Frustrated midfielder Flynn Downes admitted that the Blues ought to be taking all three points at places like AFC Wimbledon following last night’s 0-0 draw at Kingsmeadow. Downes believes Town now need to win all of their remaining nine home games.

“We came here to get the three points and it’s not happened, so it’s a tough one to take, but we go again on Saturday,” the 21-year-old said.

“It is disappointing because, no disrespect to Wimbledon, but we should be coming to these places and getting the three points, there’s no doubt. With the talent we have we should be doing that, and it’s not happened tonight.”

Asked why the Blues haven't been getting those results recently, the England U20 international said: “I don’t know, it’s just not going for us at the minute.

"I think earlier on in the season we were getting the early goals and it was giving us a bit of momentum, but at the minute it’s not going for us, we’re not getting that early goal and teams are just hanging on in there like Wimbledon did, it is what it is.”

Downes believes an early goal would have changed the complexion of last night’s match: “Big time, earlier on in the season we were getting those early goals and it was helping us massively, but at the minute it’s just not going for us.”

While creating plenty of chances last night and in the first half at Sunderland on Saturday, the Blues were unable to find the net in either game and their struggles to score are currently costing them.

“Yes, but we’re all in it together,” Downes added. “It’s not just the forwards, it’s the whole team. The midfielders have got to chip in, the wing-backs have got to chip in, everyone’s got to chip in. It’s a team game at the end of the day.

“You can’t just put all the blame on the strikers because they’re working very hard. We’ve all got to chip in.

“All we need is a break, one to go in off someone’s knee or something like that. If we’d have got one here today early on, it could have been three or four, that’s just the way it’s going for us at the minute.”

But the Brentwood-born schemer has no doubt the club’s strikers can get back in the goals, James Norwood and Kayden Jackson having found the target regularly earlier in the season and Will Keane having had a good spell in December and early January.

“One hundred per cent, it’s just not going for us at the minute, that’s all I can say,” Downes continued. “The boys have got the talent, we all know that, we’ve seen it early on in the season.”

Town had a number of nearly moments against the Dons, particularly in the second half in which Downes himself twice went close.

“I had two,” he recalled. “I turned one off a defender and I had another one where Keano got his leg in the way. If he hadn’t have touched that it was a goal.

“They frustrated us and that’s how the game went. We couldn’t get a goal and it is what it is at the end of the day.”

He says it’s important to stay patient in games such as last night’s: “The longer the game goes on and you’re not scoring, it does get frustrating, for all the players and the fans, it gets frustrating for everyone. We’ve just got to go again and look to get an early goal.

“We’ve come to Wimbledon and we should be winning the game. I suppose the longer the game goes on and we’re not 1-0 up or 2-0 up it does get frustrating but, fair play to them, they’ve frustrated us, but we should be doing better.”

Downes says he enjoys forming a midfield trio with Emyr Huws and Cole Skuse: “I like playing with both of them, it’s unbelievable. We’ve just got to keep going, as a team keep going and try and get as many wins as we can.”

The midfielder dismissed claims that the pressure is getting to the players: “I don’t think the boys are feeling any pressure at the minute. We’ve dropped out of the top six, there’s not any pressure on us now, we’re playing with freedom, that’s how we should be playing. We’ve got nothing to lose now.

“Training’s all good, nothing’s changed really, it’s just nothing’s going for us at the minute.”

Having been runaway leaders at the start of the campaign, the Blues are now seventh with teams above them having games in hand. But Downes believes there is time for Town to get back in the automatic promotion running.

“What is it, 13 games left? There are still a lot of games, we have nine at home so we need to make them count,” he said.

“But yes, every game’s important at this stage in the league and, like I said, we should be coming here and getting three points, and that’s that.”

The academy product knows form at Portman Road has to improve quickly with four out of the next five matches at home with Burton Albion the visitors on Saturday.

“Yes, we’ve got nine home games left, so the home form is massive, especially at this point in the season,” he reflected. “We just need the crowd to get behind us, like I say, we’re all in this together.”

He added: “Nine home games, we need to win all of them, simple as that. Hopefully we’ll get the fans behind us and get the wins.”

Photo: TWTD

raycrawfordswig added 10:18 - Feb 12 Poor quality league that's why we are in it.
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ThaiBlue added 10:25 - Feb 12 Well said lad.
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BettyBlue added 10:40 - Feb 12 If you had the balls you'd tell Lambert where to stick these post match apologies. Lambert Out
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Pencilpete added 10:40 - Feb 12 Yeah we should ..... but we don't.
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ITFCsince73 added 10:41 - Feb 12 The needles stuck again give it another kick.
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Carberry added 10:43 - Feb 12 'We've dropped out of the top six, there's not any pressure on us now, we're playing with freedom, that's how we should be playing. We've got nothing to lose now.' Oh yes you have.
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TimmyH added 10:43 - Feb 12 Tired of all this waffle...it's all we hear, should have, could have, would have, it's all becoming tedious.
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Cakeman added 10:44 - Feb 12 I'm a big supporter of Flynn, a very good player in the making and whilst I respect his positive comments when was the last time we won nine home games on the bounce? It's not going to happen. We will do well if we win four or five of them. I hope I am proved wrong.
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SickParrot added 10:49 - Feb 12 Win all nine of our home games! Is he taking the piss?
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Suffolkboy added 11:07 - Feb 12 Solid realistic professional and unemotional assessment of the situation ,with which in reality it's hard to disagree . A thoroughgoing team member who is showing definite leadership qualities AND I don't believe he's cowtowing to anyone at all ! So despite the inevitable disappointment when ITFC don't win , we must accept opponents just sometimes play well ,set out to frustrate and are entitled to play their part in each match ; we must continue to be supportive !Lets ‘eliminate the negative ,accentuate the positive and don't mess with Mr In -between ‘ ! COYB

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hoppy added 11:23 - Feb 12 Sherlock Holmes would've been proud of that revelation...
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SamWhiteUK added 11:32 - Feb 12 Am I the only one who doesn't care about "disrespecting" other teams? Let's be honest, we should be battering a team like this. While we looked below average, they were CRAP. Downes was again excellent last night in an otherwise shower of sh*te.
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LondonTractor added 11:45 - Feb 12 I don't know why anyone on these forums is surprised by where we are in the League. As I've said before 5/6/7th would be an unbelievable achievement for this group of League 1/League 2 players (aside from Downes and Garbutt). The teams above us are better than us, create more than us, score more than us, let in less than us, have bigger budgets than us (bar Wycombe probably), so I am absolutely not surprised by where we are. Sam Szmodics turned down Ipswich Town to join Peterborough United and ran us ragged last week - sadly that's just simply where we are as a club. If we get a 5th or 6th finish everyone associated with Ipswich Town Football Club should be ecstatic at what they have achieved.

0

dirtydingusmagee added 11:45 - Feb 12 Suffolkboy, '' opponents sometimes play well,'' yes they do, Wimbledon didn't and we still couldn't beat them ,and they were not the first , and doubt they'll be the last. Sorry Flynn, you are a decent player but win our nine home games ,seriously ? we havn,t a prayer.
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LondonTractor added 11:50 - Feb 12 Flynn son, you need to get out of here in the Summer. Don't let our shower of sh1t stand in the way and blight your promising career. Man of the Match literally in every single game in my eyes.
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Radlett_blue added 11:52 - Feb 12 If your first shot at goal doesn't happen until 41 minutes, I don't see how we are going to get an early goal. Soon, the target will be to win every game, not just the home games. Given that we've averaged a point per game for 3 moths, that's unlikely.
1

brittaniaman added 11:58 - Feb 12 Should imagine after the last 4 performances the crowd will probably be down to 14000 on Sat. the way I have heard fans talking ?? Until the players and Lambo up there game ??? 9 wins would make a big difference at home, but we can all Dream
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ArnieM added 12:26 - Feb 12 I wouldn't worry yourself Flynn, you won't be here next season , that's a guaranteed.
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CraigEdwards added 12:31 - Feb 12 Unfortunately you have to have shoots on target to score goals and that is clearly not happen. We here how well we have played and yes in fits and starts but prosession of the ball doesn't count. We do seem frightened to shot or break down teams. If Norwood is low in confidence why play him. Stick him in the under 23 to find those scoring boot. As for Jackson I'm really on the fence as he hasn't go an ounce of skill and as for Keane we aren't getting much. That leaves 10 minutes Sears ! If his getting back why didn't he play for the under 23 on Monday. I am behind lambo and it's not all his fault but as everyone says we have the best squad and should be getting the best out this group. I look at other teams above us and they have battled us into defeat and unfortunately the squad are bottlers rather than battler's. I posted earlier on in the week if we win all our game we are still in with a shout but I am now fearing where's the next points coming from !!!

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BlueMoolay added 12:35 - Feb 12 Should have....Could have....Would have...!!!!!
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Steve_ITFC_Sweden added 12:39 - Feb 12 Not to mention that teams below us also have games in hand!
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terryf added 12:46 - Feb 12 The sad thing is that as supporters our expectation levels are always high and full of optimism, but the reality is that we were relegated from the Championship because we weren't good enough and we are now in danger of becoming a bang average Team in league One. Teams such as Peterborough are scoring goals for fun, whilst we cannot buy a goal and we are still making silly mistakes at the other end of the pitch, which ultimately means we are losing games. Winning only 5 matches out of 20 is hardly promotion form let alone make the playoffs, so I fear for our chances of getting out of this division anytime soon. We will then be faced with the prospect of losing 3 or 4 key players without bringing in adequate replacements. We have seen this happen season upon season and it's not going to improve. Sadly the Owner whilst keeping us afloat is not prepared to invest properly in the Team, something he should have been doing year on year. Not going mad but bringing in some quality players. Also we have a Manager who for all his good work off the pitch seems to be content churning out the same old rhetoric week after week. The fans have been brilliant but the attitude of the Owner, Manager and Players has quite frankly just not been good enough.

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ChrisFelix added 12:50 - Feb 12 That midfield trio is the problem. You need some creativity in this area of the pitch !!!
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tractorboybig added 13:16 - Feb 12 so we are now wheeling out the boys to state the obvious??????
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grow_our_own added 13:28 - Feb 12 Agreed ChrisFelix. Attacking midfield has been the problem all season. It hasn't scored or created enough goals. Between them Judge & Nolan have only scored or created seven in their 50 appearances. Huws isn't going to jink & thread as well as Dobra and Dozzell. That Lambert cannot see this is tantamount to a sackable offence.
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