Town boss Mick McCarthy believes any club would suffer from having four of their best and most creative players unavailable for long periods of the season, as the Blues have during 2015/16.

Teddy Bishop made his first senior start of the campaign during Saturday’s 3-2 victory over the MK Dons having suffered with a series of injuries, while David McGoldrick only recently returned to action after the torn hamstring he suffered in December. The Republic of Ireland international's goal during Saturday's game was his first since August.

Ryan Fraser - who was back at Portman Road to join the end of season lap of appreciation following the MK Dons match - has been with his parent club AFC Bournemouth recovering from a hamstring problem since February, the loanee's second stint on the sidelines.

Latterly, Daryl Murphy has been out with a calf problem, having never hit the same heights this season as he did during his remarkable 2014/15 campaign when he top scored in the Championship with 27 goals.

“What’s he scored 10? He got 27 last season. I think missing 17 goals speaks for itself, doesn’t it really?” McCarthy said.

“He is such a difficult player for the opposition to deal with. He not only scores his goals, he creates goals because he is such a threat with his power and pace.”

The Town boss says any team would suffer from having so many of their key players missing with his old club Wolves - who are 14th this season having finished seventh a year ago - having similarly lost players this season.

“It would have an adverse effect on any of them,” McCarthy added. “If you look at where I came from, Wolves, they lost Nouha Dicko [injured], Bakary Sako [joined Crystal Palace], Jordan Graham [injured] and Benik Afobe [joined Bournemouth].

“They’re a similar team and I know their fans aren’t happy and they’re getting a bit of grief.

“Losing those four, they can’t get like for like and I’m afraid I can’t get like for like in terms of loans or signings for Ryan Fraser, Teddy Bishop, Didz and Murph. It’s just not going to happen.

“But I’ve not complained about it because there’s no point. We always make do with the best we’ve got and make the best of it.”

McGoldrick and Bishop have given glimpses of what Town fans have missed while they have been out of action and will hopefully see more regularly next season, but McCarthy says their ability is allied with hard work, which he feels is a sometimes underrated quality.

“When you’re not playing well hard work gets so undermined and it’s almost like it’s a dirty word,” he said.

“I was discussing this earlier. Didzy gets his chances and he plays better when he works hard.

“I was talking about the Bayern Munich team that had the two wingers, Franck Ribery and Arjen Robben, and their coach who won the treble [Jupp Heynckes] left them out.

“When he was asked why he said, ‘Because you don’t track back and you don’t do all the dirty stuff’.

“And we’re talking about Robben and Ribery, who are arguably the best wingers in the world, certainly two of the best.

“What is wrong with it? They have got that sprinkling of stardust, but unless they work they don’t play in the team.

“And I loved that, that a top coach, a top manager who has won everything says to two of them, ‘You don’t run, you’re not playing’ in no uncertain terms.

“And do you know what they did? They started running around and tracking back and doing all the dirty work.

“So, if we can add Didzy and Bish doing all that and their sprinkling of stardust, which they quite clearly have - and we had Ryan Fraser doing it as well, it was lovely to see him today, he’s another one who worked his socks off which was probably why he ended up tearing his hamstring as badly as he did - they would add that but they don’t add it unless they’re running around and working hard like everybody else.”

Photo: Action Images

battyblue added 06:24 - May 2 The penny has finally dropped Mcarthy has realised the supporters aren't happy so he comes out with lame excuses,,every team gets injurys but they just get on with it instead of keep wineing on about it...Murph has not been out that long and never going to repeat last seasons goal total.
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Penguinblue added 07:10 - May 2 Nothing can excuse the tedious hoofball, dire lack of entertainment, negative line ups, favoritism, and contempt for fans shown repeatedly by McCarthy this season. Who else in the world would drop the fans player of the year for the final home game, not to mention our regular MOTM saving us from McCarthy's one dimensional 'tactics' time and again. Every week his favourite 'Chambo' directly or indirectly costs us goals. He was not missed Saturday. Does McCarthy ever mention it. No, but when a youngster makes a minor mistake he points it out. Man management? He is an arrogant disgrace, greatest put down is his own fans find it boring. McCarthy must go - if he was decent he would walk, if Evans/Milne had the balls he would be ssacked. McCarthy OUT

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BlueMachines added 07:10 - May 2 I am still baffled by the claims that he does the best with what he has. No he doesn't! And he hasn't done since the season he kept us up. Too many players out of position and doesn't pick players on merit.
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trncbluearmy added 07:25 - May 2 So quality replacements had to be signed It ain`t rocket science just another lame excuse
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sidtheswan added 07:39 - May 2 If he didn't have so many lame squad players there would have been ready made replacements .
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sidtheswan added 07:41 - May 2 Forgot sorry Fraser was class and sorely missed .
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hampstead_blue added 07:47 - May 2 I have to say that MM is correct. With the 4 injured players in the team on a regular basis we would probably be in the top 2 but definitely the play-offs. I would imagine the discussions this off-season being based around more depth and quality.
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bluercd added 08:02 - May 2 I'm not a fan of MM's style of football, in terms of long ball tactics. It seemed to me that he started the season trying attacking creative play but got burned at Reading and reverted to the simpler methods that he knows how to get results (regardless of the lack of any entertainment value) I agree with him in respect to losing creative players did have an adverse effect on the team, this is not an excuse but a fact, not adding a creative player in Jan was a mistake (a unfortunate repeated one) and the club is keen to ignore / excuse this failure. I just hope that MM evaluates the season, clears some of the deadwood and starts next season as he started this one (and sticks with it when things don't go to plan).

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essex57 added 08:04 - May 2 Penguin blue you really are becoming irrational please take into consideration the facts laid before you 4 of our creative players out for large parts of the season finishing a creditable 8th instead of fighting relegation despite some of the dire football. I believe you and your Ilk would rather see MCCARTHY go and Watch us struggle perhaps get relegated and fight along side those pretty football playing sides like Bolton Charlton Portsmouth ,just to make you right. Wise up he ain't going anywhere so calm down and get behind the Club.

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jas0999 added 08:14 - May 2 Ah, so injuries is now the excuse! Yes, these players have been missed, but we knew about both Bishop and McGoldrick in January and failed to make the necessary arrangement to replace them even on a temporary loan deal. It's not the fans fault we didn't have suitable cover for just four players. The issue here is we signed cheap inadequate players in the summer who turned out not to be good enough. This pre season we need to sign better quality players.

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rfretwell added 08:15 - May 2 Penguinblue you are a prat. Chambers doesn't cost us goals every week and you know it. Dont come on here telling a pack of lies just to support you MM out rant.
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grumpyoldman added 08:22 - May 2 Essex57 & hampsteadblue what both of you have conveniently not mentioned is that the players he talks about have been long term injured or in Murphys case out of form, when the opportunity was there in January to sign replacements either on loan or permanent he said no need because he was happy with the players he had. Now he says he missed four players, surely he has changed his tune to cover up his shortcomings. More MM bovine excrement!

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hoppy added 08:28 - May 2 Yes, "we knew about both Bishop and McGoldrick in January and failed to make the necessary arrangement to replace them even on a temporary loan deal." ...didn't we then sign Pringle and a bit later Feeney, both on loan deals, to try and address the loss of that creativity? Which clubs are going to just loan us their creative players to cover us losing ours?
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essex57 added 08:30 - May 2 Jas0999 did you not hear Milne on sat they tried to buy a player in January and it fell through I have no reason to believe he's lying what some fans need to realise is that whilst we love our club and it's history it's not always the club of choice for some players especially if there's an offer of another club to choose from. This has been a historic problem ,if SBR had persuaded Pat Jennings to come here instead of Arsenal we most probably would of had another League title perhaps more that's history but I believe the problem still exists.

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muccletonjoe added 08:31 - May 2 Players like fraser and bishop are not easy to replace. Some people on here seem to think you just go out shopping and get one in from another team. Obviously it is players like this which similar clubs to ours want to hold onto
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tractorshark added 08:37 - May 2 PenguinBlue is the anti-fan. It's like he copies and pastes his continual bile at McCarthy and then tweaks it to fit whatever story. There's no rationality or constructive criticism. The biggest indictment is I can no longer work out if he is actually an Ipswich fan or a Norwich fan just trolling the site.
2

grumpyoldman added 08:55 - May 2 Hoppy yes we signed Pringle then at the last moment Feeney, how often have they played, not a lot, because to play this type of player MM would have to have had dropped his regulars.
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grumpyoldman added 08:56 - May 2 Hoppy yes we signed Pringle then at the last moment Feeney, how often have they played, not a lot, because to play this type of player MM would have to have had dropped his regulars.
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Mullet added 09:08 - May 2 When facts become excuses eh? How inconvenient. Would these "regulars" be the injured players grumpyoldman? The only time Pringle really got dropped was once the top six was gone and we started blooding our own players.
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Knightsy added 09:24 - May 2 As previous posts have mentioned, we knew that McGoldrick and Bishop were going to be out for most of the season. Yes Ryan Fraser is class, and we missed him, who wouldn't, but he's not ours and we're relying on a loan player. Losing McGoldrick, we should of dipped into the transfer market in January for a replacement. Pitman and Varney wasn't going be able to replace McGoldrick. Freddie Sears being played out of position, he looked great up top last season and at the start of this. Murphy out of form, was never going to hit 27 Goals this season even if he was fit, we should of cashed in on him at the start of the season. The poor signing of Douglas, and replacing the injured Bishop with this Donkey was a joke, I'd prefer to see Tabb instead. All I want to see entertaining football, a style of play no boring hoofball, a few of the youngsters thrown in, players in their correct positions. It that too much to ask ? I'm for a change in Manager, Yes MM has done wonders for the club no doubt about that, but he's not going to take us forward. On the bright side a we've seen Dozzell, Kenlock, Emmanuel...and Bishop and McGoldrick back. MM is set in his ways, and he won't get rid of his favorites in the side, so I doubt you will see the likes of Kenlock and Emmanuel much next season.

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VulpineBlue added 09:28 - May 2 What Mick says here is undoubtedly true. But Sidstheswan is right on the money when he says that to mount a challenge for the top places you need enough quality in depth. We haven't had that this year. The turning point for for me was when Oar and Parr left in close succession- two players who, whilst undoubtedly having their weaknesses, were ball players and could change the tactics/ approach within an individual game. By the time Mick managed to get Liam Feeney and Ben Pringle in the train had already all but departed-and even then he didn't always use them to their best.

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phillo added 09:35 - May 2 Murph has not been injured (only last few weeks) ...... just out of form before that but persisted with when maybe someone else should have been given a go .... Think the debate about whether we should have/tried to strengthen in Jan will rumble on ...... not helped by Micks comments at the time that he didn't need to strengthen as he couldn't get anyone better than we had ! However I would point put the if theses players (with the exception of Fraser which came later & he arguably did do something about by bringing in Pringle/Feeney) were as vital to Micks plans as he now says & indeed are now being talked about as the reason why we play the way we do why weren't at least McG & Bish replaced with 2 other creative players either in the summer or in Jan when it was clear they would be out for a while/the season !! Not sure I am getting the logic here .....

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essexboy added 09:39 - May 2 Come on Lads,your all forgetting one thing.In January when we had this bad run of injuries MM clearly stated he did not need to increase his squad as what he had was good enough.Was he right or wrong to say that.?If they made an offer for a player and really felt he would benefit and vastly improve the squad,then why did we not go all out to sign him.!! So who who once again is right or wrong.I'm not knocking any of your posts as we all want what is best for the club,BUT somebody at the club has to hold there hands up as say " yes I made a mistake."

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BrettenhamBlue added 09:51 - May 2 Essexboy Mick did sign the replacements in case of injuries in August. Step up Mssrs Coke and Toure. The Benson and Hedges of our squad. Coke played 14 times.
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grubbyoik added 10:06 - May 2 If ifs and buts were pots and pans we'd all be selling scrap....
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