Town continue to look for a win against one of League One’s top sides as Mark McGuinness’s 69th minute own goal saw Peterborough United to a 1-0 win at Portman Road. Jonson Clarke-Harris missed a penalty for Posh in a dull first half and the game improved little in a second in which McGuinness scuffed past his own keeper to win three points for the visitors who otherwise didn’t manage a shot on target, while the Blues registered merely two.

Town boss Paul Lambert, who again watched the game sitting in the dugout, made one enforced change with Aaron Drinan replacing James Norwood up front.

Norwood dropped out of the 18 having felt some fatigue in his previously injured hamstring during last Saturday’s 1-0 win at Burton.

Kayden Jackson was also not in the squad having missed training earlier in the week due to thigh and hip injuries.

Winger Luke Thomas, who signed from Barnsley in the week, was among the subs, as was Jon Nolan, who had previously been out with a calf problem. Town’s other new loan signing, Josh Harrop, is self-isolating having tested positive for Covid-19.

Posh made one change from the team which beat Charlton 2-1 in midweek with midfielder Reece Brown coming in for Ethan Hamilton, who was among the subs.

After the two teams had taken a knee in support of Black Lives Matter, the game got under way with Peterborough controlling the early stages but without either keeper being tested.

Town gradually began to show more and on 16 Teddy Bishop won a free-kick five yards outside the penalty area to the right. The ball was played short to the midfielder on the edge of the area, where he worked himself space to hit a shot which deflected wide.

Five minutes later, former Posh wideman Gwion Edwards won a free-kick on the left, although the decision looked harsh on the visitors, and Alan Judge scraped a strike past Christy Pym’s right post with the keeper never looking in any trouble.

Clarke-Harris struck a powerful 25-yard free-kick only just over Tomas Holy’s cross-bar in the 25th minute but with the Town keeper similarly unflustered.

Just before the half hour, Sammie Szmodics, under pressure from Dozzell, was able to turn the ball into the path of Siriki Dembele breaking down the left. The former Grimsby striker took it on into the area and hit a shot which looked to be going wide before Holy’s right hand made sure.

In the 33rd minute the visitors were handed a golden opportunity to go in front when Toto Nsiala lunged in to make a challenge on Dembele in the area. Referee Antony Coggins didn’t appear to be that interested until his assistant on the right-hand side after a long wait waved his flag and the Oxfordshire-based official pointed to the spot.

However, fortunately for the Blues, Clarke-Harris smashed his penalty very powerfully straight down the middle but too high.

The visitors didn’t seem unduly affected by their penalty miss and in the 43rd minute again weren’t far away from the opening goal.

Dan Butler’s whipped over a free-kick from the right which somehow avoided everyone in the area and flashed past the far post.

Just before the whistle, Jack Taylor was booked for a foul on Bishop inside the centre circle as the Blues broke.

A not particularly memorable half with neither side having recorded a shot on target with the visitors’ penalty the only really significant opportunity, although Dembele might feel he could have done better with his earlier chance.

Prior to the penalty, the Blues had started play more in the Peterborough half but without being able to create a chance and having had a tendency to give the ball away. Posh seemed buoyed by their penalty, even if they had missed it, and had looked more threatening in the spell which followed.

Edwards whipped over a cross from the right a couple of minutes after the restart but Drinan, still looking for his first competitive goal for the Blues, was unable to get his head on it.

On 54 Chambers nodded a bouncing ball towards Drinan not far outside the six-yard box but a Posh boot took it away from the Irishman. Five minutes later, Stephen Ward was booked for a foul on Idris Kanu.

There was a scare for the Blues in the 62nd minute when a scuffed Butler free-kick from the right made its way through a crowd of players and bounced off Holy, but fortunately didn’t fall kindly for a Posh player.

Peterborough were looking the more threatening of two not at all dangerous-looking sides and on 68 they went in front, perhaps inevitably given the overall lack of threat shown by the two teams, via an own goal.

Butler sent over a cross from the left and under no pressure McGuinness, the scorer of Town’s winner at Burton last week, sliced his clearance across Holy and into the corner of the net to give the visitors the lead.

Edwards was booked for a foul on Kanu on 71, then two minutes later skipper Luke Chambers smashed a shot high and wide after Bishop had found him on the right of the area.

Prior to the goal-kick, Town made a triple substitution with Nolan, Thomas and Freddie Sears replacing Bishop, Judge and Drinan.

Less than a minute after coming on, Nolan struck the Blues’ first shot on target from 25 yards but Pym was able to bat the ball into the air.

Thomas made his first contribution in a Town shirt on 78, cutting in from the right and playing a low ball to Edwards on the other side of the box. The Welshman turned inside his man before hitting a shot not too far over.

The Blues, as snow began to fall, briefly started to look a threat as the game moved into its final 10 minutes, Sears and then Thomas both having efforts blocked.

Posh swapped Hamilton for Brown two minutes later and the sub went close almost immediately, shooting over from Butler’s cross having initially played the ball wide to the former Newport man.

Niall Mason took over from Dembele for Posh in the penultimate minute with the Blues by now no more than huffing and puffing and an equaliser not looking particularly likely.

The Blues did have the ball in the net during five minutes of injury time but the ball had already gone out of play before Chambers had knocked back in to Nsiala, who had acrobatically hooked home.

Downes headed into Pym’s arms to register a second attempt on target before referee Coggins brought the afternoon to an end.

The winning goal summed up a game of little quality with neither team ever showing much incisiveness or invention in and around the penalty area. Despite their lack of attempts on goal, Peterborough probably deserved the three points marginally more than the Blues.

Town never create many chances but few opposition keepers will have had as quiet an afternoon as Peterborough’s Pym, who was only forced into action by sub Nolan’s shot.

On this evidence, both teams are some way off the likes of Hull City, Portsmouth and Doncaster.

The Blues have now lost five of their last six at home and taken 10 points from their last nine games.

The result, one which heaps yet more pressure on under-fire Blues boss Lambert, moves Posh up to third while Town are down to ninth ahead of another tough home game against Sunderland on Tuesday and a difficult away trip to Crewe next Saturday.

Town: Holy, Chambers (c), Nsiala, McGuinness, Ward, Dozzell, Downes, Bishop (Nolan 74), Judge (Thomas 74), Drinan (Sears 74), Edwards. Unused: Cornell, Woolfenden, Kenlock, Huws.

Peterborough: Pym, Butler, Thompson, Beevers (c), Kent, Taylor, Clarke-Harris, Dembele (Mason 89), Brown, Szmodics (Jones 84), Kanu. Unused: Gyollai, Eisa, Broom, Burrows. Referee: Antony Coggins (Oxfordshire).

Photo: Matchday Images

suffolkpunchdrunk added 18:04 - Jan 23 Enough is enough. It really is that simple.
3

RobsonWark added 18:05 - Jan 23 We used to be the 'Pride of Anglia' but now I think Colchester and even Chelmsford could beat us.
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blue86 added 18:06 - Jan 23 Would rather nsiala in the side?........ comments like this, frighten me, makes me angry and laugh my head off all at the same time!
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Dockerblue added 18:08 - Jan 23 So Donacien goes straight into the Fleetwood side that kept a clean sheet while we stuck with Chambers at RB where he had another woeful game, it,s a disgrace how this club is being run, our defence is shocking and we have no attack, our coaching staff have no idea and the sooner they are all dismissed the better, none are doing the job they are paid to do, this is the 3rd season of utter cr@p us fans have had to put up with. Just resign Lambert and take Chambers with you, you useless tossed!

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therein61 added 18:09 - Jan 23 Unless Lambert goes now we are in league1 next season and with the new wage structure we haven't a prayer of signing any quality to get us promotion and we are doomed to stay there the whole club is in dire straits from a-z starting with big gob giving 4&8 far too much influence before his departure they have been one of the biggest problems in the clubs decline coupled with ridiculous team selection and tactics an appalling injury record which has to be down to over training and p1ss poor coaching(that's why we struggle in matches just like when Doig was here) I.T.F.C is now a total joke.

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DerryfromBury added 18:10 - Jan 23 There can be absolutely no arguing that Chambers as been a fantastic servant for the club and rightly commended for the years of loyal service as a player and captain, but, unfortunately for everyone there comes a point when it's time to hang up their boots and to call it a day. I'm not saying he should be put out to pasture by ITFC, surely someone with his years of experience at both Championship and League One level could play a massive role behind the schemes for many years to come, but sadly I feel that time is fast approaching.

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Dockerblue added 18:11 - Jan 23 Tosser!!
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PSGBlue added 18:12 - Jan 23 Dreadful! Peterborough 7 - 3 Ipswich over the last three League 1 matches between us. Imagine in the year 2001 if someone said we couldn't beat Peterborough in three attempts! This is no-longer the Ipswich we once knew - sad times!
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warktheline added 18:12 - Jan 23 Usual muppets on here, ‘play this loan player here and there, yeah ship that player out!'.....WAKE UP, EVANS is systematically dismantling our club, how much longer are you going to sit on your hands and watch this Trojan Horse destroy Ipswich Town Football Club?
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RobITFC added 18:13 - Jan 23 WHY WHY WHY persist with 4.3.3 when it clearly does not work. We are at HOME against another average lg.1 team that could not even muster a shot on target yet they still went home with 3 points because of your (Lambert) negative tactics. We as fans are BORED of the crap you throw up week in week out and yet you still think you are doing a good job. NO YOUR ARE NOT , LOOK AT THE STATS LAMBERT , YOU ARE OUR WORST MANAGER EVER , NOW CLEAR OFF OUT OF OUR CLUB ASAP.!!!!!!!!!!!! from a fan over over 50 years!!

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PSGBlue added 18:14 - Jan 23 But it could be argued its an improvement on the 7-1 defeat in just one match - Lambert in!
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Gforce added 18:14 - Jan 23 Got more chance of going down, than up. Won't be long before we're playing Barrow and Harrowgate,at least there will be new grounds to visit.
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RobsonWark added 18:17 - Jan 23 blue86 added 18:06 - Jan 23 "Would rather nsiala in the side?........ comments like this, frighten me, makes me angry and laugh my head off all at the same time!" I would rather have my mother at centre back than a complete idiot who doesn't care for the team or the club. You want players in the team who thinks it's funny when we lose??? That's why we are in this mess because players like him don't care about our club or the supporters. They think they are better than they really are!

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MonkeyAlan added 18:21 - Jan 23 Lambert out. Utter rubbish yet again. Evans you Muppet.
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Grumpyoldgit added 18:26 - Jan 23 53 years I've been supporting Ipswich, my father first took me when I was 8 years old. I have to say I have never been so disinterested in anything that goes on at the club - who we pick, who gets dropped or injured, no one seems to make a big enough difference anyway. The relationship between the owner/manager and fans is perhaps at an all time low and there doesn't look to be any way out of this mess in the near future. Worst of all for me is I don't get angry or upset anymore because I expect these performances. As a life long supporter I'm not sure if I care enough to go every week anymore when COVID is better and fans are allowed back into watch. It hurts me to say that but that's how I feel.

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BeattiesBackPocket added 18:29 - Jan 23 Robsonwalk yet again you pick out one player laughing and smiling and whilst I agree with you the WHOLE TEAM were doing the same so In your thinking no one should be playing. I agree could you imagine any of Burnley's or joe royles or even Magilton players coming off like that let alone the butchers beatties and mills scathing attack on what's happening no one should come of laughing or smiling however the WHOLE TEAM were not just Woolfenden and now he's been dropped for staying the obvious in an interview clearly so I wonder if he'll be doing the same with chambers?

1

TractorJed added 18:32 - Jan 23 The current situation must tick all the boxes for Evans. Clearly zero interest in a proper promotion challenge. If it happens by luck, so be it. Lambert just happy to pick up a wage. Players under no real pressure. Zero ambition across all aspects of the club.
4

bluearmy4life added 18:37 - Jan 23 Really flat boring 90 minutes. Peterborough weren't amazing, but they still beat us! Defensively we were really poor. I thought Chambers was one of the worse players on the pitch today. Almost every pass he made went a drift. Nothing up front until the last 10 minutes. There's not enough quality or real clinical finishing in our side. We don't score enough goals! To be there or there abouts you've got to be capable of scoring at least 70 goals plus! I can see our side doing that in a million years. 5 home defeats out of 6 Marcus Evans and you seem to be accepting this?! Where's these green shoots that you see?

3

RobsonWark added 18:43 - Jan 23 BeattiesBackPocket added 18:29 - Jan 23 "Robsonwalk yet again you pick out one player laughing and smiling and whilst I agree with you the WHOLE TEAM were doing the same so In your thinking no one should be playing. I agree could you imagine any of Burnley's or joe royles or even Magilton players coming off like that let alone the butchers beatties and mills scathing attack on what's happening no one should come of laughing or smiling however the WHOLE TEAM were not just Woolfenden and now he's been dropped for staying the obvious in an interview clearly so I wonder if he'll be doing the same with chambers?" I don't believe Wolfenden was dropped for his interview. It's his whole attitude and the fact he thinks he is too good for the club. When did he last have a GOOD game??

0

BlueandTruesince82 added 18:43 - Jan 23 Lambert out
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bringingbackthedutch added 18:44 - Jan 23 Ugh! On the one hand we were unlucky to lose, or the other we weren't anywhere near good enough. Both full backs were terrible. Ward plays at walking pace and is always on the half-turn backwards in possession, even when under no pressure. Chambers gets in the game more, but gives the ball away with that default clueless long punt he favours. Other teams whatever their level just don't do that, let alone repeatedly. The system clearly doesn't work and what the heck is going on with the midfield? Downes and Dozzell didn't play about four miles apart in the successful academy side. What is Downes who isn't a creative or attacking midfielder doing so far up the pitch, he should be winning the ball to release to Andre or Bish to get things moving. All wrong. Ugh!

5

heathen66 added 18:45 - Jan 23 There is a lot of criticism on here for Nsiala and McGuiness but they are being let down by both full backs. Both CBs are left very isolated and often 2 against 2. We need to start defending properly as a back 4 like most other teams.
5

algarvefan added 18:58 - Jan 23 What exactly has Lambert achieved since he has been at the club? I don't want us to be one of the clubs that changes it's manager every 5 minutes but surely everyone can see that Lambert isn't going to achieve anything so why is he still here. I think we have the players at the club to get promoted but we have had a serious problem on the goal scoring front which was very evident again today. I thought we did reasonably well today and competed well, BUT we didn't really look like scoring. Time for a change and I personally would like to see someone with Ipswich roots and a love for the club take charge for the rest of the season and take it from there. I'm still going to support the team as best as I can and watch every game (it's a bonus living abroad) on ifollow. These are difficult times and haranguing the players is counter productive. The team are not being suitably motivated and that is the managers job that he has failed to do.

0

jas0999 added 18:59 - Jan 23 What a terrible game of football and to think we lost again. One thing struggling to beat a terrible Burton - quite another being beaten by one of the top sides who were equally as awful. Lamberts record is atrocious and he should be sacked, before we finish lower mid table. This club has sunk very low under Evans terrible putrid ownership.
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DerryfromBury added 19:03 - Jan 23 The problem we now find ourselves in is, if PL is replaced anytime soon, whoever ME manages to get in, with the current squad of players, its unlikely they'll do anything other than secure a place in League One for next season. If we're not careful we'll end up with the same unenviable tag as we did in the Championship, only next time it'll be the team with the longest period in League one. The once great Ipswich Town FC, what the hell has happened

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