James Norwood’s goal a minute before the break has given Town a 1-0 half-time lead over Wycombe Wanderers at Portman Road.

Vaclav Hladky returned in goal for Christian Walton as Kieran McKenna named an otherwise unchanged team.

Walton was absent from the 18 and understood to have had Covid with Tomas Holy on the bench. Hladky was making his first league appearance since the Cambridge match at the start of October.

Town, who arrived at Portman Road together on a coach, lined up in a 3-4-3 system as opposed to the 3-5-2 employed against Sunderland 11 days ago.

Luke Woolfenden was in the middle of the three centre-halves with George Edmundson on the left and Janoi Donacien the right.

Wes Burns and Matt Penney continued as the wing-backs with skipper Sam Morsy and Lee Evans in central midfield with Macauley Bonne the central striker with Norwood to his left and Sone Aluko the right.

For Wycombe, manager Gareth Ainsworth was absent having tested positive for Covid with assistant manager Richard Dobson and player-coach Matt Bloomfield, who is from Felixstowe and started his career with the Blues, taking charge from the dugout.

The Chairboys’ line-up included ex-Blues loanee David Stockdale, while former Town youngster Adam Przybek is the sub keeper.

New boss McKenna was introduced to the crowd and given a standing ovation as he made his way to the dugout before the teams came out separately, Wycombe first, then the Blues. Meanwhile, new Town head of analysis, Charlie Turnbull, made his way to the camera gantry.

The sides took a knee to warm applause from the large Portman Road crowd before the game got under way with the Blues in control of the early stages.

Skipper Morsy struck the first shot of the McKenna era, looping an effort over from just outside the box after being teed-up by Burns after the Welshman had been unable to find space for a strike of his own.

Morsy was shown the game’s first yellow card in the ninth minute, a caution which looked a little harsh despite his challenge on Anthony Stewart having been a foul.

Penney joined his captain in the book on 11 after felling Jason McCarthy as the Wycombe wing-back broke into the area on the right chasing Sam Vokes’s flick. McCarthy fell well inside the area but referee Samuel Barrott deemed the foul to have taken place outside the box, which looked correct.

Chairboys fans called for a red card but it was difficult to see how the incident could have been viewed as an obvious goalscoring opportunity. Visitors’ skipper Joe Jacobson curled his free-kick into the wall.

There was another scare for the Blues two minutes later when Woolfenden just about managed to take the ball away from Brandon Hanlan on the edge of the box from another Vokes flick.

Despite those two incidents, it was still mainly Town and in the 17th minute they thought they’d gone ahead.

Burns fed Aluko on his right and the Nigerian international powered over a low ball which Bonne, without a goal in his previous nine games, tapped in at the far post only to see a linesman flag raised for offside.

Bonne thought his wait for a goal had come to an end again two minutes later when Morsy played wide to Burns, who sent over a cross which the striker powerfully headed towards goal only for Stockdale to bat it away.

In the 22nd minute, Morsy threaded in Bonne on the left of the box but Jacobson took the ball away from him. Norwood smashed the loose ball into the net from distance but with the linesman having indicated that Bonne had been offside.

A minute later, Hladky punched a ball nervously when under no pressure, before the ball was played back into the area and Chris Forino headed well wide.

From the goal-kick, Town almost played themselves into trouble but referee Barrott awarded a free-kick to the Blues for a David Wheeler foul on Evans inside the box.

Town were well on top with Wycombe camped inside their own area for lengthy periods. Centre-halves Donacien, Edmundson and Woolfenden had all made forays forward from the back, at times leaving their side a little short on numbers defensively.

The Blues were passing the ball around and keeping it for long spells but without being able to find a way through the Chairboys’ massed backline.

On 27 a Donacien run from the back ended with the defender hitting a rare shot from a tight angle which was blocked.

Just before the half-hour, Hladky required attention after colliding with Edmundson as the defender cut out a low cross from the left following a Wycombe break but was OK to continue.

Wycombe saw more of the ball for a short spell, Curtis Thompson volleying well into the Sir Alf Ramsey Stand after a corner had been cleared, then on 34 Norwood brought it in from the left before scraping a shot through to Stockdale, who was given little trouble.

On 43 Norwood reacted angrily to what he claimed was an elbow from Stewart and both players were spoken to by the referee before an Evans free-kick into the box was hooked away.

There was no doubt that Town had been the better side and a minute later they finally scored the first goal of the McKenna era.

Donacien sent a throw into the box to Bonne’s feet, the striker laid it off to Morsy, who scuffed a shot across the face as he broke towards goal, which Stockdale could only palm to Norwood, who couldn’t help but divert over the line from a few feet out.

The striker’s third goal in three league games was celebrated by virtually the entire Town team in front of an ecstatic Sir Bobby Robson Stand.

There was time for Penney to send a dangerous ball across the Wycombe area before the half-time whistle was greeted by applause and cheers with the Blues in possession in the Chairboys’ half and pushing for a second goal.

Town could be very happy with their first 45 minutes under their new boss. They had been on the front foot, had passed the ball around confidently, with their central defenders joining in the attacks, and looked for openings as the visitors retreated into the box, finally taking their opportunity through Norwood in the dying moments of the period.

Aside from a couple of moments of Blues hesitancy and miscommunication at the back, the Chairboys had hardly threatened.

Town: Hladky, Donacien, Woolfenden, Edmundson, Burns, Aluko, Evans, Morsy (c), Penney, Norwood, Bonne. Subs: Holy, Nsiala, Carroll, Fraser, Chaplin, Jackson, Pigott.

Wycombe: Stockdale, Jacobson (c), Stewart, Wheeler, Thompson, Vokes, McCleary, Hanlan, Obita, McCarthy, Forino. Subs: Przybek, Grimmer, Horgan, Mehmeti, Akinfenwa, Scowen, De Barr. Referee: Sam Barrott (West Riding).

Photo: Matchday Images

howsey51 added 21:01 - Dec 29 Now we will see what we are made of. After so many dropped points from positions like this I trust KM to get these guys to keep clear heads. A real character test now- COYB.
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