Town keeper Bartosz Bialkowski carried off the Supporters Club's Player of the Year award for the second season running among a number of other gongs at this evening’s Player Awards evening in the Sir Bobby Robson Suite at Portman Road.

Bialkowski fought off competition from Tom Lawrence, who finished second, to claim the award he also won in 2015/16.

The 29-year-old was delighted to retain the Harwich Rosebowl: “I’m really chuffed and pleased about it. It’s been an amazing year for me and to win back to back is obviously great.”

Bialkowski joins Kevin Beattie, Terry Butcher and Matt Holland in winning the award twice, while John Wark won it on a record four occasions.

The Blues keeper also picked up the Junior Blues Player of the Year and the Platinum Supporters Award (formerly the Away Match Passport Holders Award), while Tristan Nydam was named the Dale Roberts Academy Player of the Year.

I can't explain how I'm feeling atm!To win Player of the Year 2nd time in a row it's something very special! Would like to thank everyone💙💙💪 pic.twitter.com/bzIucJI2NR– Bartosz Bialkowski (@1BartMan1) April 29, 2017

Also thanks for all the msgs and support over the season!!! You've been amazing and I see u next week at forest away🙏🙌🙌🙌– Bartosz Bialkowski (@1BartMan1) April 29, 2017

Earlier in the evening, which was hosted by BBC Radio Suffolk's Mark Murphy, manager Mick McCarthy admitted he hadn't been looking forward to speaking after chants calling for him to move on during the lap of appreciation.

However, the Blues boss was gratified to receive a warm welcome and reiterated his intention to remain with Town next season.

“You might understand if I said here was the last place I wanted to come and stand and speak today," he said.

“As we were walking around the pitch at the end of the game, I didn’t realise I was so popular. For all those that find me so popular, I’m just going to let you know that I will be back here next year, even if that’s just to annoy the people who don’t like me.

“As ever when I come into this event I get quite humbled by it, and probably the lads are the same. We walk in, with our shoulders hunched a little bit, we’re not sure what kind of reception we’re going to get after a disappointing performance.

“I’m always humbled by the reception and the support that we all get and I think the interaction between the players, the staff and the fans is a special bond at Ipswich and it’s something that should be nurtured and should be continued. Thank you for your support and thank you for how you’ve received us tonight.”

The Blues manager subsequently asked his players to give fans a round of applause.

As is the tradition at the Awards Evening all the players who have made full debuts during the season were given salvers with loanees Toumani DIagouraga and Emyr Huws and Jordan Spence and Steven Taylor, who are on a short-term contracts, all saying they'd like to stay.

Asked whether he'd like to come back next season on-loan striker Dominic Samuel joked that manager McCarthy "has my number".

Photo: TWTD

surgery added 20:36 - Apr 29 Over to you Dino
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martin587 added 20:37 - Apr 29 Very well done Bart.That says something about the team when your goalkeeper is voted player of the year Two Years running.
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NoCanariesAllowed added 20:40 - Apr 29 Following in the footsteps of John Wark, Kevin Beattie and Terry Butcher in taking the award in successive seasons. Good company. Shame we know that in many respects, as good as Bart has been over two seasons, his retention of this prize is more reflective of how underwhelming the rest of the current team is. Not like those past teams at all.
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Alfiesboys added 20:40 - Apr 29 Nice one..... well done....
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ChestnutSe added 20:43 - Apr 29 Congrats Bart, pretty close between you and Tom I think but two on the trot is impressive going
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jas0999 added 20:48 - Apr 29 Our stand out performer. Won us games. Kept us in games. Kept the score down. Well done. Lawrence did very well, but not for a few weeks now, plus he isn't our player!
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dirtydingusmagee added 20:50 - Apr 29 .....by a country mile, oustanding keeper all season, we would be league one without his efforts this season .As has already been said, it is an indication of how things have been .And as No Canaries said he is in a special place in the club records now Well done Bart ,
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Blandford added 21:13 - Apr 29 Congratulations Bart. Please stick around to complete the hat-trick next season - I fear we will need you more than ever.
8

stowby added 21:29 - Apr 29 This what happens when you play not to loose, as all the pressure is put at the back, stifling forward play! Bart deserves this without a doubt, but why o why 2 years running. We must setup to win and not match the apponents style in the belief that we will be victorious, as our position in the league proves this is wrong, as well as at least 70% of supporters views. Let's have an attacking Winner + Bart!

6

lightingblue added 21:33 - Apr 29 A goalkeeper is only as good as the people in front of him. He should be good. Plenty of practice from the pure cods whollop in front of him. Rumour has it that Bart didn't need a warm up before the game. He first ten minutes of every game warmed him up enough to last most goalkeepers 10 matches. Goodnight god bless. Even my boys team aren't that bad!!!
3

12th_Man added 21:38 - Apr 29 Sold in the summer
2

Mark added 23:52 - Apr 29 Congratulations Bart, richly deserved. For all our other woes, we do have an outstanding goalkeeper and we can thank him for retaining our Championship status this season.
10

iaintaylorx added 00:00 - Apr 30 Fully deserved and we're beyond lucky to have him. Not biased, but deserves keeper of the season too, but because we are mid table, he doesn't get noticed. Please stay Bart, you're the man!
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battyblue added 04:19 - Apr 30 Well done Bart good luck for the future that you thoroughly deserve .
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Sam added 06:01 - Apr 30 Ipswich have let you down Bart. A magnificent Keeper who deserves to play in the Premiership.
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JCBLUE added 09:29 - Apr 30 MM comments - how to win friends & influence people ..... NOT! Replace the arrogance with a little humility!!
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Taricco_Fan added 09:34 - Apr 30 Well done Bart, thoroughly deserved. Though I fear I will soon be wishing you the best of luck at your next club.
2

prebbs007 added 09:48 - Apr 30 Coming back if only to annoy those who don't like you So typical of a deluded stubborn dinosaur. The reason so many fans have walked away is you. The reason so many are not renewing is you your style your selections your ineptitude. Do the right thing walk away and give us our club back. No one wants you or your dross players here.
8

Daleyitfc added 10:06 - Apr 30 The Supporters' Club is just another bunch of clueless sycophants, similar to most of the shareholders, and everyone at Radio Stuff-it : if McCarthy announced he was going to play 2 goalkeepers and 9 defenders in each match next year their reaction would be "Quite right : worth a go" and then there would be another huge round of applause and baa-ing from this group of sheep.

4

Seasider added 15:44 - Apr 30 Jas,lets hope he is still our player next year.Like you am at a loss to know whats going to happen to our beloved club. But this is about Bart,and congrats to a chap that comes over very well,and is a great keeper.
5

MicksZzzTactics added 18:17 - Apr 30 Congrats King Bart! You thoroughly deserved the award ... again! , due not only to your very visible high class goal-keeping in general ,but obviously very much due to your quite mind-boggling (as well as a bit scary too actually! :-) lol) no less than 24 I believe fan voted 'Man Of The Match' honors ! Thus while it might sound just a tad simplified or even a bit skewed possibly, the main consensus among the vast majority of our fans is still is the one that without you and Mr. Lawrence's substantial & crucial contribution in the combined both ends of the field .... uhuuu! we would SURELY be going to -- seen from a pure football perspective --- truly ultra "exotic" places like Oldham, Bury and Rochdale next season! Alas thank you... both ... very very much!

6

therein61 added 18:53 - Apr 30 Very well deserved Bart without you we would be in div1 at 26 your best years as a keeper are coming up, and as a result the money men will want to cash in on our only saleable asset it is sadly only to presume then that you will be sold to the highest bidder, and that will be sanctioned by our deluded manager who is just busting a gut to get his mate Gerks back between the posts and building from the back build our side around him and the great Skuse(and other past their sell by date favourites) to take a spectacular dive to relegation because that is the only thing that this so called great manager(his own opinion) is capable of. R.I.P IPSWICH TOWN FC.

5

Dissboyitfc added 19:47 - Apr 30 Congratulations Bart, so very well deserved, but i wish it wasnt you we had to rely on to keep us in this division. I do fear that the forest game may well be your last for itfc. I am so gutted MM is going to be allowed to stay, nothing good will happen with him at the club. He thinks it funny we are annoyed with him for what he is doing to our Club, ( Evans is also to blame) So he wants to stay and annoy us further. Where is his self respect, so many want you gone. MM OUT!!!!!

4

BrettenhamBlue added 03:46 - May 1 Well deserved for Bart, but how many other clubs have had their GK win back-to-back Player of the Season Award? Sure he'll win it next year also if he stays, making it a hatrick!
3

midastouch added 10:32 - May 1 Bart is the best goalkeeper I've ever seen in an Ipswich shirt in my opinion. Although Paul Cooper sure was great at saving penalties. The guy who went to Rangers was good too (can't remember his name now but he was good and saw him save a couple of penalties). I wasn't a huge fan of Richard Wright, I thought he was a bit over rated and look at him at Arsenal. He gave us some great matches mind you (so he is still remembered fondly) such as the Play Off final but Bart is a superior shot stopper in my humble opinion. Craig Forrest was a good shot stopper even if he did let 9 in against Man Utd with zero help in front of him on that awful day! Begovic was also good when we had him on loan. Some of our goalkeepers haven't been great but you tell me a team that hasn't had a few dodgy keepers down the years. Worst goalie ever by a country mile, Gary Bailey. He was the reason Man Utd never won a title during the 80s! He did save some penalties against Ipswich in the 6 nil thumping but after that it was all downhill for Gary Bailey. When I was younger I didn't realise how bad he was but now I'm older and I've looked back at lots of old match replays and I just can't believe how bad Bailey was! My mate is a Man Utd fan and when I showed him the old footage he just couldn't believe how bad he was, he agreed that he was the reason the best they could manage in that era was the FA Cup. The Utd defenders back then had no confidence in him at all, defenders would regularly stand on the line to try and bail him out. Gary Bailout! He would make the occasional good save but he would make far more mistakes and his positioning for crosses was so bad! They called him Dracula because he just couldn't handle crosses of any description! Just watch the classic Arsenal 3-2 Man Utd FA Cup final to get a reminder lol! Some of you will remember Alan Sunderland who we had the good fortune of having at Ipswich also, scoring against Utd in that one. Those Were The Days! :-)

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