Ipswich Town: Terry Hunt on promotion race after Boro draw

Earlier, after Leeds lost, I’d made the elementary mistake of working out just how good the top of the table would look if we beat Middlesbrough. Four points clear of Leeds with only three games left. Schoolboy error...

The “race” for promotion has virtually ground to a halt, with all three front-runners freezing just short of the finishing line. The big winners are Southampton, who are suddenly contenders again after looking dead and buried a few weeks ago.

Trying to work out all the possible permutations is making my tiny brain hurt, so I’m going to resort to the oldest cliche in football and “take each game as it comes.”

Kieran McKenna's men are back on top of the table - but now have two weeks off (Image: PA)
For us, there’s a bizarre but welcome two-week break to regroup, rest, perhaps see Wes Burns and George Hirst return to fitness - and hopefully watch as our rivals continue to mess up!

Incredibly, Southampton play four times before we kick a ball again. By the time we run out at Hull, the top of the table could look very different.

We played really well against Middlesbrough, miles better than in the last couple of matches.

We were dynamic, energetic, and our slick passing game was back. We could - probably should - have won, but equally we could easily have lost.

Those two outstanding late saves from Vaclav Hladky preserved our precious point. The second in particular was breathtaking in its sheer athleticism. What a season our keeper is having.

Vaclav Hladky made some superb saves to preserve the point (Image: Pagepix)
Just like Leeds and Leicester, our goals have suddenly dried up. Just one in the last three games after we had been scoring for fun. We created some decent positions against Middlesbrough, but couldn’t apply the crucial finish.

The sight of Omari Hutchinson slumped on the turf at the end told you everything. He was a picture of frustration. The young loanee had been outstanding, but just couldn’t find the perfect final pass or shot.

His second consecutive man of the match award was clearly little consolation, but he obviously cares a great deal. There is so much to admire about that young man.

Playing against their former club clearly fired up Sam Morsy and Massimo Luongo. Our skipper was everywhere, winning tackles, driving forward, looking for opportunities to shoot. Luongo took his goal well - another assist for the record-breaking Leif Davis.

Massimo Luongo celebrates his strike (Image: PA Images)
One thing I did find strange were the late substitutions we made on Saturday. When you’re busting a gut to win a vitally important game, the sight of Dominic Ball and Lewis Travis trotting on to the pitch was surprising, to say the least. It’s something I would have expected from ultra-pragmatic Mick McCarthy, not our young, dynamic manager!

Football is about opinions, of course, and everyone is entitled to their own views. But I have to say that some of the thoughts expressed on social media during our mini-wobble have been really daft and completely unhelpful.

Using words like “pathetic” in relation to our draw against Watford is just ludicrous. Those of us who suffered during the long, dull years in the Marcus Evans era have seen lots of “pathetic” football, and I can assure you that our current stylish, exciting brand is a million miles better than that!

So the tension - and the excitement - goes on. It’s going to the wire, isn’t it? I am fully prepared for Saturday, May 4 to be incredibly nervy.

In the meantime, we have two weeks to relax, apart from watching, hoping and worrying as Leicester, Leeds and Southampton play their games.

I can offer only one piece of advice - expect the unexpected!