Delighted Blues boss Kieran McKenna felt it was important for his team to set the tone with their opening game against Sunderland, which Town won 2-1 at the Stadium of Light.

Nathan Broadhead and George Hirst netted the goals as the Blues returned to the Championship after four years away with a win over the 10-man Wearsiders, maintaining an unbeaten first-day record which stretches back to 2014.

“Getting points on the board early is important,” McKenna said at a lengthy post-match press conference following the live-on-sky clash.

“More important is just the application of the players. We spoke before the game today about setting a tone for how we’re going to be and I think we set a good tone for how hard we’re going to work and how hard we’re going to have to work.

“It was a really high level game, it was a big challenge. A very strong opponent at home with a full house and good momentum and it took every ounce of effort from the whole squad that we had to be competitive and get the result.”


Town dominated possession in virtually all their games last season but Sunderland had the lion’s share of the ball during today’s match. Was that something he anticipated?

“Not necessarily,” McKenna reflected. “We know we’re going to have to defend more. We want to press more aggressively than we managed to do in the first half.

“I think the level of the game and the opponent was certainly a step up and I think the players felt that in the first 20 minutes and we weren’t able to break their press as well as we wanted and we weren’t able to find the extra step in our legs to be able to get enough pressure on the ball and regain the ball high enough up.

“We needed to change it to be a bit more aggressive tactically as well as the first half went on and we know we’re going to have to defend at times but we also know that we can show bits of what we did today.

“I thought we stayed brave with our build-up, we were patient and really tried to do the right things to find the spare man to break the pressure and get through the pitch, and it was difficult at the start.

“But we stuck at it and I thought as the half went on and at the start of the second half, we started to find the spare man and break lines a lot better and that gave us a really good foothold in the game. I think there’s so much that we’ll take from it and learn from it.”

Town ultimately had to see the game out under significant late Sunderland pressure after Dan Neil had pulled one back for the Black Cats.

“It was difficult, it was always going to be,” he conceded. “I think the 3-0 was going to be key.

“At 2-0, I think we felt that at times last year, when you come to these stadiums, 2-0 with 30 minutes or so to go is never really safe because you know if you get one goal against you, then you know you’re going to be under an awful lot of pressure.

“The third goal was going to massive. Of course, we were unlucky with Conor [Chaplin] when he hit the crossbar, I thought for me there was a penalty in there, it looked pretty blatant [that George Hirst was fouled] and it would very likely have been 3-0 and probably game over.

“And we had some other counter-attacks that we could have done better on, and I think that’s key whenever they’re pushing as many bodies as they were and they’ve got the crowd and the momentum behind them.

“We were digging in really well but we need to kill the game and go and get the third, and when we didn’t manage to do that, it was going to be a case at the end of bodies on the line and rely on a bit of luck and some good saves and some good defending to get us over the line.”

The Town boss is pleased to have secured a win early on in the season, as any newly-promoted side would want.

“For sure,” he said.” It’s going to be a tough division, we know that. We know it’s a big, big step up and we’re going into it really humble about how hard it’s going to be every week.

“Getting the first points on the board is difficult but I think we all felt how difficult it’s going to be every week and how hard we’re going to have to fight for points and how much we’re going to have to work to improve every aspect of our game to keep delivering good performances.”

McKenna felt his team grew into the game after a jittery start: “I think we were a bit nervous early on, I don’t think we went into the game nervous but from the league that we’ve coming from to then there be 40-plus thousand here on a big pitch against a good team at home with momentum behind them and we’re trying to impose ourselves in the game and they’re pressing us high and hard and well, we didn’t execute as well as we wanted to.

“I think we’ll take a lot from that, to be honest, because I think if the game was in the three weeks’ time I think we’d start and we’d perform even better than we did today.

“The pleasing thing was that we grew into the game, we kept trying to play our football, we showed faith in what we do and I thought as the first half went on, every time we broke the pressure and got into their half, we looked a threat and we probably had at least as good chances or big moments in the first half as they did. First part of the second half, I thought was very good, on and off the ball.”

And the Blues had to dig in and hold on when under pressure at the end, which McKenna says his side can take a lot from.

“Certainly. We’re going to have to win a lot of tight games,” he added. “There’s going to be fewer 5-0s and 6-0s, that’s for sure.

“Whether that’s seeing the game when it’s tight or hopefully coming back from behind or getting some tight ones over the line in our way, that’s going to be really important for us.

“To see that first one out, especially with so much time added on and injuries and cramps, was a really good moment for the squad.”

Asked what a win like that means to him, McKenna said: “It doesn’t mean too much in the big picture, to be honest. It’s the first game of the season, if we’d have won, if we’d have lost.

“Of course, it’s a proud moment for myself and everyone to have guided the club back to this level and to be coming to football clubs such as Sunderland and coming here to compete and play our football.

“In that way, it’s a proud moment and it’s back where we want to be in and beyond, hopefully.

“I think in the big picture of the season, it’s a start, it’s the first game. Of course, three points is nice. I think there’s loads that we can take from the performance, some good things and there’s lots to improve.

“I think really our focus will just be on looking back at the game, things we did well, things we can do better and then getting ready for a big game next Saturday [at home to Stoke]. “Of course, we’ve got a [Carabao] Cup game on Wednesday [against Bristol Rovers], so it’s a very, very busy start to the season. I think it’ll just be taking what we can into the next game, looking to improve.”

Does he think the rest of the league will sit up and take notice having seen the result? “Sunderland have a good home record and finished off the season well, so anyone who was in the league last year will know it’s a good result, or anyone who can see the quality of Tony [Mowbray]’s team will know it’s a good result.

“I think there’s already been a fair bit of talk about us and how well we do, but we’re humble enough in the building to know what the step is and know where we’re coming from and hard it’s going to be.

“But yes, it’s a good start, I think at this stage of the season, everyone’s going to be focusing on themselves and the next opponent and trying to improve themselves and I think you can’t read too much into the early games.

“But for us, it’s just a good start, a good platform and lots of things that we can improve and take forward.”

Town had few games last season where the opposition had a greater share of possession than them, but the RB Leipzig pre-season friendly proved to be a good preparation for circumstances such as today.

One of those games, RB Leipzig, aimed at work out of possession, building towards games like today’s, and others McKenna says.

“Yes, and there are going to be plenty of them,” he reflected. “It wasn’t that we were all of a sudden going to be a counter-attacking team and defensively compact team, and I thought we could have pressed a little bit better in the first half.

“But we know there are certainly going to be phases of probably every game where we’re going to have to be compact as a team and show resilience off the ball and be ready to break and I enjoy that challenge. I think the players are going to be joy that challenge.

“We’re going to have to show different strings to our bow than dominating games every week because of the level of the opponent. That was part of pre-season and that hopefully set us up well, as did some of the experiences we had at the back end of last season.”

McKenna was pleased for striker Hirst, who scored his Championship goal eight minutes after half-time.

“Yes, delighted for him,” he said. “We’ve got a lot of faith in him and we think there’s still a lot more to come.

“He’s hit the ground running since he came back this summer, he’s scored in the pre-season games and today was a good game for him because it was tough.

“We didn’t get as good a service up and around him as we wanted at times, so he had to battle away against the centre-halves and sometimes that’s the job, you just have to battle and work hard for the team off the ball, try and secure the ball and then be ready when your big moments come.

“I think he had one in the first half, it came across and he didn’t quite get the right connection but in the second half when his big moment came he was there, a great bit of movement and a great finish.

“Delighted for him, I know he’s going into the season wanting to show people that he can play at this level and that’s a good start for him.”

Nathan Broadhead’s opening goal in first-half injury time initially looked as if it had hit the Town forward but video evidence showed the Welshman making a run across his defender and flinging a foot towards Leif Davis’s shot to claim a goal against his former loan club.

“He said he stuck his leg at it, it was hard to see exactly what happened,” McKenna said. “Good instinct and he’s got good instincts, so he’ll be happy to come back here and score, and a really good assist for George’s goal as well, a lovely weight of pass and a really good goal.

“I’m sure it’s nice for him to come back to his old club and nice for both the goalscorers and a nice win for the whole team.”

Keeper Vaclav Hladky made his second league start of McKenna’s time in charge and made a vital save right at the end, pushing earlier Black Cats scorer Neil’s shot onto the post.

“Really pleased for him,” the Blues manager continued. “When you lose your first-choice goalkeeper and a really good goalkeeper like Christian [Walton] then there’s going to be a lot of talk and a lot of noise around.

“We’ve got faith in Vaz and he’s been terrific for us on and off the pitch and he understands exactly how we want the team to play and he’s a big part of our build-up and he delivered in terms of making some good saves and also did well on some crosses as well, he came and punched some crosses at the back post, which is going to be important. He can be happy with himself, certainly.”

Town subbed both full-backs, Davis and Janoi Donacien, in the latter stages but McKenna says neither of them had a serious problem.

“Just cramp. Both cramp,” he said. “It was a tough game for us, for both teams, I’m sure. But we haven’t had many 90 minutes, it was a high level opponent and lots of ball in play time and a long game.

“There was some cramp there at the end and players had to go a little bit longer than we wanted them to do, but I think we’ve come through it OK.”

Similarly, the likes of Sone Aluko, Kyle Edwards, George Edmundson and Cameron Humphreys were left out simply due to the number of available players rather than any of them having a knock: “No injuries, just picking the squad.”

Quizzed on whether he’s made a decision on whether to send Elkan Baggott, another player absent from the squad, out on loan, McKenna added: “We spoke after the tour to Austria and we agreed we’d get through the first week or two of the season and then speak again. He’s trained well this week, he’ll likely be involved in the game on Wednesday night.

“Same for everyone in the squad, there’s going to be a big and competitive squad and we’re going to need a good and competitive squad for a tough division, let’s see what that squad looks like in a few weeks’ time.”

Rather than 90 minutes, the Blues played in excess of 103 which McKenna says is something teams will have to become accustomed to.

“It’s something that we’re all going to have to adapt to,” he said. “I understand why they’re trying to do it and everyone wants to see more ball in play time and reduce time-wasting in the game.

“But it means it’s a long game. It’s something that we’re all going to have to adapt to and I’m sure the referees will review how it’s going after a few weeks and hopefully come to a sensible middle ground where we see lots of ball play and lots of action and stamp out any really deliberate time-wasting as well as we can, but also think about the spectacle and the players well.”

Quizzed on how today’s win compared with some of last season’s, McKenna said: “I think we had some games similar to this one. This was the hardest, no two ways about it, but at the back of the season, League One was so competitive last season that we had to win almost every game to go up and we had to go to Derby, away to Bolton, away to Peterborough, away to Barnsley amongst some others in the second half of the season and get wins.

“To win away from home at clubs like this, and this is another level up from that, then you have to have all the ingredients that we had today. You have to defend well, you have to be brave with the ball to give yourself a platform in the game and a chance to break through the home team’s pressure.

“You have to be clinical, which we were, certainly with the second goal, in moments like that.

“And then you’re going to have to defend and counter-attack well, which we did to a certain extent, probably missing the third goal to really kill the game off, which we had enough moments to go and do.

“This is a group which has played together for a while now, some of them 18 months under me, some 12, some six, but we’ve been through some experiences and we’ve been through some experiences like this and I think that makes you stronger.

“This was the hardest, no doubt about it but a good experience for us to go through and the challenges are only going to get bigger from here as well.”

McKenna picked up his first yellow card as a Town manager, which he said was due to complaints regarding the penalty incident.

“Yes, for the penalty,” he said. “Again, it’s something they’re trying to make their mark on. It is what it is, there was nothing really I didn’t think too untoward but they’re trying to make an impact on that stuff, so that’s fair enough, no problem.”

Photo: TWTD

Barty added 21:23 - Aug 6 Fantastic result and yes we should definitely have had a penalty.
2

SpiritOfJohn added 21:28 - Aug 6 In depth and articulate as ever, Kieran was already learning more about his team from minute 1 at a higher level of opponent today. He will know where fine-tuning is needed to get even more from the squad. Even took his first yellow card on the chin instead of having a pop at the ref. Super KM!
15

Europablue added 21:39 - Aug 6 Where can we watch the interviews and highlights? We've gone from a free high-quality service on youtube to a paid sub-par service. I don't even begrudge the club a few more pounds for better service, but it's actually gotten worse.
0

ArnieM added 21:47 - Aug 6 SpiritOfJohn. Absolutely spot on.
3

Europablue added 21:58 - Aug 6 Hutchinson is going to need some coaching. He looks exciting but raw. He didn't pass again at the right time just like he did against RB Leipzig. Edwards is more on the team's wavelength and knows when to pass! Great win in difficult conditions. You can really see the quality of the first team when a couple of them are out. Our best team can beat anyone, but the squad is not quite up to standard for a whole campaign. Hopefully, KM and MA can bring in a few solid signings to get us through to January. Hopefully, Town will sort out Town TV to get it up to a more professional standard. It was great to watch the match live as I'm in a country with no live matches on TV, but I had to watch it on my PC and I have no idea where the manager and play interviews are supposed to be.

1

Suffolkboy added 22:06 - Aug 6 Enthusiastic but realistic; passionate yet dispassionate and cool and objective but convincing in his belief in our abilities and capacity ! In KM we have an all round leader ,whose views are always articulated well and interesting too ! COYB
2

martin587 added 22:08 - Aug 6 Extremely honest assessment as usual.He learnt a great deal about his players and what to expect this coming season.Well done Boss.
1

grow_our_own added 22:54 - Aug 6 Most managers are red-top. McKenna is broadsheet. I'd like to see more managers call-out the missing transparency in added time. When the clock is stopped and for how long should be known. The egg-chasing sport has it right: count up to 45 minutes on the scoreboard, showing when the clock has stopped. Then everyone knows, and there's no Fergie or Stadium of Light time, and no need for fricking added minutes! Simples.

2

Gforce added 22:54 - Aug 6 Another open and honest assessment from the messiah. 4th in the table,looks lovely, I'd certainly take that come May.
0

Daniel72 added 00:25 - Aug 7 In cinema terms it's like Jean Luc Godard is in charge circa 1959.. which gives us quite a lot of good times ahead...
0

Steve_ITFC_Sweden added 06:56 - Aug 7 Great win! As for time wasting (and feigning injury) just dish out immediate yellow cards and that should make players think twice.
0

dazza added 08:45 - Aug 7 Great result - credit to the lads and manager. We looked excellent on the counter, but as expected we are liable to conceding too. Ultimately that’s the price for the style we play and probably brings back memories of the Burley era. We will certainly win more than we lose, but the challenge for us getting promoted (in the future) will be keeping the door shut when we don’t have possession - at this level you will get punished. Not sure new players at the back would change this as for example our left and right side need to be attacking minded for the style of play. I will certainly enjoy watching how we get on and it has been great to watch.

3

Cadiar added 08:53 - Aug 7 As usual KM very straight & honest, a great performance against a very good team that we could have got more goals against. Chappers unlucky. Wouldn't mind the table looking like it does today after another 45 games. Bottom 3 a good bet, top 6, can't see Plymouth up there.
0

Bazza8564 added 09:14 - Aug 7 It's a brilliant win in one of the toughest fixtures we will face this season. I think we will have learned an awful lot from the energy in the press that Sunderland showed, how little time we had on the ball in MF to relax and build and one or two looked like this level might be a stretch for them. But we showed tremendous resilience, thats a major plus for us. We will need to strengthen without doubt and hopefully another win or two will make getting a couple of deals over the line a bit easier. Not a time to get carried away for me, let's enjoy it now but this isnt going to be an easy season

2

Suffolkboy added 11:02 - Aug 7 Bazza ,what a perceptive observation ( stretching etc ) but isn’t that what we’d expect ,and now we want to see if our lads can grow into the extra demands of the Championship .That's going to be exciting too ,and it will be a test of KM’s education skill set — but in that I’ve very few areas of doubt ! We may well see one or two players fall by the wayside ,not able or committed enough to raise their game ,but the squad appear united and totally enthused ! COYB

0

bucket99 added 11:15 - Aug 7 Having subscribed to TownTV, I logged on yesterday expecting to watch the match - only to find that video was Not Available In Your Region!! Have I missed something, or has Berkshire declared independence or something?
0

pg888 added 12:32 - Aug 7 If the game is on Saturday or is live on sky you need a vpn to watch in the uk
1

Radlett_blue added 13:26 - Aug 7 "Sunderland have a good home record"?!? Err, no. Sunderland were the 16th best home side in the Championship last season, losing as often as they won. They got into the play offs thanks to their good away form.
1

Blogs 295 bloggers

Ipswich Town Polls