Town owner Marcus Evans has apologised to Town fans in the wake of the Blues' relegation to League One and has outlined the plans for the future in a personal letter that will go out with season ticket renewals later this week, which has been published in part on the club website today.

Before I talk about the future, which I truly am positive about, I want to personally apologise to you for the position the club finds itself in at the moment. "

We tried something different at the start of the season. For one reason or another it didn’t work, and you will have your own views as to what went wrong, but clearly mistakes have been made and as owner, I have to take overall responsibility for that.

""Now my responsibility is to take this great club forwards again. Paul Lambert, as our manager, is obviously a key part of that plan and whilst results on the pitch have not been as we would have hoped for, performances and entertainment levels have vastly improved and most importantly as the manager has had time to work with the players, most of whom will be the core of next year’s team, we have recently been competitive with the best teams in the Championship.

As our young team develops and improves, this foundation has to be encouraging to all of us as a positive indication that we are now going in the right direction. We will quite rightly expect this team to carry on with this competitiveness in the lower league next season.

These players, who are still learning the game at the highest levels, all need a significant run of matches to consolidate their position in the first team and whilst there is a place for one or two loans and players who can bring vital experience in the latter stages of their careers, the majority of the squad need to be younger players who will be improving week by week. "

Where we don’t have talent in the building that is ready for developing in a particular position and it’s clear that we need to invest to improve we will do so but we will not bring in anyone who blocks our own players’ development and we will ensure we give our young homegrown players a run of games.

They will make mistakes, but as long as they learn from those mistakes we will have a team that gets better and better. ""We need players on the pitch who are the future of Ipswich for the next five or six years, not just for one or two seasons, whose development our coaches can influence and who are on the upward curve of their playing career.""

Much of this was the plan for last summer however it didn’t work out the way we planned. In Paul Lambert and his team, we have a group of excellent coaches who are completely invested in the strategy.

I cannot doubt the loyal support you have shown the club through thick and thin but now we need everyone’s support and togetherness more than ever. ""We are playing the attractive, entertaining football that I think you want to see. I certainly do. I have seen the players applauded off in many games this season, even after defeat, so I think that shows you are appreciating the way Paul is getting the team to play.

Of course, it’s about winning football matches though and that is something that we have to put right. ""Paul, our general manager of football operations, Lee O’Neill, and myself have had numerous meetings over the last four or five months to discuss the future direction of the club.""

We are all united in the strong belief that our young players need to be given a pathway into the first-team and a chance to establish themselves at that level, not just a few games here or there but over a period of time.

Developing and nurturing our own players and giving them first-team opportunities are at the core of our focus going forward. They will need patience but it’s the way forward for Ipswich Town. I want you to witness the excitement of a team developing week in, week out and see this turning this into a winning formula.

""We will still retain that balance of experienced players around them, of course. Players like Bart Bialkowski, Alan Judge, Luke Chambers and Cole Skuse will provide that guidance for our young players to progress.

""As stated earlier it’s not our intention to bring in loan players in any numbers. We may have one or two but the plan is to provide that pathway for our young players, rather than use the loan market. "

I have become much more hands-on at the club since the turn of the year and that will continue. I’m not going to hide from the fact that these are challenging times at the club but sometimes out of adversity you become stronger. That is our aim.

"I am also putting plans in place to take Ipswich Town deeper into the local community, working closer than ever before with schools, charities and local organisations. There will be more on that over the coming weeks.

""I know Paul has been amazed and humbled as well by the backing he, personally, and the team have received from you the fans and he is determined to repay that support in the years ahead.""

With Paul as our manager, we have the right man to take us forward. I will provide all the support I can to him but we need your continued fantastic support as well.

It seems strange to say this but we are not a club in crisis, we are once again already developing our community roots; we are financially stable; we have a proven management team intent on doing things going forwards in the Ipswich way and whilst the foundations have already been laid to move onwards and upwards THE REAL FIGHTBACK STARTS NOW to get back into the Championship and then on from there.

General manager of football operations Lee O’Neill will be on Mark Murphy’s Radio Suffolk breakfast show on Monday morning from 8am talking about Town’s relegation and the Blues’ future.

Photo: ITFC

ITFCsince73 added 16:38 - Apr 14 And yes NSV. Bit late for protests, the damage has been done. It takes serious investment to go up from L1. We won't get that investment. What we have is what we have. A L1 club for now. With a playing budget next season that suggests L2 won't be far off.
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Cakeman added 16:39 - Apr 14 I would have thought now is the time for us fans to stick together and not behave like the incompetent individuals we have trying in comical fashion to sort out the Brexit mess. Like it or not Evans is our owner and there is no point continually going over old ground. I have been critical of him in the past but without him or another owner putting money in we would be facing a very bleak future. Please look forward not back and support ITFC.

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ITFCsince73 added 16:40 - Apr 14 Yes Cakeman very much looking forward....and don't like what I see.
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Saxonblue74 added 16:50 - Apr 14 I'm confused (easily done!). What happened to the tsunami of optimism on offer from our youth? The inevitable has now been confirmed and suddenly the future holds nothing? This is the opportunity for these lads to come of age.....just the chance that so many were calling for!
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tractorboybig added 16:52 - Apr 14 a club not in crisis? You mean we have to wait till the drop to div2 for that?
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ITFCsince73 added 16:54 - Apr 14 Saxonblue74. The season isn't over yet. And we don't know what younger players will be here. The likes of Dozzell, the Wolf, Bish etc are only a sensible offer away from leaving at this moment in time. And there will be many clubs watching them all....
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Dolphinblue added 17:00 - Apr 14 Our great leader speaks! Thank goodness fo Evans! Our Saviour! Coyb! 😀😀😀
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shortmarine1969 added 17:01 - Apr 14 Saxon , no he has not , he has covered the operating loses of one of his companies , he has not made - money positive - investment in the squad for years a fact.!
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howdonblue added 17:07 - Apr 14 Some people on here are totally deluded ! Nothing will ever change under the evans regime . Got more chance of both sides of the Houses of Parliament agreeing on brexit Just going to be years of obscurity
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maninashed added 17:16 - Apr 14 As I have stated before I was at the shareholders meeting (having bought shares when we went bankrupt) that agreed to Marcus Evans taking over the club. Basically we would have gone bankrupt again if there had not been a take over, because of the debt for the stands. It is correct he bought the debt (about) 20p in the £1. However he has continued to put about £8m a year into the club to top up wages and to run the Academy. The debt on the books (including the original debt at the original amount) is all owed the Marcus Evans group, so he is correct to say we are financially viable. Although the Academy level 2 it is run more or less at level 1. Remember we would have accepted at level 1 a few years back except for 'efficiency'. Basically MM never actually used any of the youth players. The Academy has produced three young players in recent years (Downes, Dozzell, Nydam) something that Norwich (a level 1 Academy) can't claim, so they must be doing something right. I agree it would be great if ME invested more in the transfer market but as I have no idea of how cash rich his company is I have no idea what he can realistically afford. Perhaps some of the experts on this site can enlighten us on what Me should be investing! As neither the Cobbolds nor David Sheepshanks put money in the club I am grateful that ME does. However I would love it if somebody with more money to lose were to by ME out but is the either realistic or likely. Having lived in Coventry I still follow the club. Now there is an example of really bad owners, as far as I know the club still have no ground next season. As for next season we at least will be playing weaker teams than this season. Whether we will be able to build a team to get promoted is another question. However since all three clubs relegated 2016/7 were promoted last year and those from 2017/8 are currently in the top 6 there is at lease hope.

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ITFCsince73 added 17:16 - Apr 14 Howdonblue. Deluded is the biggest understatement of the year. Just say a few nice things, and you'd be loved for it.
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TBT added 17:21 - Apr 14 This man is a fraud, a Chelsea supporter and somebody who has bought a football as a status symbol. Sadly his initial investment tanked and so now he is minimising his losses by making us a complete selling club. For those who support him and are not willing to protest, I'll see you in League 2!! He is 167 on the UK's rich list and he's not going to invest a penny more than he needs to BECAUSE HE DOESN'T CARE - if he did he would go to matches and face the fans.

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ITFCsince73 added 17:22 - Apr 14 Maninashed. Yes there is hope...with investment. Which again we won't have. There was hope we'd get in the premier league but we failed on the same reasons. Luton Town turned down bids of tens of millions for their better players last summer. There's the difference....as we pass in different directions.
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inghamspur added 17:29 - Apr 14 We are not Barcelona or Real Madrid. Even if there were loads of cash available, who would come to a club in League One? It's realistic to say get the best out of what we have got and add where we think it's necessary. No issue at all with me for what the owner has said.
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Saxonblue74 added 17:31 - Apr 14 Maninashed, good to hear from someone with an informed opinion.
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Saxonblue74 added 17:38 - Apr 14 TBT, a status symbol??!! Supercars and massive houses are status symbols, not football clubs that cost millions of his own money and invested time to keep afloat!
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1psw1ch added 17:42 - Apr 14 To darn late for apoliges,,,you dont care about this club if you did you would have invested a long time ago instead you slowly but surely sunk this ship,,,anyway i love this club no matter what and i,ll stick by ipswich all the way ,,,coyb
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howdonblue added 17:45 - Apr 14 Itfc since 73 Some are deluded on here ! All I know is whatever Evans has or has not done since he's been here Our club is in league 1 division 3 call it what you like next season. It's time for someone else to have a go . I don't know the official finance figures like some on here all I know is this club has become a ship wreck
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Northstandveteran added 17:56 - Apr 14 Are you posting from North Korea Dolphinblue? Has Kim jong un just made a speech? Or are you in a cult of some kind?
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GatesPerm added 17:56 - Apr 14 For the avoidance of doubt, I am an intelligent individual who is capable of evaluating and understanding complex scenarios and forming independent opinions. I am not deluded, I have simply interpreted the facts in a different way and come to a different conclusion. It's called intellectual discussion and debate.
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Orraman added 17:56 - Apr 14 Totally agree with @SuffolkBoy and @GatesPerm. I am sick of the negativity on this site. The scenes at the end of yesterday's match reflect the views of true, committed supporters who attend every week several travelling thousands of miles throughout the season. How many of the moaners commenting on this article were there yesterday? No one? I thought not. I appreciate that everyone has a right to an opinion on any subject but anyone coming on this site for the first time would think we have the worst supporters in the country rather than the best. I value TWTD for keeping me informed it is such a shame that it attracts such negativity from a very small minority who moan,moan, moan without adding anything constructive. Try attending a few games next season...you might be pleasantly surprised.

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blueboy1981 added 18:01 - Apr 14 With 'supporters' .... !!! - like many of you on here - if I were Evans and Lambert, I'd get the hell out of Portman Road post haste, and leave you to it with pleasure. Some of you would never be logical, or satisfied with whatever is said, or done, and you are the main parasites affecting the Club, and will eventually be responsible for the total demise of a great Club, that some of us genuinely love. Just has to be some Canaries on here putting the boot in - if that is NOT the case, then we are well and truly finished.

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Bluearmy_81 added 18:03 - Apr 14 Genuine question, after 11 years of under achievement and failure what makes people think that things will magically change from here? I just don't understand the optimism as there is no evidence base for it?
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Dolphinblue added 18:05 - Apr 14 I am genuinely bemused as to why everyone is so upset. Coyb. With Evans and Lambert there is only fun, success and security. With Fantastic Chambers we will win League one. You will see l am right. It starts now, here Coyb 😀
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blueboy1981 added 18:05 - Apr 14 WHAT MORE DO ANY OF YOU WANT FROM ? - WHAT MORE COULD HE HAVE SAID TO PLEASE GENUINE SUPPORTERS ? I know - open cheque book, spend millions and fail - and you'll still not be satisfied. You couldn't make it up.
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