Blues centre-half George Edmundson admitted last night’s 0-0 home draw with Cheltenham was two points dropped, but felt he and his team-mates created enough chances to have won the match.

Town were frustrated by the Robins having been dominant particularly in the first half, with the Gloucestershire side picking up their first ever point at Portman Road having been defeated on their previous two visits back in the 1930s in the Southern League.

“The gaffer said it in there, we’ve done more than enough to win the game,” Edmundson said. “We’ve had loads of chances but teams are going to do that now when they come to us.

“They’re going to sit in, time waste a bit. The positives are that we’ve had 17 shots, we’ve done enough, it’s just one of those nights where we could be playing all week and we’d still not get the goal. But the positives, we’ve had loads of chances to win the game.

“Obviously it’s two points dropped but we’re going to come up against teams like this when we’re playing at home.

“I think you can see from watching the game we’ve created so many good chances. I think on another night that ends up 4-0 or something. It’s just one of those nights really and we’ve got to look back, learn from it and see where we can improve and move on.”

Was it a case of needing to stay patient? “I think we were. I think our general play was brilliant. The gaffer said it at full-time there, he thought in the first half that that’s the best we’ve played under him.

“Second half, he thought we lost our way a bit, but even in the second half I thought we had loads of chances.

“When I speak about chances, it’s not just the strikers. Woolfy’s had a header, I’ve had one off a free-kick.

“These are nights where it might have to be a set piece and we know that our set pieces probably haven’t been good enough and these are the nights when one of the defenders has to step up and put one in.”

Edmundson says he got something on Bersant Celina’s second half free-kick which flashed across the face of goal.

“I got the tiniest touch,” he said. “A bit more and it would have gone in but it was just one of those nights.”

The positive was that the Blues picked up their fifth consecutive clean sheet, matching a club record previously achieved in 2019, 2013 and 1997.

Edmundson says that that’s not just down to the defenders but everyone in the side: “Not just the boys at the back. We attack as a team, so when we score everybody has a part to play in it.

“And when we’re defending and keeping clean sheets, it’s the whole team again, it’s not just the back five as such, it’s Pigs [Joe Pigott] when he comes on keeping it up there, when we boom it long or whatever, it’s sticking and it gives us a chance to get up. It’s not just the back five, to be fair, it’s a team effort, attacking and defending.”

He says it’s something defenders take pride in: “Obviously, apart from scoring a set piece, that’s probably the thing we look for, clean sheets.

“As a back five, we are buzzing on that part but, like I said, it is a team effort, attack and defence.”

In the way that an on-form striker expects to score in every game, do the Blues’ backline feel the same about clean sheets at present?

“I think it’s a bit different for defenders because to keep a clean sheet you have to be on it for 90 minutes whereas a striker, they only need one chance and it can be a goal,” he reflected.

“As a defender, if you get too laid-back and think you’re just going to cruise, that’s when you can start shipping goals.

“We’ve got to go into every game, make a fresh start, be on it and hopefully we can get another clean sheet.”

Edmundson has become a fixtures on the left of the back three which has started the last 12 matches having previously played on the right. Is he comfortable playing on that side?

“I haven’t really played it in a three before, I’ve always played on the right in a back three, but when it’s a back four I like playing on the left,” he continued. “I feel like it’s another string to your bow playing on the left or right.

“I’m enjoying it, I feel like I’m improving every day. Obviously I have to use my left foot more than might right now, so it’s good for me.”

He says the clean sheet record is the result of hard work at Playford Road: “I think you can see at set pieces, I don’t think we’ve conceded a set piece for ages. It’s something we’re working on.

“[Assistant manager] Martyn [Pert] always takes us, the attackers will go and do their bit and he always takes the back five and we’re heading.

“It’s basic stuff but that’s what defending is, it’s doing the basics well. Every day we’re keeping on top of it and just trying to improve.”

"Despite last night’s setback, Edmundson is confident that the Blues are very much in with a shout of a play-off place with 12 matches remaining with a trip to Morecambe on Saturday up next.

“Everybody knows that’s where we wanted to be even from the start of the season, but we’ve just got to take every game as it comes,” he said.

“We can have nights like this where you probably think we’ve dropped two points but then we can go and win on the weekends. It’s just one of them, we take it.

“We’ve just got to take every game as it comes, can’t get too high when we win or too low when we lose so, we’ve got to stay steady, look at the video tomorrow, see where we can improve and go on to the weekend.”

Photo: TWTD

Linkboy13 added 11:34 - Feb 24 One thing that came out of the game the partnership of Bonne and Pigott was a complete disaster zero movement off the ball both looked woefully slow and no balls won in the air the proverbial cart horses. We looked far more dangerous when Jackson was playing up front on his own at least he was making good runs off the ball just his final ball was lacking.
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Barty added 13:37 - Feb 24 Defensively we are strong but my biggest worry is lack of goals - only 5 in the last 6 games !!
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Dab added 15:34 - Feb 24 Progress is being made! Before KMcK we were a mess in most departments... He settled the back line and keeper and all of a sudden we stopped shipping goals. He then went after the midfield and all of a sudden we are dominating possession and playing some of the best football we have seen in years, helped by the fact that the defence was sorted. Now he needs to sort out the forward line and if he does we can beat anyone. Cant do everything in one go, and it might not be done this season, but he is getting there!

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SussexTractor added 15:36 - Feb 24 There needs to be an established front two partnership play Jackson and Piggott as one partnership and as substitutes bring on Norwood and Bonne together. 4 shots on target is not good enough for all the possession and fancy play. The best teams have strikers who are used to a partner playing alongside them and they build up an understanding. Forget the one striker up front nonsense, it only works with very pacey teams ie not ITFC.

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