It looks like Matt Penney’s Ipswich Town journey is at an end.
He’s been loaned out for the second time this season, heading to Charlton for the business end of the campaign having spent a successful first half in Scotland with Motherwell.
And, with his contract set to expire in the summer, there’s every chance he’s played his final game for Town.
The Blues do have the option to extend his stay for 12 more months, but that seems unlikely given the £1million-plus investment in Leif Davis and the summer signing of Greg Leigh.
The arrival of those two players made it clear Kieran McKenna had lasered in on his left side when it came to summer improvements, given the Ipswich team had an overreliance on the right during his first five months in charge.
Penney was a casualty there, even though he fits the profile McKenna wants from a full-back in many ways.
He likes to attack, he’s comfortable on the ball, can get beyond his man and can deliver an excellent cross. There were spells last season where you could argue he was the best crosser of the ball at the club.
He can shoot, too. His shot through traffic at Cheltenham in August of 2021 proves that.
But none of the above attributes were produced regularly enough to a high enough level. 
Despite a fit on paper there were signs very early in McKenna’s reign that Penney’s Ipswich career was heading this way.
He started the first three games of his new manager’s time in charge but disappeared after the 2-0 loss to Bolton, during which individual errors began to mount up for the former Sheffield Wednesday man.
A knee injury kept him out for the next couple of games but, in that time, McKenna moved to sign Dominic Thompson on loan from Brentford, meaning Penney didn’t play a single minute until an appearance from the bench in the 1-0 home loss to Cambridge in April. That loss is widely-regarded as the game which ended Town’s play-off hopes.
He made three more starts from there, as McKenna chopped and changed his side, assessing his options for the next season during the final weeks of the campaign.
And he saw enough to order a complete revamp, with Leigh arriving first on a free transfer and big money being paid for Davis on the eve of the season. His signing from Leeds was the writing on the wall for Penney.
What we have seen from the new left-siders this season has highlighted the areas Penney is lacking, despite looking a capable performer when he was used last season.
Town need more than 'capable' these days.
Davis is quicker, stronger, more aggressive, more threatening in attack and a more-consistent high-quality crosser than Penney. Leigh is far more physical, a better defender and much better in the air, giving Ipswich a considerable upgrade in their left-back blend.
Penney joined Motherwell late in the summer window and went on to impress for the Scottish side, winning two player-of-the-month awards and leaving the club in no doubt they wanted to keep him, for the rest of the season at least. Probably beyond.
They couldn’t, though, with Penney instead switching clubs in League One and moving to a Charlton side with designs on moving up the table under Dean Holden.
Chances are, if he impresses at The Valley, Penney could earn himself a permanent move. Though we must remember Town do have that option on his contract, meaning they control his destiny.
That could, in an unlikely scenario, see McKenna so impressed with his work on loan that he decides to keep him in the fold for next season. Or it could mean the option is triggered in a bid to gain a small transfer fee for a player originally signed on a free transfer.
But, however it shakes out, the odds are Penney has played his final game for Town.
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