In his latest monthly column, American expat, PR professional and Ipswich Town fan James Wall shares his thoughts on the Blues from across the pond....
In the States, football isn't football; it's soccer. My late grandfather, a 1920s and 30’s rugby player for Ipswich Rugby Club, also insisted on calling it that.
To most Americans, football means helmet-clad giants colliding with each other using a ball that's more like a shrunken rugby one.
But the times they are a-changing.
I often get random questions from Americans like, "What's your football team?" This always makes me ponder whether I should respond with the gridiron team I've supported since moving to the States (the Denver Broncos) or assume they're referring to soccer due to my accent. It’s almost always the latter.
This shift indicates that football (the game played with the round ball) continues to gain in popularity over here, and some American fans have even started to follow the lower leagues, thanks in large part to the Welcome to Wrexham Netflix series.
A colleague of mine in Indiana has a daughter who randomly supports Norwich—apparently, she likes their yellow shirts and wears a replica to school every day. Oh dear...
Maybe next year, I'll be able to proudly say that my team is Ipswich Town … of the Premier League. Can we all continue to dream? What a run this team is on!
What makes this Ipswich team stand out to me is its composition—a squad largely made up of journeymen and misfits, a stark contrast to the often-star-studded rosters of parachute and other clubs in the Championship.
There isn’t a player on the Ipswich roster who was acquired for more than £1.5 million, in contrast with most Championship clubs.
Even Hull, our vanquished opponents from Tuesday night, boasted a forward obtained for £5million in Jaden Philogene.
This eclectic mix is exemplified in the trio of Massimo Luongo, George Hirst and Cameron Burgess – all three of whom are off to great starts in the famous blue and white this season.
Luongo's plight before joining Town was starting to get drastic. While he did enough early in his career to star for Australia, he needed a trial at Ipswich last January after not getting a game at Middlesbrough in a four-month period.
Before that, injuries beleaguered the Australian at Sheffield Wednesday, and although he had his fans in South Yorkshire, he rejected a contract offer with them back in 2021.
Mass has been my favorite player since joining the team in January this year—tireless, consistent, cheery, and focused, with a cheeky Aussie accent to boot.
His winning goal and celebration against Blackburn made my weekend last month.
I imagine he had to work incredibly hard last winter to get back to full fitness and impress manager McKenna enough to be a starter, albeit because of injuries to the prior starting lineup.
He must have breathed a sigh of relief after signing a one-year deal with the club this summer.
It's a similar story for much of the rest of the squad. Take former Leicester man, George Hirst.
Look at his CV and it’s a long list of signings and loans, many of which did not work out too well. At 24, Ipswich is the seventh club Hirst has played for.
But it’s clear that this experience of being shipped off to a different club each year has instilled a certain doggedness in the young Hirst.
The way he tirelessly works on the pitch, in and out of possession, leading the Ipswich line ahead of a young talent like Dane Scarlett and the veteran Freddie Ladapo, demonstrates that Hirst’s travels haven’t affected his enthusiasm and drive.
But the most dramatic journeyman turnaround tale on this Ipswich team is for me is Cameron Burgess.
Burgess had bounced round the lower leagues of England and Scotland for a while since signing for Fulham from Australia back in 2011.
A classic tall, burly center half in the mold of Terry Butcher, Burgess’ game was perfect for the likes of Cheltenham, Accrington, Scunthorpe, Oldham, Bury and Ross County.
Signed by Paul Cook from Accrington, Burgess played second fiddle to George Edmundson till the latter was injured early last season.
But the big man took his chance and has since been Mr. Consistent at the heart of central defence.
His performance against Sheffield Wednesday a couple of weeks ago was stellar, earning a man of the match plaudit from my North American Supporter’s Club colleagues.
But Cam’s biggest achievement must be starting for the Australian Socceroos in Dallas, Texas last month vs. Mexico.
I watched the match, and it was the same Burgess that plays for Ipswich -- solid, assured with the occasional killer, left-footed long pass to the forward line. We’ll forget about the fact that he conceded a penalty!
I could write more about the other Ipswich squad members—they've got their own journeyman stories.
But thanks to McKenna's coaching magic, these young men have individually and collectively turned their luck around, and it's not just benefiting them but the whole team, the town, and the county.
Let's hope the good vibes keep on rolling! Roll on Saturday v Preston.
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