Town boss Kieran McKenna says full focus can now finally turn to Sunday’s East Anglian derby against Norwich City at Portman Road.
The Blues boss has been quick to dismiss suggestions of having one eye on the match as the build-up for the first meeting of the season intensified over recent weeks with other fixtures still to play.
But following the 1-1 draw against Bristol City at Ashton Gate, McKenna says the players have now begun to speak about this weekend’s much-anticipated meeting with the Canaries.
"They certainly will be,” he said. "There’s not been any mentions of it before tonight but it was mentioned in the dressing room afterwards by the lads.
"We can get the journey over and I think we’ll all wake up and look forward to a really good game on Sunday, a really big game and one to really be excited for.”
This year features even more added spice in light of midfielder Marcelino Núñez’s controversial switch to the Blues from Norwich during the summer transfer window.
The Chilean international, who joined for an initial £7.5 million, started for the first time during the draw with Bristol City, and McKenna was asked whether it will be a difficult decision for him to play against his former club on Sunday.
"Not just for Núñez, we have that a lot of weeks, to be honest, because we’ve signed quite a few players from different Championship clubs,” he said.
"Sam Szmodics coming to his old club tonight, Sam Szmodics was at his old club at Blackburn. George Hirst scored last game against Portsmouth.
"When we got to Hull we’re going to have some players, when we go to West Brom, we’re going to have half a team!
"It’s not just that. Of course, you weigh it up. I don’t think anyone can have extra motivation for a derby, but any time any player’s going back to their old club, you weigh up the fact that it’s a special game for them and the fact that maybe there’s an extra half a percent that you can squeeze out of a player.
"But also the fact that you have to analyse the game and the opponent and pick what you think are the best strengths and the best partnerships for that game.
"We won’t treat this one any differently on Sunday, it’ll be about taking all things into consideration and picking what we think is the best team and the best bench.”
It has been 16 years since Town last beat their arch-rivals, a statistic that is not lost on anybody associated with either side heading into this weekend’s Portman Road meeting.
McKenna added: "We haven’t spoken about it yet, we certainly will over the next few days. I think all the players already do, but certainly the new players, they know the significance of it for the supporters.
"The club’s done some brilliant things over the last few years, but we’d like to get that derby win for the supporters and we’re going to give everything we can to get that on Sunday.”