The Blues' home game with Sheffield Wednesday remains 0-0 at the break.

Boss Mick McCarthy returned to the Town team which beat Newcastle United and Burton Albion prior to the much-changed side which lost 1-0 at Rotherham last week.

Bartosz Bialkowski was back in goal with Jordan Spence at right-back, Myles Kenlock on the left and skipper Luke Chambers and Christophe Berra at the heart of the defence.

Cole Skuse, Emyr Huws and Grant Ward were in midfield with Tom Lawrence, David McGoldrick and Freddie Sears up front. For the Owls, ex-Blues striker Jordan Rhodes was among the substitutes.

Youngsters Pat Webber, a 17-year-old left-back who was on the bench three times earlier in the season having joined the academy from Worthing last summer, and midfielder Flynn Downes, 18, who scored twice for the U23s in Monday’s 6-0 victory over Coventry, were included in a 23-man squad ahead of the match but not named in the final 18.

The play-off-chasing visitors were first to threaten, Spence nodding a Jack Hunt cross from the right behind ahead of Daniel Pudil, then Adam Reach hit a low shot wide.

Town should have gone in front in the sixth minute from their first chance of the match. Sears crossed from the right and the ball reached Lawrence but the on-loan Leicester man, who scored his first Blues goal in the 2-1 win at Hillsborough in November, hit his shot straight at Owls keeper Keiren Westwood.

Soon after, Lawrence slammed a freekick into a Wednesday wall from not far out side the area on the left.

The Owls subsequently enjoyed a lot of the ball without creating an opportunity, while the Blues looked like they were capable of causing danger on the break.

Neither side was able to carve out a significant opening until the 26th minute when, following a corner on the left, McGoldrick curled a low shot towards the far corner of the net from the edge of the area which Westwood punched away.

There was a scare for the Blues on the half hour when Westwood cleared from deep as Town looked to break and almost sent Pudil in on goal but Chambers just managed to get enough on the ball to divert it away from the former Watford man and Bialkowski claimed at his feet.

As the half moved into its final five minutes the Blues were having more of the ball but with neither keeper having been tested further.

On 40 Skuse picked up the game’s first yellow card for pulling back Barry Bannan as the former Villa man broke after dispossessing Ward.

From the resultant freekick the ball fell to Glenn Loovens, whose shot deflected off Spence and behind, off a hand according to some Wednesday players and their fans but not late replacement referee David Coote.

Wednesday began to put the Blues under pressure in the final scheduled minutes of the half, Skuse turning a dangerous low ball across the six-yard box from Steven Fletcher behind, before Town began to press the visitors in two minutes of injury time.

The goalless scoreline was a fair reflection of the half at the break, Wednesday having had most of the ball but with Bialkowski still to make a serious save.

Town had created the better of the game’s few chances with Lawrence having failed to take his early opportunity and Westwood forced to make the game’s only taxing stop from McGoldrick’s effort from distance.

Owls fans will have been happy enough at half-time with seventh-placed Leeds 3-1 down at home to Norwich, a situation if still the same at the end of the second half would confirm their play-off place.

Town: Bialkowski, Spence, Chambers (c), Berra, Kenlock, Skuse, Huws, Ward, Lawrence, McGoldrick, Sears. Subs: Gerken, Pitman, Dozzell, Moore, Emmanuel, Rowe, Samuel.

Sheffield Wednesday: Westwood, Hunt, Pudil, Lees, Loovens (c), Bannan, Lee, Wallace, Reach, Fletcher, Hooper. Subs: Wildsmith, McManaman, Rhodes, Semedo, Sasso, Nuhiu, Forestieri. Referee: David Coote (Nottinghamshire).

Photo: TWTD

Ipswich Town Polls