Skipper Luke Chambers has dismissed the notion that Town could eventually end up better off if they were relegated to League One, as Southampton were in 2010 before recovering, rebuilding and going on to reach the Premier League.

It is not a theory to which many supporters will subscribe and Chambers said: “How can that be? I don’t see how anyone would want the club to get relegated and for it to be a positive. I don’t know how that can happen. It baffles me that someone would say that. It’s a minority but that’s the ones you hear.

“No one is going to be happy all the time. It’s like when I put the music on in the dressing room before a game — I can’t please everyone. You hear a lot of ‘be careful what you wish for’ if you make changes.

“Sheffield Wednesday made the play-offs two years in a row and then they changed their manager and have dropped like a stone.

“If they hadn’t got the points on the board that they have now they would be in big trouble because they weren’t very good when we played them.

“These are the things that can happen. Change might happen here — we just don’t know — but all we can do is deal with what’s happening right now.

“The manager is working his socks off to be as successful as possible and we are doing our best to back that up and perform the way we feel we can, and try to become better players.

“The [owner] is putting his own money into it and is obviously at a level where he wants to do it. All we can do is try to be the best footballers we can be and produce for the fans and for ourselves.”

Since reverting to a 3-5-2 formation in the 1-1 draw at Norwich last month Town have only been beaten once, 1-0 by second-placed Cardiff, and have taken eight points from their last five games and conceded just three goals in the process. It is a system which Chambers favours above all others.

“I love it,” he enthused. “Since the Norwich game I’ve enjoyed my football more than I have done in a long time. I feel I have two lads next to me that are up there with the best defenders in the league.

“It gives them an insurance to go and do what they’re good at, attacking the ball and defending properly.

“If they do make a slight mistake they know they’ve got insurance in me in a position where I feel I can use my experience to obviously help them and cover for them if need be.

“It’s no coincidence that that back three, as well as the boys in front, whoever that may be because there have been a lot of changes, have performed well and not conceded many goals.

“Cameron is very, very good and it still baffles me how we were able to get him half-way through a Championship season. He’s been a fantastic capture for us and since he’s been here he has been different class. He’s a great lad to have around the place and he’s still young.

“I’ve been in his ear to see if we can get him back next season. If we could get the deal done now, I think we would.

“It would also be great to keep Adam fit because we know the quality he brings. He’s not played enough football over the last couple of years so it’s nice to see him playing week in, week out, at the moment.

“I always speak about the lads but I think the manager has to be given credit for bringing in the players that he has. They are fantastic people, as well as good players, and that always helps.

“I see the majority of Sheffield Wednesday’s players are out injured and I’d never want to say they are feigning injury. But you don’t see too many of the lads here not turning out if they have knocks and bruises.

“They will put themselves out there for the manager and the club and they will always fight. We’ve got 10 games left and we’ll be fighting for every single one of them.

“We had a crap finish to last year — we lost too many games that affected our league position — and I will be doing everything I can to make sure that doesn’t happen again. We need to be finishing in the top half.”

Chambers joined the chorus of approval for goalkeeper Bartosz Bialkowski’s call-up by Poland, which takes him a step nearer realising his dream to represent his country in the World Cup, this summer’s finals in Russia now a realistic target.

“Bart doesn’t say much, but we’re all delighted for him that he has received the recognition he thoroughly deserves,” said Chambers.

“The boys have been giving him a bit of a ribbing about it but I just think it’s such a nice touch. He’s a god down here, an absolute hero to everyone, and he’s earned it.

“He still hasn’t signed that contract, though. We’ll have to wait and see what happens there. Would I like to see him sign the contract? Of course I would. I’m here for next season so why would you not get that done?”

Photo: TWTD

alfromcol added 19:31 - Mar 12 I like Chambers and he is 120% for the club/team, but it is sad that he has allowed himself to be pushes out to defend what is going on on the pitch at the moment.
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jas0999 added 19:32 - Mar 12 Agree. We can't under any circumstances afford to go down. Yet, we can't afford to stick with McCarthy either. It's been a long time since folk have walked away in these numbers. In reality it's a sorry mess which the anonymous and unambitious owner has let get out of hand. Put simply, Evans doesn't care.
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pragmatic added 19:33 - Mar 12 Chambo name a better more committed captain a real positive out of the negatives!
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TimmyH added 19:38 - Mar 12 Luke sorry mate a good captain that you are but your saying too much about Mick's future and that of the club. Don't compare Mick with Carlos Carvalhal at Sheffield Wednesday saying "Sheffield Wednesday made the play-offs two years in a row and then they changed their manager and have dropped like a stone". - well we scraped once into the play-offs and then started dropping like a stone with the same manager so not quite sure of your comparisons there. He also added: “We had a crap finish to last year — we lost too many games that affected our league position — and I will be doing everything I can to make sure that doesn't happen again. We need to be finishing in the top half.” - Well it works both ways, 2015-16 season we finished 7th but the last few games were meaningless with no pressure but that flattered us and were never play-off contenders.

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TimmyH added 19:42 - Mar 12 The relegation thing is all about regaining momentum and confidence and I can't see that happening in the foreseeable future unless Mick goes...not that I want it but I can see a reason why some suggest it might not be a disaster (that's if* the owner is willing to keep with the squad and add to it). * - Big if with Evans though
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Northstandveteran added 20:03 - Mar 12 1) For every Southampton that bounced back there are teams such as forest, Sheffield Wednesday, ( arguably bigger than us ) that didn't come straight back up. Add to that teams like Stoke and Birmingham and possibly Wolves and I can in no possible way agree that relegation could be a good thing 2) Can we all please remember we are talking about IPSWICH TOWN FOOTBALL CLUB! Do I have to list our honours, success in Europe over many years and our over achieving history?!!! I personally find it unimaginable

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Swn98 added 20:09 - Mar 12 Agree wholeheartedly Northstandvet I wonder how long the couldn't care less if we lost as long as we played football the Ipswich way mob would put up with us losing by the odd goal week in and out.
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TimmyH added 20:38 - Mar 12 Sometimes psychology plays a big part in football as it does in other sports, if your a big fish in a small pond and winning regularly again can breed momentum and confidence, also the lot up the road did it and so did Man City.
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smokester added 21:16 - Mar 12 There's also teams that didn't manage to get enough momentum to get back into the Premier League. Leeds and Forest spring to mind. Their time in League 1 must feel like wasted years.
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warktheline added 21:34 - Mar 12 When McCarthy goes we are heading for Div 1 rapidly unless our cluless hierarchy manage to get lucky playing 'ip dip dog shi* you are not it!'......hit the minus button because I'd rather the depth of Div 1 than putting up with 'How not to conduct yourself in an interview McCarthy'!
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44_not_out added 22:29 - Mar 12 So called ‘supporters' wanting their club relegated. It beggars belief. They all start their posts..... I've supported Ipswich [insert number of years] blah blah blah. I won't deny some of the matches this season have been tough viewing, but what is more boring is the constant moaning by people who, quite frankly have no idea what they are talking about and have probably never kicked a ball in their lives. A section of fans are becoming an embarrassment. Just get behind the team or stay away. I'd rather 10000 passionate fans as opposed to the idiots who spout their uneducated opinion.

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PortmanTerrorist added 00:04 - Mar 13 No one wants to see us get relegated, but if it were a result of some long term planning that e.g. centered around youth, then i think we as supporters would understand and back that. What i fully appreciate though is having a team built for virtually nothing, geared only toward mid-table mediocrity, with 6th place in the league our possible goal is utterly soul destroying. Play for nothing, achieve nothing.....literally, what is the point ? Listening to Mick suggest Kenlock would have been better off away from the Club on loan when for my money he has at least matched Knudsen when given the chance this season sums it up. Chambo may be our captain but he is as out of touch with the supporter base as the manager and owner. Of course he does not want change at the top....how many top blokes would survive a fresh pair of eyes looking at their performances. Some managers are looking for more than 7/10 each week. Some supporters too.

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TonyHumesIpswich added 00:40 - Mar 13 I haven't heard any fans saying anything about wanting to go down to go back up.
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Karlosfandangal added 05:33 - Mar 13 So why was Mick such a hero when he saved the club in the first season here....should the club have got relegated then.......still would be Mick as manager ....would the football be different than now. Still say give Mick some money and not such a tight budget.......if you can call a £15 million wage bill tight.
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Ippy89 added 06:29 - Mar 13 Support the team no matter who the manager is. 3-2 win tonight against Hull. Leave your negativity behind when you enter Portman Road :-) COYB!
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bobble added 06:50 - Mar 13 thats like the tory party version of strengthening the country by destroying it first...
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Hegansheroes added 06:55 - Mar 13 McCarthy's puppet giving out the same crap as MM. perhaps that's the coaching, certainly isn't on the training ground
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Westy added 07:19 - Mar 13 Totally agree with Chambo on this. What possible good could come from relegation. It is something to he avoided at all cost. It has happened to several clubs in the past and they haven't come back, some have been relegated again to League Two.
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Wacko added 07:29 - Mar 13 The point isn't about relegation, it's about clubs being forced to realise their bunch of over-paid pre-madonnas are taking them nowhere fast, and that they need to replace them with young hungry youth and lower league players who haven't yet tasted the big time. This can and should happen way before any whiff of relegation, it's just in this way the hands of the powers that be are forced

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therein61 added 07:51 - Mar 13 Having supported the Town since 1958 I have never in my time wished relegation on us!!!!!
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mrbungle150 added 08:15 - Mar 13 I go to the Valley a few times per season (a friend of mine is a season ticket holder there and he comes up to watch Ipswich so I return the favour). Charlton are a good example of why we do not want to drop a league. They are struggling to get out of that league and the level of football is a lot worse than Championship football (imagine the gap between Premier League and Championship and do the same jump again downwards). It is a real shame to see the Valley nearly empty every week, and them struggling to even get into playoffs. And they could be measured as a very similar club to us in terms of size and fanbase etc. I'd never want to see that for my club and whilst the football at Portman Road can be poor and frustrating I am holding onto the "hope" that with a fully fit team and some more inspired summer signings we can be looking up rather than down. .......and there are a lot of clubs of similar size to us that are in a much worse state than we are.

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braveblue added 09:42 - Mar 13 Chambers loves the back 8 system. What a surprise.
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muccletonjoe added 09:58 - Mar 13 Mist think some of our supporters are f@#kwits. He wouldn't be far off the mark.
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TJS added 10:17 - Mar 13 Utter drivel. You can play DECENT football and still finish mid table in this division.
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BartonBluee added 10:45 - Mar 13 Have to agree with most of the posters on this... Who in their right mind would want their team to get relegated?! Even fewer people would be rocking up to Portman Road, if that happened, and the majority of them would be the moaners that are staying away at the moment. I heard a woman on the weekend put Spence's lack of enthusiasm down to MM... which is quite funny really, it's like me going into work and blaming the boss because I didn't put in the effort. What people don't seem to realise is when you blame a certain individual (in this case someone that actually saved us from relegation and has performed pretty well on the budget that most paper boys are on) for absolutely everything, it waters down any genuine criticism. Things aren't great, but they could be a lot worse! Like most things, football is a joint effort and also good timing. You need the players, the manager, the owner, the backroom staff, the fans all pulling together in the right direction at the right time.

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