With Town left-back Leif Davis still being assessed after having to be carried off injured halfway through Saturday’s 1-0 win at Sheffield Wednesday, teammate Harry Clarke has echoed the thoughts of all his colleagues, as well as the club’s supporters, that if he is going to miss games, he is not going to be absent for long.
Davis limped off just before half-time having landed awkwardly on his ankle which was then stood on.
"I hope the news about Leif isn’t going to be as bad as we think and that he’s back in the team soon,” said right-back Clarke, who was quick to add that the man who replaced Davis for the second half at Hillsborough, Manchester United loanee Brandon Williams, will be a more than adequate stand-in if required to make his league debut for the Blues tonight at Southampton.
"Brandon came on for Leif on Saturday and was brilliant, so he’s a very capable replacement if we need him again. He’s quick to get forward, which takes the momentum away from the opposition and gets us on the front foot. He can also help to calm things down if the opposition are pushing for a goal, like at the weekend when he did really well.”
Clarke is also full of praise for two other Premier League loanees, although Chelsea’s Omari Hutchinson and Dane Scarlett from Tottenham only have brief experience of the top flight, and are primarily at Portman Road to advance their careers by gaining more senior level game time.
"I basically grew up alongside Omari at Arsenal and we played a few games together,” said Clarke, who joined the Gunners from Town in 2015 before returning in January.
"He’s a very exciting talent and it’s the same with Dane. They have both been brilliant in training and I have no doubts that when they are on the pitch, either starting or coming off the bench, they are both going to do really well.
"They are both sharp in training and they have also settled in well alongside the other lads, both on and off the pitch. When they get their chances I hope they can bring us a few goals.”
After making 80 appearances during temporary stints at Oldham, Ross County, Hibernian and Stoke, it is no surprise to hear that Clarke is a big fan of the loan system.
He said: "I loved going out on loan to the various clubs and the system is great for young guys to get games. When I went to Oldham I was playing proper men’s football and when I went to Scotland it was great to experience the big games against Celtic and Rangers.
"Being on loan at Stoke was another good one for me. I did okay and it probably helped to get me the move back home to Ipswich.
"The culture here, which has been set by the manager and the players, is one that welcomes loan players and encourages them to become a part of what is going on, so I am sure the likes of Omari and Dane will benefit from being with us in a number of ways.
"I had a spell in the Championship with Stoke last season and it has helped me this season. I’ve said it before, but when we dominated games in League One last season, maybe the quality of the opponents wasn’t up to where we are now.
"In the Championship we are coming up against better teams with better players, some of them with Premier League experience, and they are capable of hurting you more quickly, on the counter-attack for example.
"You have to be clinical and 100 per cent switched on all game or we’re going to get hurt, as we have experienced at times already this season.”
Clarke’s partnership on the right flank with Wes Burns is a major factor behind Town’s success so far this season and he added: "The more me and Wes play together, the better our relationship is developing.
"It’s the same with Woolfy at the back; he’s a rock just to the left of me and he’s always switched on and keeps me ticking. It has been a good start for us all over the pitch and let’s hope we can carry it on.”
Asked if he was looking forward to the return of the East Anglian derby fixture against Norwich, who visit Portman Road in December, he was quick to deflect the focus back on to tonight’s trip to the south coast. "We’re all looking forward to Norwich but that one is too far away to be talking about it yet,” he said.
"We focus on one game at the time and right now it’s Southampton tonight. The game against Norwich will come round soon enough.
"We have to show Southampton some respect tonight but there’s no question we’ll be going into the game confident we can win it. I know they’ve had a couple of bad results recently but that doesn’t alter the fact that they have a top manager and plenty of good players.
"They were a Premier League team last season and they still have a lot of Premier League players, so the quality is there.
"If they’re at their best in this game it will be like taking on a Premier League team for us. We’re ready and looking forward to it.”
The game could see Clarke & Co come up against former Town duo Flynn Downes and Ryan Fraser, who was on loan at Portman Road during Mick McCarthy’s time as manager.
"I saw them a few times when they were playing for Town,” said Clarke "Southampton have some brilliant players that are capable of hurting us all over the pitch and we’re going to have to be ready and at it.
"To go away and win against a team who were playing in the Premier League last season would be a great result for us, so hopefully we can put in a good performance and bring back the three points.”