Blues manager Paul Hurst insists his summer policy of largely bringing in players from the lower leagues was the right approach, despite admitting that Town are firmly in a relegation battle.

Hurst signed 12 players during the close season, seven of them from Leagues One and Two.

Yesterday, former skipper Matt Holland said on talkSPORT that it was “asking an awful lot of those players” to all make the jump to the Championship together.

“I think the idea behind that was that we were trying to help the club move forward,” Hurst said. “I think, from memory, the fans were used to getting a certain type of player and didn’t like that.

“Now we’ve already got still a group of players here who perhaps fit into that category that they’re talking about, so I still think that it was the right way to go.

“I think he’s probably right, as in it’s a big ask, but maybe you’re looking for some of those to get a little bit more help along the way as you progress.

“I didn’t expect every one of those players to come in and play 46 league games, that’s for sure.

“But in time you’re wanting them to contribute at various points. And then as the seasons move on that they do become players that are established because you’ve got to have an opportunity first to get to that point.

“That’s where the thought process for it was at. Matt’s entitled to his opinion and if he’s right, he’s right. But if he’s not then…

“But it’s very easy to comment from the outside. It’s funny because [QPR manager] Steve McClaren was speaking before the game and said he doesn’t like anyone really passing comment that much unless they’ve been in the job themselves. I thought that was interesting from such an experienced manager.”

While those players came in, does he feel too much Championship experience departed? “Possibly, I know there’s been a lot made of the lads that went out. Now all I will say is each one of those players wanted to leave the football club.

“You would have to ask them face-to-face - and whether they’d be genuine or not — whether they wanted to leave because of me or whether they wanted to leave because of the football club or whether they wanted to leave because of the football club that they were going to.

“I certainly think in Adam Webster’s case, I think we’d worked together for maybe two days so I’d be very surprised if it was me. In David McGoldrick’s case, he wasn’t on any sheet or budget I was given [having the club left in May].

“That leaves two players. Joe Garner clearly wanted to go back home and Martyn Waghorn, I said I really liked the lad, we got on well and he found the situation difficult.

“So unless there was something that they weren’t telling me I think we’re comfortable where we’re at.

“It’s easy to say you don’t have to let players go, but I think that’s a little bit naïve and you’ve maybe not been in the job and around football if you think that by saying ‘no’ you would have got the same player that’s performed in the past for Ipswich Town.”

As it stands at the moment, is Hurst confident that this squad is good enough to avoid relegation?

“At the minute there’s no doubt, whether we like it or not, we’ve got to accept that that’s the situation, not kind of pretend suddenly we’re going to be just outside the play-offs or mid-table.

“Let’s stare the situation straight on. At the minute there’s almost a feel of confusion around the place, instead of just saying, ’This is where we are, we’re at the wrong end of the table, we’re bottom of the table’.

“Not ‘rock bottom’ as I’ve read. I’m not sure how we’re ‘rock bottom’ when we’ve got the same points as someone else and one win could see us move up.

“But at the same time, that’s where we are so we need to accept that and be willing to do the things required to get out of the situation.”

Photo: TWTD

aas1010 added 15:17 - Oct 23 Lost the plot !
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thechangingman added 15:19 - Oct 23 It's simply not enough to have blind faith in your own abilities. Especially when we've seen no evidence of them. Personally, I simply think Hurst is the wrong man for the job at this time. We wouldn't have known this until we tried but it has gone horribly wrong. I think we should all cut our losses before it becomes a tragedy. Thanks for coming to our club Paul and for all the effort you've put in. You seem like a good bloke - you're just not the bloke we currently need.... I wish you well in your next post. Let's hope we've ALL learned some valuable lessons. By the way - EVANS OUT!!!

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shortmarine1969 added 15:24 - Oct 23 This interview worries me..a lot.!! recruiting was obviouosly well short of what we should have brought in , yet depsite the blindingly obvious PH thinks it,s not the case..It appears we have another ego on our hands which is even more evident in the manner he ripped up a squad that needed tweaking (what most people wished for ..for the GWYWF brigade). This believes me to think PH will have to be sacked or he will willingly believe in himself until it,s far to late and we are down , which could bury us for years..ME DO SOMETHING FOR ONCE OR ARE YOU REALLY THAT TOTALLY INEPT AN OWNER.!! (And sadly i think you are)

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positivity added 15:25 - Oct 23 glad he's clarified the situation with the leaving players. however I still feel a more balanced recruitment would've been better:- some youngsters, sure some lower league players definitely but also a couple of experienced championship heads to replace those who'd gone. guess that type of player is more difficult on our budget...
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TimmyH added 15:25 - Oct 23 So far it's been an absolute debacle, what clubs do this?...pick out umpteen unproven players from lower leagues and in reverse shift a few quality players, as the changingman has said it's total 'blind faith' You won't find a worse transfer strategy in the EFL this season...
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positivity added 15:28 - Oct 23 shortmarine-did you read the interview? it was clear he didn't "rip the squad up", didzy had already left the building and the other 3 wanted to go!
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Dissboyitfc added 15:33 - Oct 23 He has no regrets on his signings....hmmm really? well he certainly didnt inherit a league one team, but that is what we have now, well done Hurst! On arrival he ticked so many boxes, but sadly its gone wrong! Oh on the subject of regrets, so glad mm has gone, no regrets for me!
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geminimustang added 15:35 - Oct 23 Mick had consistently brought in players who would work their socks off for 90 mins+.In effect,MM was trying to get promoted,largely with has beens,wannabees and youngsters.He has my utmost respect.There was minimal financial backing from ME and i've no problem with that,he's the owner and does what he wants.There was a growing minority that wanted rid of MM.I've no problem with that either.However,for an inexperienced Championship Manager to throw the baby out with the bath water wasn't clever.I will never call for a Manager to be sacked.However,PH hasn't got a clue and an inquest needs to be held over the recruitment process for the new Manager as the process at ITFC is clearly flawed.

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bohslegend added 15:35 - Oct 23 I've been avoiding this site for some time now. The acidic, toxic atmosphere generated by the boo boys over the last season (and more) which was given a platform on TWTD made me feel sick. I've loved the club since I was 7. That's 40+ years and I don't need to tell anyone who supports ITFC that we've some amazing highs but probably more lows in between than most clubs would have to suffer. But I never saw the vitriolic hateful abuse aimed at a manager like that before. That's other clubs I thought. That's not what we do. In the cold light of day, if MM gets credit for absolutely nothing else, he was far wiser about working on a stingy budget in the Championship than anyone (fan or no fan) ever gave him credit for. I don't think PH is necessarily a bad manager. But he absolutely is inexperienced. He was never going to have it as easy here as he, and many of the MM-outers, would have imagined. Evans is still working off a Lg1 or Lg2 budget expecting the manager to work miracles. And the fans (the boo boys) have a blue-tinted sense of entitlement about the style we play, as if you just choose to be successful in the Championship by playing Barca style tikki takka. We (as a fanbase) got a taste of blood end of last season, and now we like it don't we. PH will be next on the chopping block and likely another after him before we find ourselves looking over our shoulders at Lg2 or even worse. Supporters should support. Not pick the team, not pick the tactics, not demand the manager out at any sign of struggle. A good crowd at a game is like a twelfth player. A bad crowd is like playing with 10.

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shortmarine1969 added 15:36 - Oct 23 You do not have to let players go , he could have approached the issue with differing approach , e.g "stay the season as we are building this season and if you are still in the same frame we will let you go" ..the 2 forwards only signed the year before for crying out loud ,they were under contract..Webster was through choice , he did not want to go but was sold for money

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WaltonBlueNaze added 15:40 - Oct 23 Clueless and useless!
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Dissboyitfc added 15:42 - Oct 23 Positivity.... he has IMO... diluted the squad with some very poor signings, sort of the same as ripping it up! whatever way you slice it, Hurst has weakened us, cant really see any of his lower league signings being real stars of the future! one or two are ok, in Edwards i would even say quite good!
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positivity added 15:45 - Oct 23 you don't HAVE to left players go, but didzy was gone, waghorn agitated for it, was offered a big pay rise, it was a last big contract for him garner- you'd have to be pretty hard-hearted to turn down a move for family reasons webster-i agree with you, he shouldn't have been sold, and if hurst had been around longer he may have put his foot down you can play tough and hang on to players, but a bad apple infects the group so it's a risky strategy

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blueboy1981 added 15:48 - Oct 23 ........ his job has been kept open at Shrewsbury apparently - so probably hoping for a nice pay off. Can there ever be a reason other than, for talking such nonsense, playing players out of position, and defying all logical thinking. So out of his depth it is embarrassing for the Club having appointed him, and for him personally. Go back to the level you're never going to rise from Mr Hurst - and do it SOON please. With hindsight, a huge mistake in appointing him for sure.

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positivity added 15:50 - Oct 23 diss, you can't make a final judgements on any of the signings yet, anyone remember taricco's first season at the club? some will come good, others won't. in a year's time we could be looking back at edwards as a flash in the pan and nsiala as a defensive rock! has hurst weakened us or has evans? could he have made different choices on those going out? did he have the funds to bring in more experienced championship heads?

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BillyBaxterwasbest added 15:58 - Oct 23 BOHSLEGEND well said, last paragraph spot on!
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FromIpswichToPhoenix added 16:08 - Oct 23 Not rock bottom? Now you're just arguing with semantics. We're bottom. It doesn't matter if it's goal difference or points, we're bottom. With a team you picked, that isn't good enough, that you said is in a relegation battle. And yet you have no regrets? Uh...
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Ipswichfeen added 16:10 - Oct 23 I have no problem with the signings taking time to gel or develop. Mings, Cresswell as examples, they took time. They were however added to an existing team, not part of a whole new team who had never played together at this level. Forget about opinions, that is never going to go well in any line of work. The players that have left, they had their reasons for wanting to go. No problem. What I don't understand is - why we bring in loan players to cover for our better younger players, who all have more first team experience than those we brought in. Surely they had earned the chance to start the season, with the hope that our injured midfielders could come back and help them out, as the season wore on. - I don't understand playing an RB at LB where he clearly is not comfortable, especially when we have a LB. Playing Chambo at Left Centre, is it any wonder he's ballsed up so much this season. The man has two right legs. MM was slated for playing square pegs in round holes. How is this any different. - the way he talks about the team. He is too quick to talk about their faults. I say this and I'm stupid enough to still hope he can turn it around and succeed....

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Dissboyitfc added 16:10 - Oct 23 Hurst has weakened the team, end of! no debate!
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Henrietta_R_Hippo added 16:14 - Oct 23 D'OH!!!
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Kesblue66 added 16:18 - Oct 23 He should have plenty.
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Len_Brennan added 16:34 - Oct 23 @bohslegend I reject the deliberate language & tone of your post above, which merely aims to misrepresent the reality of the last few seasons. You are trying to justify your own losing arguments, particularly over the last 12 months, regarding Mick McCarthy, by attempting to paint those all who disagreed with you as some sort of bully. Sure there are some on here, on both/all sides of debates who use & have used unnecessary aggressive language, but the majority enter into fair comment discussions and merely post their view as they see it; which is what messageboards are designed for. Where are you going with these made up, adversarial soundbite terms such as "acidic, toxic atmosphere generated by the boo boys", "given a platform" and " vitriolic hateful abuse"? You're 50 years of age, trying to sound like a pretentious, first year Sociology student in an American college, who wants to attack their opponent rather than deal with the substance of the opposing argument. McCarthy's time was well up, for many reasons. The fact that a number of mistakes have been made subsequent his departure from the club does not mean that his departure itelf was a mistake. It certainly doesn't mean that those of us who entered into long and detailed discussions, over many months, as to why we felt he should be replaced should now be painted as toxic, vitriolic, hateful, abusive boo-boys.

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BlueandTruesince82 added 16:55 - Oct 23 Matt Holland got it right, too much too soon. Players can step up but 9 at once? Doing it wholesale was wrong, it needed an overhaul but stagered
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WhoisJimmyJuan added 17:09 - Oct 23 Interesting points Mr Hurst. Anyway, off you go now and leave your pass at reception on your way out please.
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Ippy0207 added 17:47 - Oct 23 Maybe his plan was to go back to league 1 and then start trying to win games?
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