Top scorer Tom Lawrence says the Blues can't perform as they did during Saturday's smash-and-grab 1-1 draw at Barnsley when they take on his former loan club Cardiff City away next weekend.

The on-loan Leicester man, who spent the second half of last season on loan with the Bluebirds, making 11 starts and three sub appearances without scoring, grabbed what was an undeserved point at Oakwell with a goal deep into injury time.

Town, who remain 16th but now only seven points off the relegation zone, have drawn their last six, one off a club record of seven successive stalemates established in November and December 1990.

The Blues, who have won just one of their last 12 in all competitions but are undefeated in eight, have drawn 15 in the Championship so far this season - there are nine games left - with the highest ever the 20 amassed in 2009/10 under Roy Keane.

“I think we’ve got to go there and show how good we are,” Lawrence told Ipswich Player HD looking ahead to the trip to the Cardiff City Stadium. “We can’t perform like that again, and we want the win. We’ll have a rest day [on Sunday] then we’ll be working hard all week.”

Reflecting on the Barnsley game, he said: “We weren’t at our best but we’ll take the point. We got one late on, it was a good way to finish but it wasn’t the performance we wanted.

“I think in the first half we were in the game massively. We conceded a soft goal and then were kind of on the back foot. All credit to the lads, we kept battling and we got the point in the end.”

He added: “All these lads are together and that showed today. It’s a good point at the end of the day.”

The 23-year-old Wales international said manager Mick McCarthy wasn’t pleased with his side’s display.

“He’s not too happy with the performance,” he continued. “We were nowhere near our best, so we’ll take the point.

“When we played Reading and they got a draw out of us I thought we got robbed there, so I think we’ve robbed one here but we’ll take it.

“I think we’ve been due a bit of luck over the last few weeks and now we just need to get the win before the international break.”

Lawrence said his 11th goal for the Blues was probably his simplest: “It was a great ball for me [from Brett Pitman], hopefully he can do a few more of them for me.

“I just ran off the player [Adam Hammill], it’s come through and I slotted it home nicely. It was probably my easiest one here yet. I’ll take them tap-ins all day!”

Town will be without Emyr Huws when they travel to face Cardiff, the midfielder's his parent club.

Barnsley goalscorer Marley Watkins was deflated after his team let the lead he had established in the 58th minute slip in the final moments.

“It feels like a loss, to be honest,” he admitted. “I thought we dominated the game, were the better team.

“I just think we’ve got to kill them off when we got the chances, but we didn’t do that and we got punished. If there’s one goal in it anything can happen and that’s what happened today.”

Looking back on his goal, his eighth of the season the 26-year-old added: “I was happy with the goal but just gutted for the boys because we played well, we should have won the game and we haven’t. It’s a kick in the teeth, we’ve just got to go again next Saturday.

“It was just an inside run, it was a great ball by Matty James, who has been quality since he’s come in.

“I just had to tense up to hold them off and it was a good finish, so happy days. But a bad result, so a bit gutted.”

Watkins was the subject of a £1 million Town offer last August - with interest reported again during the January transfer window - and Blues boss McCarthy didn’t rule out a further move for the Wales-born midfielder or striker, who is out of contract in the summer, when asked last week.

Quizzed on whether he knew much about Town’s interest in the summer window, Watkins said: “No, I just crack on. Once the window closed, and in the window, I just focused on Barnsley, whatever happens happens.

“I’m a Barnsley player so that’s what I focus on, it would be disrespectful not to focus on that.”

Did the interest from Town give him additional motivation on Saturday? “No, you try and give your all every game regardless. It’s just coincidence I’ve scored against the team that was interested in me.”

But he admits that as a player it’s flattering to hear that other clubs are interested in you: “Yes, definitely, you want to play at the highest possible level, so whatever route that is you’ve got to do it.

“But at the end of the day we’re higher than Ipswich and we did have a chance of the play-offs, now it’s really an outside chance. But you just want to play at the highest possible level, any player.”

Meanwhile, the Blues' U23s are in action against Nottingham Forest at Alfreton Town’s Impact Arena this evening (KO 7pm).

Photo: TWTD

blueboy1981 added 18:20 - Mar 13 ........ and yes, we can perform like that - simply because MM knows no other way - never had a Plan B in his life. Not whilst here anyway. Remember:- 'No such thing as a bad point' is the one and only - McCarthy way. It's not what IPSWICH TOWN FC wants, stands for, and / or NEVER has.
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blueboy1981 added 18:23 - Mar 13 ..... what's the odds on us having a single shot on target @ Cardiff ... ?
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Carberry added 18:30 - Mar 13 It may be season ticket sales that decide McCarthy's fate. That revenue is irreplaceable and if Evans sees it drying up he may take action. However the problem is him, is he going to bring in a new manager and give him £20m to rebuild? Of course not. He will want more of the same, survival in the Championship without spending money. Mick has done rather well for him as player sales have meant he hasn't had to put his hand in his pocket for 2/3 years, regardless of the spin that comes out of PR. The stadium has had no investment, the team is poor and we have a new reputation; not the friendliest club playing quality football but the one that provides the least entertainment to its dwindling fan base. I don't see a route out of this mess.

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dukey44 added 18:49 - Mar 13 Can someone please explain why other clubs don't put up with TOSH FROM THEIR MANAGER SO SACK THEM?? Yet don't matter what ours does he STILL HERE??
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dukey44 added 19:27 - Mar 13 Right which player hasn't yet come out to paint over Micks mistakes?
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TimmyH added 19:43 - Mar 13 @jas0999...personally I'd say nearer to 2 years
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cobboldblue added 23:01 - Mar 13 Seasider, very good post but I do not agree with your last paragraph in as much as the points you made before, very well, if I might say, do not lead necessarily to the conclusion that MM out is the answer.
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ipswich1992 added 23:10 - Mar 13 Your right Tom. We conceded so clearly didn't have enough defensive players on the pitch. I'm sure that can be fixed with Hyam coming in for huws. Can't wait.
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shakytown added 08:17 - Mar 14 ipswich1992 The other question is how long will Hyam actually last. Injured or sent off????
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ipswich1992 added 09:28 - Mar 14 Good point shakytown maybe the return of different class Douglass then. Can't contain my excitement.
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MicksZzzTactics added 13:23 - Mar 14 UHUU! Apparently many more "Closet Trumpists" ... as well as inherently humorless ... members of TWTD that I'd originally figured! :-) Simply must be the attached "Donald-esque" meme (image) which is the reason for my -sob sob - depressingly poor voting score! - sob sob - on my previous post here, because imho there are no Essential Non-Factual Elements to the actual contains of the post, aye even so according to my lawyer! :-) That's right folks he has actually seen it! since A) he dropped by a little earlier this day in a different matter B) he is yet another Suffolk local who time permitted USED-TO-BE a semi-regular go'er to ITFC's home matches ...but nowadays he can't even be bothered basically due to the Dreaded Dino and his imposed style! Or as he so vividly put it the previous time he and I chit-chatted a little football on the side: If he at gunpoint had to chose between spending several hours of his beloved Saturday afternoon between watching the Dino's bland & hedgehog-like MISREPRESENTATION of football or going to an emergency dentist and getting a deep root-canal job without any use of anesthetics!... well he claimed he much preferred the latter! Lmao! But each to his or hers own as they say.... and in any event I have hereby learned my lesson I.E. in the future I shall try my hardest not to get my trademark silly fun & punchlines across right here on TWTD at the poor expense of 'The Donald'! :-)

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cat added 14:29 - Mar 14 MZT - Its such a furkin shame when good humour is not appreciated!!!, maybe you should become a SAFE poster!! (which are the worst types imo), add a few positive comments to the topic, not forgetting the COYB on the foot of the post, (which will almost guarantee you an extra 5 uppers), then you will become mister popular. 😩
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shakytown added 15:15 - Mar 14 Don't tempt fate 1992 we might get all three at once now wouldn't that be exciting.
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MicksZzzTactics added 17:46 - Mar 14 Spot on! @Cat ... As always I'm deeply appreciative of your own broad sense of humor and firm call for & backing of me to basically carry on being the über sarcastic oddball ...or Court Jester rather! here on TWTD that I quite often thrive to be (and as you are well aware I don't exactly lose any sleep over being down-voted nor about what my total Site Score is or isn't! However occasionally I do really wish that others would please point out what if anything that is not appearing as being purely speculative on my part is UNFACTUAL about some of my inputs rather than just silently leaving me with the clear conviction that they down-voted me ONLY because of what "side" I belong to! Normally this is only in regard to ITFC matters i.e. Anti-MM & Anti-ME .... but now also apparently due to my imho fairly "innocent" political biased satire!). And while I sincerely "intend" to keep my final word from my previous post I.E. that I shall try my hardest not to get my trademark silly fun & punchlines across right here on TWTD at the poor expense of 'The Donald'! .... your positive reply has ehmm vigorously inspired me just enough :-) to have one FINAL sarcastic go at him dammit, him aka the beyond awe-inspiring super powerful President of United States, predominantly in a pictorial based fashion i.e. meme & composite image wise only, mind you! So here we go @cat ... and to the humorless "Closest Trumpists" out there I hereby advice you to NOT READ any further: TODAY's "DID YOU KNOW"! The soft & fluffy-looking 'Flannel Moth' caterpillars (bottom right picture in composite image) are the most venomous caterpillars in North America. They come in a variety of fuzzy colors... and tend to resemble Donald Trump's hair! :-) Other stunning things that bear a stark resemblance to Mr. Trumps' IMMACULATE hair is the so called 'Ear' of a corn (2nd picture on the left in composite image) ... and even the very popular in the 90's tousled-headed 'Troll Dolls'(top left picture in the composite image)! ROFL! And finally especially JUST for you dear @cat... and in sort of honor of your very own username here on TWTD, cat! :-) , here follows a couple of imho exquisite "Feline" Memes: The first is my personal all-time favroite Donald-esque p@ssy-cat meme ....on the specific and otherwise actually very disturbing subject of 'The Donald' being alleged of basically being a 'Serial P@ssy Groper'. (Allegations made not only by an alarming high number of women going back decades, but more much damaging to his defense & basic denial of such and similar allegations is of course the FACT that he himself clearly can be heard bragging & boasting about it on that sensational pre-election by NBC released audio sequence with him & now disgraced Bill Bush on-board 'The Apprentice' Bus!). And the 2nd one here is cryptically sort of revolving around the same part of the woman's anatomy :-), but this one has no connection to 'The Donald' whatsoever but is rather made by an avid Ian Fleming & James Bond fan in honor of the darn "kinkiest" and just most aptly named Femme Fatale EVER in the History of Movies... namely Honor Blackman in the role as creepy Auric Goldfinger's bad azz right hand "P@ssy Galore"! LAUGH dammit!!!

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cat added 19:43 - Mar 14 MZT - I'm laughing fella, you've TRUMPED it this time, that's Quality!!, although not quite up there with the "Laurie Sivell's" testimonial programme, or my all time FAV "Delusion of Grandeur", which buckled me to the point of almost being on the floor.!!!!. It's good to debate to a point, or engage in some banter, specially in these dark times of being associated with the once mighty ITFC, now being destroyed by our Tactical Genius MM. Agree with your point about certain posters who are trigger happy "Snipers" (as I have refereed to them previously) for there love of shooting you down for the sake of it, I however wear my heart on my sleeve, so credit where credits due,! or a ranting sledging, should that be required!!. Ref my tag - cat, it's more to do with being (formally) part of the "goalkeepers union" than being some pussy munching moggie"!!!! although I could belong to either thinking about it!, maybe with hindsight I should have added "THE" before cat, as I'm affectionately known in my own "MANOR"!

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blueboy1981 added 19:52 - Mar 14 Swn98 .......... still stuck in reverse.
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surgery added 20:00 - Mar 14 You little liar. You know you will, Dino will make sure of that.
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MicksZzzTactics added 22:37 - Mar 14 Alrighty @Cat The Goalie :-) I'm thus modestly very pleased that I also this time managed to uncontrollable move some or all of your 43 facial muscles into a laugh! And many thanks for divulging the deeper private-like motives & causes surrounding you btw super cute username & nickname (The Cat) too btw .... but honestly I never really too seriously figured you as an extremist feline-obsessed quote: "p@ssy munching moggie" LOL! .... or even better as East Anglia's very own male counterpart to the globally ultra renowned Eleanor Abernathy!!! :-) .... better known as the beyond eccentric 'CRAZY CAT LADY' in one of the all-time greatest cartoons: The Simpsons! :-)

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surgery added 23:28 - Mar 14 Sorry blueboy, fingers too big at this time of night
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FromIpswichToPhoenix added 01:43 - Mar 15 Who gives a crap if we're undefeated in eight. That's just seven lousy points from seven games. Win three lose four would give us more points. Undefeated with draws does not a promotion push make. This whole thing is sounding like a stuck record.
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