Town keeper Vaclav Hladky has admitted his excitement level has never been higher as he anticipates his first appearance in the Championship at Portman Road tomorrow when Stoke City are the first visitors of the new season.

Hladky, 32, said: “It was brilliant to be involved when we won our opening game at Sunderland last week but the first home game of the season will be even more special for me.

“There will be a capacity crowd of about 30,000 and every single one of the players is excited about this game. We can’t wait to be playing in front of our own fans, who were such a big part of our success last season.

“We want to make things as hard as possible for the opposition, every single team that visits Portman Road this season. Our supporters are among the best in the country and I am sure they will give us tremendous backing from the kick-off. I haven’t looked forward to a game as much as this one for a very long time.”

Fans will recall how Hladky, now in his third season as a Town player, appeared off the bench in the 83rd minute of last season’s final home game, the 6-0 defeat of Exeter that confirmed the Blues’ promotion to the Championship, and he added: “That was a brilliant occasion.

“The fans had been waiting for four years for that moment and I can imagine how much it meant to them. They can see this club is going in the right direction and while I’m pleased to be part of the journey, I am more delighted for the supporters because I know how much it meant to them that we were going to be back in the Championship.

“I didn’t know that I would be coming on in the Exeter game. But, to be honest, when we were leading 5-0 at half-time, I said to myself that it could be a big chance for me to get on the pitch at some stage in the second half and it was great when it happened.

“I had a few minutes towards the end of the game and it meant a lot to me to be that involved, rather than just sit on the bench until the final whistle.

“The good thing about winning 2-1 at Sunderland was that we started where we left off last season and we are now unbeaten since January.

“Last season’s promotion was a brilliant achievement for all of us but we are at a new level now and we want to carry on being successful. There are new goals to be achieved and we have been working really hard since we returned for pre-season training about seven weeks ago.

“We can feel the excitement among the fans to aim for another promotion. They filled the stadium on many occasions last season and I’m pretty sure it is going to be a similar story this season.

“We are all looking forward, not only to the first home game against Stoke on Saturday but to every single game because we know how much it would mean if we could go up again.”

Hladky, of course, owes his current status as the club’s number one keeper to the foot injury sustained in pre-season by Christian Walton, who was the only player to be ever-present in last season’s successful League One campaign.

He said: “It’s obviously a hard time for Christian to be out injured. He played a huge part in the team’s promotion last season and the last thing any player wants is to be injured, especially right at the start of a new season.

“But it’s football and it happens. I have been waiting for my chance for the past 18 months or so and at this moment in time I just need to focus on myself to make sure I perform to the very best of my ability.

“You have to be patient as a back-up keeper but it’s the same for any player that is not in the team on a regular basis. We all want to play but that is not possible for everyone, and while it’s hard for me if I’m not playing, it’s just the same for anyone else who is left out.

“But don’t get me wrong, because this is a huge club and I am proud to be in this squad. It’s brilliant to be a part of what is happening, but at the same time I want to be out on the pitch playing, putting in good performances and helping the club to achieve further success.

“Like I said, it’s a brilliant club and it’s great to play under the manager, Kieran McKenna. It is something special for me and I have been enjoying it enormously. I have been waiting for a chance and now I have it, so it is up to me to play well enough and show the manager what I can do.

“I am asked regularly if it is a difficult role, but it isn’t really. I take great pride in being as professional as I can be and that has been the case since the very beginning of my career as a goalkeeper.

“The preparation is exactly the same, whether I am going to be playing or on the bench, so it’s not really any different and certainly not anything that concerns me.

“We have a squad of 25 players, including the keepers, and we are all aiming to be one of the 11 players in the starting line-up. But even if we are not in the first 11, we know that we can still play a part.

“We have a big squad because we are a big club and we want to be successful, so now that I am playing in the first team I want to hold my place for as long as I can. I see it as a big opportunity and my aim is to do as well as I can. I am really buzzing to be on the pitch tomorrow and, hopefully, for a while to come.

“Christian is a great keeper and his quality and consistency can make it pretty hard to be the number two choice. But at the same time, it is still enjoyable to be here every day, to be training and working really hard with all the other guys. There is great momentum at Ipswich and we want it to continue.”

Asked if he had ever thought of perhaps moving elsewhere in his search for regular first team football, Hladky replied: “It has always been something that I might think about from time to time, but the situation right now is that I am playing, so from that point of view I am happy.”

Photo: TWTD

Suffolkboy added 17:01 - Aug 11 Go for it ! Do well ! Shine and be a real example at the back ! COYB
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Bazza8564 added 17:26 - Aug 11 Up to us to make ourselves the twelfth man tomorrow, Stoke will be loud so we must too. Pleased to see Hladky getting a go, few wins and hid confidence will be sky high
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