Town boss Kieran McKenna says he’s still not taking too much interest of fellow promotion challengers’ fixtures or results, but knows what will secure his side a return to the Premier League at the first time of asking.

The second-placed Blues go into Sunday’s home match against Middlesbrough, who have dropped to fifth, needing 11 points to confirm promotion but with 10 almost certainly enough given their superior goal difference. Town have a game more to play than all the teams around them.

“I know what’s needed because I have read it in terms of points,” McKenna said. “But other than that, there is no point looking at what we might need or when or who plays who on what days.

“We know in our five last games, we are going to have to try and win some of them and the best chance is to go and try and win the next one.

“We know if we win them all, we will get promoted. So our focus is just on the next one, there is no point looking too far down the line, especially with how tough and how challenging the run is.

“It’s just about the next one. There was a big high on Saturday [the 2-0 derby win at Norwich], a big disappointment on Tuesday [defeat at Portsmouth by the same scoreline] and now we get ready to go again on Sunday and hopefully we get the right outcome.”

Sunday’s game is the Blues’ penultimate home match of the season with QPR the other visitors on the final day of the campaign. Aside from that, Town have three away games, at Charlton on Wednesday, West Brom the following Saturday and then Southampton, who moved up to fourth with their 3-0 win against Blackburn on Tuesday, in midweek ahead of the last match.

“You place the same significance on any game at this stage of the season,” McKenna continued. “You do absolutely everything you can to prepare for the game which means long days and long nights, absolutely everything as staff in terms of preparation to try and get the players in the best position possible going into the game.

“And then you give it your absolute utmost and not leave an ounce of commitment or effort, physically or mentally, don’t leave anything that you couldn’t do.

“That’s what you do for this game and that’s what we will do for Wednesday night as well.

“Of course, any three points at this stage of the season will be massive and when you are playing another team at the top of the division even more so and that’s what we are going to try and get on Sunday.

“But we know after that, we will still have four games and we are going to need to win a good amount of them, although we don’t know how many.

“You just pour your heart and soul into the next one and that is what we have done as staff and what we will do right through to Sunday, and that’s what the players have done in terms of preparation and hopefully right through to 2pm on Sunday. I know the supporters will come and do the same.

“Let’s give absolutely everything to try and get the result on Sunday. The challenge of the schedule we are in at the moment means that whichever way it goes, there will be a quick turnaround on Sunday night.

“I don’t know the maths but it is still going to be a massive game on Wednesday and things will probably be in our hands. We are pouring everything into it and there’s certainly not much more we can give.

“But other than that, there’s no point building it up anymore than that. There are still five games in the next 13 days and we want to try and win as many as we can.”

Photo: TWTD