Skipper Luke Chambers would rather look ahead with confidence to a brighter future than reflect on the events of last season when Town finished 16th in the Championship, their lowest end-of-season slot for 58 years.

His own future was uncertain and in the January transfer window he even came close to a return to former club Nottingham Forest, where he was the fans’ player of the year in 2011, as Town stalled on a new contract offer before eventually agreeing a two-year extension in the final few weeks of the campaign.

But while he has no desire to dwell on the past, Chambers turned back the clock to admit: “I don’t want to keep going over my situation. That’s gone now and I’m enjoying my football and enjoying being here.

“I just want to be successful and I think we’ve been pretty successful since I’ve been here.

“Last season wasn’t good in anyone’s imagination. It was a tough time, we weren’t winning games and we found it difficult. I didn’t know where I was going to be so, no, it wasn’t a fun six months for me personally.”

While Chambers was looking to secure his immediate future with a fresh deal, owner Marcus Evans was delaying a new offer until it was clear which division Town would be in this season as they were scrapping to avoid the drop into League One.

He added: “I suppose I can see it from that point of view, but that conversation would have been better taking place earlier on than it did actually happen.

“But it’s gone and I’m happy here now. I never wanted to leave. I don’t know whether he wanted me to leave — I don’t think he did but it’s his club and he can run it as he wants to run it.

“But it’s not going to have the best effect on people if somebody who has played every game for virtually five years is allowed to run down his contract until the last few weeks of the campaign.

“Some lads would have been in there sweating and they might have had 18 months left on their contracts, thinking ‘Where does it leave me?’

“At the end of the day, though, you’ve got to earn your place here. I feel I’ve tried to do everything I can to give myself the best opportunity to stay here and that’s all I can do individually. If someone doesn’t want me here as a player, that’s football and we have to deal with it and move on.

“I tried to do that to the best of my ability last year and I think everyone has seen, since I came here, how much I care about the club and how much I care about us winning games.

“I’ll do absolutely everything for anyone round the town, if they want to say hello to me. At the end of the day I’m just a normal guy playing football.”

Chambers played every second of every game in the Championship last season and only missed four league games in his first five seasons at Portman Road, so he found it strange having to sit out the recent clashes with Brentford, Fulham and QPR after picking up an ankle injury in the 4-3 win at Millwall.

He recalled: “It’s been alright in the last couple of games. I took a whack in the ribs at the weekend, it just seems like one thing after another at the minute.

"I’m enjoying being back in the team and I enjoyed playing well with the team at the weekend. We are buoyed by that performance at Elland Road and looking to build on it.

“I felt it when I did it but generally the pain only lasts for a couple of minutes and then you try to get on with it. I was never going to come off — unless somebody’s going to drag me off I’m not coming off. I played on, we got three points and that made it all the sweeter in the end.

“Unfortunately I was out for a few weeks but I didn’t miss too many games thankfully. Originally, I was counting how many games I would miss but it wasn’t that many. I’m grateful to the physios for getting me back as quickly as they have.

“It’s not nice to miss games and I’m not the best spectator. It gave me a different perspective sitting in the stand and watching games but the more you do that the more you want to get back on the pitch. It was a nice break, maybe, but I didn’t enjoy it at all.

“I was here at the club pretty much morning, noon and night, trying to get as fit as possible as quickly as possible. I missed quite a few weeks of training and managed to do quite a lot of fitness work in four or five days to get me up to speed for the Bolton game.

“I’m now looking forward to getting back out there at Portman Road again and hopefully taking six points from two home games this week.”

Photo: TWTD

OohArrPaulGoddard added 16:58 - Sep 25 Hall of Fame material. Works tirelessly plays through injury last season and this a real leader. He is right about Evans as well unfortunately it is his club and he will do exactly what he will and does run it exactly as he wants to.
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Seasider added 17:16 - Sep 25 Don't think it helped his cause being stuck out at right back;but like all the other stuff that is in the past. Looking at the extended highlights of the Leeds game,and playing their goals back several times;thought that maybe if Knudsen had been playing left centre,then he might have prevented a goal,as Chambo is right footed;so therefor playing out of position. Perhaps that's a bit harsh,as he is a good Captain;and Town did play well,even though they lost. That's also in the past;so look forward to the game tomorrow,and hope that Ipswich will get their first big win in 5 years !

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jabberjackson added 17:37 - Sep 25 Surprisingly and refreshingly outspoken about the bloke who pays his wages He must have been absolutely livid last season Who knows what effect this had on the rest of the team A pretty bad one I suspect
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BackTheBlues added 09:43 - Sep 26 Club Captain, Leader, Legend - That's how it goes isn't it? The man's rapport with the fans is second to none - very much like the great skipper Matt Holland was. Yes he has his flaws as a player - but then most of that is because he is not a full back - the best he has ever played for us is at CB! And so far this year he really has lead the team from the back and signified everything good about the spirit in the camp! The contract situation last season was diabolical by our club and for him to still sit there and say he loves the club is all a fan like I wants to hear !

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