Blues manager Joe Royle said he was particularly pleased for the fans after his side beat Millwall 4-1 at Portman Road. Two goals from Tommy Miller, one a penalty, and one each for Jermaine Wright and Marcus Bent took Town to victory with Steven Reid replying for the visitors.

Royle was particularly pleased with his side's goals: "I'm absolutely delighted. We scored three awesome goals, and more than anything I'm so pleased for our fans. They turned up in great numbers again today and they're really responding to what we've started to do.

"We've had a great Christmas, and this win keeps our run going. Things are in our own hands - but it's a question of getting the balance right between believing in ourselves and keeping our feet on the ground."

"There were some outstanding performances, but my man of the match was Jamie Clapham.

"I also thought our goalkeeper Andy Marshall played very well and made two good saves. I hope he is beginning to win our fans over."

Royle's only criticism of his side's performance was their failure to keep a clean sheet: "I hate to sound negative but I must say that we must learn to defend better at times.

"It sounds negative after winning 4-1, but we do give ourselves problems at times. Their goal came about because we switched off for a second, and perhaps a bit of mental tiredness crept in."

Millwall manager Mark McGhee also pointed to defensive errors: "We made a couple of bad mistakes at the back so deserved to lose - although I'm not sure the score was a fair reflection.

"We shot ourselves in the foot a couple of times - but we've got to learn to live with that.

"Ipswich are improving and pass the ball well at times. Playing like that, with that kind of tempo, they'll be very difficult for most teams to beat.

"The play-offs are certainly not out of the question for them."

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