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Royle Praise for Strikers - Ipswich Town News

Town boss Joe Royle had praise for strikers Pablo Couñago and Darren Bent after the pair scored the goals which took the Blues to the top of the table.

Royle said he was pleased to get a win out of a tough game: "I am delighted with three points. We were the better side but Millwall defended well. Their two centre-halves were resolute and they proved hard to break down.

"We needed a bit of inspiration and Pablo Couñago came off the bench to provide that for us.

"It looks as though his season has started because he made one and scored the other. Pablo is available on a free transfer but if he plays like this he can be a potent force for us.

"I thought that if we got the ball to his feet he might cause problems for Millwall, but I hardly expected him to provide an old-fashioned flick-on for our first goal.

"I have probably ignored him at times when he thinks he should have played. If he plays like this then I cannot ignore him and I hope he picks up his game from here."

Royle says that Bent is at the top of his game: "He cannot stop scoring and is having a great time.

"Recent Premiership interest has been a great boost to his confidence. He is electric at the moment and is learning the game at the same time and not just running about."

The Town boss is pleased to have got the win but isn't getting carried away: "Ray Wilkins watched us against Wolves so I expected he'd be cooking up something to hold us. Last season this was a match we could easily have lost.

"Of course I am happy to be top of the table but we've got to translate our home form into a very tricky game at Stoke on Tuesday."

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