Experience tells Town goalkeeper Bartosz Bialkowski that there is nothing to be gained from dwelling on an error like the one that presented Cardiff with a gift goal last weekend.

The giant Pole was punished for dropping a corner and allowing the Bluebirds to take the lead and although Luke Varney later equalised there was no escaping the fact that a 1-1 scoreline meant Mick McCarthy’s men had shipped two points.

But such is the life of a goalkeeper that the ex-Southampton and Notts County man pulled off a stoppage-time save from a Sean Morrison header to deny the visitors, already reduced to 10 men, a dramatic winner.

Bialkowski said: “As a keeper there are highs and lows and you just have to get on with it because it is part of the job.

“More often than not a mistake by a goalkeeper is highlighted because the ball ends up in the back of the net.
“There is nothing else you can do but accept it, move on and play with confidence.

“I suppose you could say that’s the beauty of being a goalkeeper. It’s how you recover after a mistake, how you deal with it, that’s the most important thing.

“Experience is a big help because a young guy might not be able to stop thinking about it, right through the week until the next game. A more senior goalkeeper, though, will accept it and move on.”

Bialkowski will retain his place for the visit to lowly Wigan tomorrow and knows it is a game in which Town would benefit greatly from all three points — and not just because it would extend the gap between them and the second-bottom Latics to 10 points.

He added: “I would gladly take a scrappy 1-0 win because that is all we need to set us off on a good run.

“This is definitely a winnable game and we need to stay positive and keep it simple. If we do the basic things correctly I am sure we will be okay.”

Meanwhile, Bialkowski put his day off to good use this week by making a Christmas wish come true for young Town fan Max Jasper, who wrote to Santa in the hope of meeting his hero.

Imagine Max’s surprise when there was a knock on the door at his house and there stood Bialkowski, complete with his boots and ready to join the youngster for a kickabout in his back garden.

The pair hit it off so well that the keeper has invited Max and his family to be his guests at Portman Road for the Boxing Day fixture against Fulham.

Bialkowski said: “I spotted Max’s letter on Twitter so I thought it would be good to pay him a visit with my own children. He’s a very talented young player and hopefully my visit will encourage him.

“Christmas is a special time, especially for families, and it made me realise how privileged I am with my position here, so it was lovely to give something back.”

Photo: TWTD

dugoutdave added 08:04 - Dec 16 A good man is Bart as mm would say. Seriously though, this man shows that he's a consumate professional and a really kind, thoughtful person. Hard to find these days in football. Well done Bart.
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brian_a_mul added 08:22 - Dec 16 I completely agree, in fairness MM has kept together a great group full of good characters: Chambo, Skuse, Mings (when he was here), Bart, Gerks, Tommy etc. Even unruly youngsters like Benyu are learning from the influence :) A lot to be said for that IMO :)
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bucket99 added 08:53 - Dec 16 That's a good story. Nice one Bart!
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vanmunt added 08:54 - Dec 16 Yeah, I won the player lottery this week... is there a prize?
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Vizslaraner added 10:09 - Dec 16 Let's be honest, if it wasn't for Bart we would be even lower. He has saved us more than anyone over the last year. My fear is someone coming in for him in January and ending up with Different Class Gerks in goal. God help us! Top keeper and a class act of the pitch.
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BrettenhamBlue added 11:41 - Dec 16 If it wasn't for Bart we would be bottom of the league. Only game we would have won all season was the opening one against Barnsley. He didn't have a lot to do that day, he's been very busy ever since.
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peewee added 16:51 - Dec 16 Bart if he makes a mistake it's out of form but did worry gerken was going to be put in goal.
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