 Saturday, 7th Aug 2010 08:00 New full-back Mark Kennedy says the chance of working with Roy Keane and good past experiences at Portman Road were behind his decision to join the Blues. The 34-year-old Irishman was paraded at a press conference on Thursday along with fellow new signing Márton Fülöp, having signed a two-year contract last week after Town and Cardiff had agreed a £75,000 fee. Kennedy won many of his 34 Republic of Ireland caps alongside Keane and says that playing for his old team-mate was part of the lure of Town: “First and foremost the opportunity for me to work under Roy as a manager was of huge importance. “The club speaks for itself and its history speaks for itself, but having the chance to come and work with Roy at the stage I’m at in my career is good opportunity. “But it’s important to stress that it’s not just about coming to play for Roy but coming to play for Ipswich Town as well.” The former Millwall, Liverpool, Manchester City and Wolves man says he is well aware of the intensity surrounding his new boss: “I’ve only been here a week and I know everybody is absolutely fascinated with Roy Keane, but he’s an everyday guy like everyone else. He’s a winner, a leader, he wants to be successful and that’s why he’s here and I’m no different.” Kennedy says he has always enjoyed his trips to Ipswich with his previous clubs: “I’m not going to give you any bull because there are plenty of places I hated going for different reasons, but it’s a place I always enjoyed going. The pitch is always fantastic, the atmosphere’s great. I’ve had a couple of decent results here as well, which was enjoyable!
“It’s certainly one of the grounds you look forward to coming to, you’re aware it’s always a good game of football, Ipswich are renowned for playing attractive football.” And so far he has been impressed with his new team-mates: “We played Bury and we played West Ham, a full strength team, on Saturday. We created a lot of chances, it looks like we’ve got great energy in the team, certainly there’s fantastic quality and, while I can’t speak for the manager, I’m sure he’ll be keen to maybe bring in a couple more faces to add strength and depth to the squad. “But so far, from what I’ve seen — and from when I played against Ipswich last year with Cardiff - there’s a lot of potential there.”
The Dubliner thanked Cardiff boss Dave Jones for allowing him to make the move: “The gaffer at Cardiff was honest enough call me in and tell me there had been interest and that the ball was in my court. “I can’t thank him enough for giving me the opportunity to work with him at Cardiff — I also worked with him at Wolves - but being kind enough also to give me the opportunity to come to Ipswich, which was something I wanted to do. “When he spoke to me about it I told him I’d be really keen to do something with Ipswich and I’m incredibly grateful to Dave for that.” Despite leaping at the chance of joining Town, Kennedy says he was very happy with the Bluebirds: “Cardiff was a fantastic club. I had two great years there and had a fantastic rapport with the manager, the players and the fans.
“It’s a fantastic club and I can highly recommend it to anybody, but the flip side of the coin is that this was something which really, really interested me.” Kennedy, who recalls some talk of him possibly joining the Blues from Manchester City back in George Burley’s time as manager, says he will look to help Town’s younger players progress: “I’ve had a half-decent career and it’s something I’m incredibly grateful for. “If I can pass that on to younger lads and try and explain to them what you can achieve, the goals you can have, the enjoyment you get out of it, I will. It’s the best job in the world, I’m sure you’ve heard Roy saying that a few times, he still says it to us now. “It’s something you shouldn’t take for granted. I’m into my 19th year as a pro and long may it continue.” Supporters have noted the left-back’s vocal encouragement of his team-mates in his two friendlies with the Blues so far, something he says has developed with age: “I wasn’t really a talker when I was younger, you get stuff like that with experience. “You get to read the game a little bit better and if I can help anybody out, like I was helped by players in my career, that’s part and parcel of being an older pro at a club. You don’t need a captain’s armband to be leader and we want 11 leaders on the pitch.” The 5ft 11in tall former winger says fans oughtn’t to be concerned about his age: “I’m 34-years-old, I’ve played a lot of games in my career, played a lot of games for Cardiff week-in, week-out and the Championship is a demanding league. If I felt I couldn’t do it, then I wouldn’t be here. “I want to prove to people I’m good player. I’ve still got ambitions and goals and if I felt I couldn’t achieve them or be a positive influence on other people, I would have retired.” As for his debut at the Riverside today, Kennedy says Town have to get points from fancied sides like Boro if they themselves are to be contenders: “It’s 46 games and if you want to get promoted you have to get results at places like Middlesbrough.” Overall, he is optimistic for the first of his two years with the Blues: “I’m hopeful for a very positive and successful season.” Photos: ITFC/TWTD
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