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Pessimistic added 17:36 - Mar 17

It was a boring sort of game with Town lacking any sort of creativity. They seemed more comfortable going backwards than forwards.

The only deserved applause should be dedicated to the 1,066 Town fans who made the trip after the debacle of Tuesday night at Portman Road.

Well done the Blue and White army!
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Mullet added 22:58 - Mar 17

Shivering in the gloom of the Saturday after Hull, light sleet fell down the spine of England as if the whole island was now shaking its head slowly. A cold wind razored in our faces all day, blowing whilst most were trumpeting the fact there is no way back. The South West branch are a welcoming and united bunch and in the pub; mixed company, mixed views of all aspects, meant Town fans from across the country bonded and held a symposium on the state our club is in.

Even in the belly of Ashton Gate little grumbling took place before the game. Mick may have changed the side, Bart had the back five this time of Spence, CCV, Webster, Chambers and Knudsen protecting him. Skuse returning to home soil as the elder partner alongside Connolly. Ward the right sided central midfielder that didn’t play as a winger, but he didn’t sit centrally long enough to be the enganche layering play behind Waghorn and Sears.

The change which was more pronounced was the fans repeating talk of Milne’s pre-match leak that “change was going to come” this summer. While some may be talking of boycotts and more affirmative action, the only place the bus was going before kick off was over McCarthy, it seemed.

There was a funeral atmosphere long before the inevitable departure, long before the battling, long before the siege, as seemingly the dead-man-walking stood in his technical area to watch a 45 minute tactical masterclass of defend, defend, defy. To out 11 o’clock a banner proclaiming “love the game, hate the business” posed far more questions than it should have done before being folded and stuffed away by fans currently enjoying the fruits of Landsdowne’s labour.

The stats will show the lively and sly Reid had a shot on target after 4 minutes of territorial pissing about from either side, but it was a pea-roller. The wind stirred more in the few seconds it took Bart to stand up and kick it out than the home fans did all day.

Up the other end the ball fell to Connolly who angled a cross-shot with the inswinging right foot. It went past the post, and every attacking head but it looked to catch Fielding cold.

Bristol had a much changed and fragile back line, which was in stark contrast to the control and poise of ours. Town would take possession from left to right and back to Bart with rarely any trouble, it took 25 minutes to see them press down on him and hurry a kick.

At the other end their young and deputising left back Kelly would become the focus. Webster, Waghorn and Carter-Vickers all tried to play balls in to him that allowed Sears to get into his shadow and force him to play the ball out for us. It would be our most successful tactic. All after Magnusson tried to trap a clearance on his thigh and it spilled to his junior colleague who was far too casual in the opening stages of a game so tightly packed.

To say the ref was poor would be wrong, lenient would be diplomatic. He wanted to the game to flow, but when Waghorn was chopped twice by centre back Bailey Wright in two quick exchanges consecutively, you knew the lack of cards that were coming out would shape the way both sides defended.

Waghorn had already seen a freekick in a similar position to his Wednesday winner bounce off the wall in oppositional fashion. When Skuse worked a short exchange to Connolly this time, the different side and different player produced a similar result that allowed Bristol to counter.

The home side had been ferocious in the middle with Pack and former Canary Korey Smith a good match up for a clearly motivated Cole who trotted with a quicker step today to close down play. Paterson was a nominal left winger who dropped off, in and anywhere he could to try and draw one of centre backs into isolation or tactical ill-discipline. It didn’t work.

Brownhill who is quietly impressive in my opinion, provided a good foil as a central midfielder playing out wide and both widemen allowed their respective full backs the change to gambol forward. Pisano was put in one decent cross which was forced away, and Chambers left Skuse hanging with a weak clearance on the edge of the area.

It was really Reid rather than the bigger Diedhou who looked to be the home side’s main threat. The mop-haired #14 grew increasingly agitated as the half went on, and it was fitting he would throw himself to the floor so much in the hope of sweeping defenders attentions aside, whilst catching the ref’s.

After half an hour or so a low hum of disgruntlement came form the home fans, as it was clear that the 1000 or so Blues were in far more supportive voice and mood. It was really the persistence of Town which impressed across the pitch, whereas the Robins had an air of entitlement to the lead, Spence headed over with one of many crosses finding him out stretched, and Sears again had to chase the ball out when he might have put it in from close range as it fell to him in the area with too much to do.

If the flurry that whipped across the South West dissipated, the pattern of the game didn’t in the second half. After barely a couple of minutes a frustrated Reid went right through the back of Ward who had nimbly turned and looked up to find little movement ahead of him. Again, no card came and so all tacklers become emboldened.

Lee Johnson switched his front line with the realisation that the weather and the immovable obstacle of Ipswich’s back line was keeping out his more mobile strikers put on Bosnian targetman Djuric. Within minutes he would be holding his head in his hands, a free shot at goal saw him dink the ball over the bar with Bart face down on the turf. The Pole parrying from Pack who hit the ball from distance. Swirling low and bouncing late, the keeper got his forearms to the shot and kept it out as far as the onrushing Bosnian.

It was a warning and a rare direct threat that would be realised in the next major move. Kelly who had looked much better going forward than defending was allowed a little bit too much time and space. Crossing from out wide again the Bosnian Djuric would lose his marker and leave Webster behind as he dived low to power his header past Bart in the bottom corner. The goal was less inevitable but not too surprising.

Town had often had good build up play but when a cross came whether from Ward, Knudsen or Waghorn there seemed to be enough done to put them off balance and send their delivery too close to Fielding, or too far from a waiting header to level the match.

It was a corner that saw the Bristol keeper improvise with a scrambled kick away, in one of dozens of nearly moves where Town pressed Bristol back but had nowhere near enough artistry to make a draw likely.

Bristol perhaps felt a single goal was enough and saw out nearly a third of the game by repeatedly playing for time, with ballboy and crowd booting the ball away periodically especially as the 90 minute mark approached. However, the 6 minutes of injury time came from a much earlier combination of tragedy and comedy. Chasing Ward down Magnusson hit the turf and clearly did some damage to himself. The slowest and most inept stretcher bearers possible let him hobble off the pitch after a lengthy time down. A few uncharitable and frustrated shouts suggesting he pleasures himself, rose up from a Town support clearly enraged he was down as were our team.

Before Mick threw Celina on nearly a quarter of an hour later, Johnson had made the second of three subs replacing Magnusson, and then the third when he mixed his midfield. Paterson who had disappeared so often from his position, was swapped for a defending O’Neil to see out the game.

Town who had so much of the late push, soon saw Sears pulled down cynically for the games first yellow from a former one. Moments later Knudsen would be a victim of their Italian’s job to even up the card count. A slight coming together, meant Pisano’s scream was disgracefully heard before the impact of the Dane nudged him in the aerial duel.
Sears’ last action with 10 minutes left was to hook a ball out from six yards with his back to goal when it just needed cushioning to a waiting Waghorn. It’s not that he played badly, far from it, but when Celina came on for Ward moments before, you could feel the senses of everyone lift a little.

Standing off the red shirts now pouring back into the box, the Kosovan looking for our bit of Balkans based joy had great fun strafing from one angle to another. His best ball picked out Knudsen who wouldn’t quite control it enough. But as with Ward, the quick feet and ability to turn the man and the ball onto the front foot without touching either gave Town new life.

With tensions growing Morris replaced Sears but it was hard to judge what impact he could have in injury time as he, Waghorn and Webster played up front to take knockdowns and scrambles in a game where Town deserved a point but never got it. A lack of options, a lack of style, a lack of points.

“Ipswich til I die” became a haunting ten minute encore as a few stayed to applaud back at the players who dared come close enough to the away.
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