minute Njinmah cut inside to Woltemade, whose strike was blocked by Leigh, then Danish international Jens Stage scuffed his follow-up wide when he should have hit the target.
That was the final action of a disappointing first 30 minutes for the Blues. Town had only fleetingly been in control with Werder always looking the more threatening side with everything coming down their right side.
The goal owed much to Slicker’s error, but the German team had created other chances which they might feel they ought to have taken with the keeper having made two stops prior to his mistake. At the other end, Werder keeper Michael Zetterer had been untroubled.
Town started the second half more positively and two minutes after the restart, Burns sent over a low cross from the right towards Edwards beyond the far post, who was somewhat harshly penalised for a foul.
Moments later, Ladapo worked his way into the area on the left, cut inside his man before hitting a shot from a tight angle which flew over.
And Town were rewarded for their improved start in the 39th minute when they got back on terms.
Donacien’s throw on the right found Ladapo, who did well to turn away from his man and send over a low cross towards Leigh, who got in front of a defender and shot right-footed past Zetterer.
On 43, Edmundson required treatment after appearing to land awkwardly on his ankle, having suffered with ankle problems last season and earlier in pre-season. The former Rangers man had looked in a fair bit of pain but eventually returned to action.
Three minutes later, following a quickly-taken free-kick, Aluko turned his man and drove for goal but mishit his shot well wide.
Town had been the better side since the break but in the 49th minute Werder almost went back in front. Woldemade showed quick feet on the right of the box and cut inside to Cimo Röcker, who deftly took the ball across his man and cleverly back-heeled towards goal but Burns did well to stop on the line.
With two minutes left on the clock, the Blues swapped Aluko and Edwards for Leon Ayinde and Ryan Carr.
Soon after coming on, Carr, who joined Town from Carlisle in January, fed Ladapo, who struck a shot from distance over the bar.
That was the final action of the match with the referee’s whistle confirming that the Innsbruck Cup will be coming back to Suffolk, the Blues having picked up four points to Werder’s two and Leipzig’s one, the match between the German sides having ended 0-0.
The Tivoli Stadion appears to be a lucky ground for Town, the Blues having been victorious in the 1978/79 European Cup Winners’ Cup second round tie against SW Innsbruck when they drew 1-1 after extra-time to claim a 2-1 aggregate victory.
Town were much better in the second half and had begun to threaten when Leigh scored his well-taken goal.
Manager Kieran McKenna will be pleased with the way his side turned the game around and overall with the two performances in their final pre-season programme against top level German opposition.
Town’s next action is their return to the Championship at Sunderland a week on Sunday.
Town: Slicker, Donacien, Edmundson, Burgess, Leigh, Evans (c), Taylor, Burns, Aluko (Ayinde 58), Edwards (Carr 58), Ladapo. Unused: Bradshaw.
Werder Bremen: Zetterer, Jung, Stage, Kownacki, Njimah, Salifou, Schmidt, Burke, Woldemade, Gross, Röcker.