New boss Mick McCarthy is delighted to be back in management but admits that he had some qualms about taking over at a club which is currently bottom of the Championship. McCarthy, whose appointment on a contract until the summer of 2015 along with his Wolves assistant Terry Connor, was confirmed this morning, was paraded at a Portman Road press conference late this afternoon.

McCarthy said he was pleased to be back in football nine months after be sacked by Wolves: “It’s great. For now! I’ll tell you on Saturday night at five o’clock! It feels good, I’m delighted to be back. It’s a good club, it has a good feel about it.

“I did [have qualms about taking on a team bottom of the Championship]. I would have liked another job in the Premier League, but I don’t think that’s going to happen.

“I needed a rest away from it as well. I realised that and then I got this opportunity. It’s a fantastic club with a great fanbase with a terrific history to it.

“What it hasn’t got at the moment is a particularly good team, that’s the bottom line. Paul’s a mate of mine, as is Hutch, I’m certainly not going to be disrespectful to them, they would say the same — if you’re bottom of the league there are problems.”

He admits that he joins Town at a low ebb with thoughts of returning to the top flight a long way from his mind: “Premier League? I’m talking about staying in the Championship for now. I think that the first job is to get them out of the bottom three and stay up, that’s going to be a task in itself.

“Looking at Marcus Evans’s track record, he’s backed every manager he’s worked with and I think if he sees that it’s going in the right way, and it’s being run in the right way, then he’ll back me as well and give me an opportunity to progress.

“But let’s deal with the real issue at hand — we’re bottom of the league, struggling like hell at the minute, let’s try and get them out of that position first.”

He added: “In the short-term we need six points to get out of that. We’ve got two away games, it might take a while to do that.

“We’ll have some good days and we’ll have some bad days but what we’ve got to do is keep focused and confident that we can get out of there in the short-term. And that’s the only way we can push on is by getting out of there.”

He says he was headhunted by Town and admits to more than a sharp intake of breath when he was first contacted: “I didn’t apply for it so obviously yes. I thought ‘Oh shit’ actually to start with when I got the call. I saw where they were and saw they were being beaten."

He admits that the loan situation isn’t ideal: “There’s a problem with loan players I think.

"I do think that is an issue. I hear one of the loan players, Richie Wellens, is saying they don’t care enough. It’s not perfect to have so many loan players but there’s some good talent."

McCarthy says if he senses the same as Wellens, those players won’t be around for long: “If they don’t care, they won’t play, but everybody looks you in the eye and says ‘I really want to play’. Performances tell more than any other words do.

“I’m sad that some of my team now would be casting aspersions against others. But it’s interesting that it’s a loan player that comes in and says it because he’s from outside, a fresh voice, another one that can perhaps see the wood from the trees a little bit. But I hope I don’t see that they don’t care.”

As he prepares for his first game in charge at Birmingham on Saturday the 53-year-old says he’s started to go through recordings of previous games and says some were worse than others: “I don’t know what the root cause [of Town's struggles] is.

"I’ve had a look at a couple of DVDs today. One was horrendous against Sheffield Wednesday, should have watched it on Halloween that one.

“Looking at the Brighton and Derby games, they actually played all right and had chances. It’s bizarre. I’ll get a chance to look at a few more and I’ll see it for myself on Saturday."

Regarding what team he'll play in that game, he is still to make up his mind: “St Andrew’s is a tough place to go and play. A couple of the young ‘uns have impressed me today in training. I’ll see, I’ll have a look tomorrow and make a decision on it.”

Photo: Action Images

FormerlyChico added 06:59 - Nov 2 If he has a 3.5 year contract it goes up to 2016 not 2015.
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IvorFeeling added 09:01 - Nov 2 In Edinburgh this week so couldn't listen to the press conference but having read all of the news feed and quotes from the press conference I am struck. This guy is class, respectful, knows how to deal with the press and know how to manage a group of footballers. It may not happen straight away but I trully believe this is turning point. Let's aviod relegation this year, anything else is a bonus when you have a GD of -16 and then crack on. Getting really buzzed up for Saturday and actually not dreading it for a change!! COYB

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WorcesterBlue added 09:03 - Nov 2 I know quite a few Wolves fans over here and they really rate Mick and feel they should have been more patient with him (other than the deluded ones who think Wolves should be challenging Man Utd and we've got a few of those ourselves!). Not all hoof ball either though he puts effort before style and he's got an eye for a bargain too (Jarvis, Kightly etc). Not my No. 1 choice but actually better than we could have hoped for I think. Afraid it's bye bye JET, Chops etc - actually not before time.

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Beforeyouwereborn added 09:15 - Nov 2 Anybody hear MM on Chris Evans' show on radio 2 earlier - confirms what I posted previously about MM being a media man's dream. Liked the comment about Norwich being closer to Mars than Ipswich! I have seen flattering and unflattering comments on the Wolves fanzine sites, but they generally seem to still hold MM in high regard, most are hoping that he will 'raid' them and take their 'duff' players but I trust not, we have enough at the moment!

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CaptainAhab added 09:16 - Nov 2 At the risk of getting totally carried away before a ball has even been kicked under MM, I genuinely believe we'll look back on our dreadful start to the 12/13 season as the best thing that could have happened to ITFC. Good bloke as he was, Jewell was never the man to take this club forwards, so now finally for the first time in years, it feels like we have a manager who might be able to bring the good times back to PR. This season is going to be difficult, no doubt about it, it,ll take a while to get the confidence back and we may well be in a relegation dog fight all season. I'm confident we will survive though and then next season, who knows? With patience and a bit of financial backing MccCarthy is our best bet to take us back where we belong.

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bluefishx added 09:16 - Nov 2 Definitely deserves his money if he has to clean up PJs big job which he's already got on his hands.
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byronitfc added 09:17 - Nov 2 I swear Clegg & McCarthy are twins...
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Southamptonblue added 09:27 - Nov 2 Do McCarthy and Clegg go to the same barbers?
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Morgan added 09:45 - Nov 2 'Big job on his hands' :-)
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powley added 09:46 - Nov 2 Good appointment . Keep us up Mick and then take us up in 2013/14
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R_LAMB3 added 10:04 - Nov 2 I was watching McMarthy on sky sports news last night and one minute he was talking to people in his suit and tie and the next he was out on the training ground with his assistant in track suits with players. This tells me these guys are raring to get started and they are not here just for the money . They have looked at dvds already and have said some of youngsters have impressed them these guys are on the ball. Mick is a honest man he openly admitted he was looking for a premier league job and we are verry lucky to have him I have a good feeling about our new managerment team and i think they are in for long haul the same as they were at wolves and they will bring the good times back to ipswich I cant wait for the january tranfers and see some new blood here and not a team of loan players GOOD LUCK MICK YOUR THE MAN

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Frase1987 added 10:28 - Nov 2 err Liastro_3109 (the first comment) Why have you copied and pasted what I said on another thread?
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danlist11 added 10:41 - Nov 2 Good luck Mick!
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StowTractorBoy added 10:59 - Nov 2 Welcome aboard Mick - began to wonder if this was going to happen but delighted it has as for me he is the best available. Make no mistake he has a mammoth task to keep us in the Championship this season not least because the whole Division gets stronger every year and there is not a week that goes by when many results do not go the way you expect. If Mick pulls us out of the mire it will be a massive achievement but I am not expecting a quick recovery more a nailbiting end to the season and hopefully one that will go our way. As for an earlier post reference the scum in my opinion there is no way they will go down so it could be a long wait before we play them again. we can live in hope though.

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sgtlargent added 11:05 - Nov 2 Finally, someone to cut the crap. Chopra, JET, Edwards, Drury, etc etc, doesn't look like you'l be having it as easy as you like anymore.
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BlackandBlue added 11:49 - Nov 2 He wouldn't have been my choice, but he's our manager now and I fully support him.
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Toepunt added 12:35 - Nov 2 @Frase1987 because it makes him feel better about himself? Find a post from another article that has a high 'Like' count, copy and paste, job done. Just waiting for him to steal my song from the same article!!
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NSL added 12:45 - Nov 2 Brilliant: http://www.thedailymash.co.uk/sport/sport-headlines/ipswich-town-finds-manager-t
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La_Paz added 12:59 - Nov 2 Lots of this speculation about which players will be shown the door is premature to say the least, and in some cases unfair. Chopra is out of shape and has undoubtedly been out of order in recent times, if (and it's a big if) however MM can get him fit and focused he's still a very handy player. JET has all the talent in the world but just doesn't know what to do with it. He's the one I think has potentially most to learn from MM, and who knows with some strong guidance and, yes, the occasional kick up the backside, could be a very important player for us. Certainly not someone you just discard without giving it a good go first. If you ignore the last couple of dire team performances, no-one can question Martin's attitude on the pitch, just his end product. Again, with the right coaching, he could be very useful, although his contract situation may well see him leave sooner rather than later. The most unfair comments IMO are about Carlos, yes we all know he is out of position (often literally) at right-back but he has been one of our most consistent performers through some awful times and always gives 100%. Lumping him in with the non-tryers is wide of the mark. Good management is all about getting the best out of the players you have and with little change possible, at least until January, MM is going to have to show us what he is capable of and do just that.

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Frase1987 added 13:18 - Nov 2 @Toepunt haha, it's such a bizarre thing to do though?
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cowboynickblue added 13:32 - Nov 2 I welcome mick to town, but i think that with this team, half of which dont seem to care i think that by xmas we could still find oursleves in real danger. Hope to god im wrong. Up the town. Please!
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Toepunt added 13:36 - Nov 2 @Frase1987 Not half as bizarre as it getting more likes than your original. Perhaps he put it better than you did?
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