Two away games against struggling teams and six points safely in the bag. That’s the way to keep up the pressure on Leeds and Southampton. They must be so irritated that we haven’t fallen away.
In the past, a wet February afternoon in Swansea would have had alarm bells ringing for less robust Ipswich teams. But Kieran McKenna’s players did their job efficiently, no fuss, and got the result.
After nine league games with only one win, we’re firmly back on track and making a thorough nuisance of ourselves when it comes to the race for automatic promotion.
It’s no coincidence that the arrival of Kieffer Moore has seen us return to form. The presence of a big target man means we can play the system which has been working so well for most of this season.
I’m not talking about us lumping a succession of long balls up to him, but using him as a focal point for the attack, and as a threat which occupies defenders and leaves room for his team-mates.
Look at the resurgence in form for Nathan Broadhead since Moore’s arrival. When George Hirst was injured, Broadhead’s form slumped, the goals dried up for him and the team, and he was dropped to the bench for a couple of games.
Now, with his big Welsh team-mate in the side, we’re seeing the best of Broadhead again. In terms of sheer talent, he’s our best player and has the sublime skills to unlock defences at this level.
Conor Chaplin’s form has also suffered since Hirst’s injury, so it was great to see him scoring a trademark goal at Swansea, connecting first time with a low Leif Davis cross on the edge of the box and sliding it into the corner of the net.
Both Broadhead and Chaplin are incredibly important players for us as we move towards the. business end of the season.
It looks as though Chaplin is one of the leaders in the group, with his bubbly personality such a positive influence in the changing room and on the training pitch.
He was no doubt extremely disappointed to start on the bench at Millwall, and he must have been tempted to insist on taking the late penalty after suffering what in his terms was a lengthy goal drought.
But, credit to him, he also realised it was important for Ali Al-Hamadi, who had won the spot-kick, to open his account for the club. Credit to Chaplin. Successful football teams thrive on characters like that.
The other important factor in us getting back to winning form has been the return from the Asian Cup of Cameron Burgess.
As I’ve said many times, when Burgess first arrived I viewed him as a big, strong but very limited lump of a lower league centre-half. Someone who would be a back-up to our first-choice defenders, and would only get picked for League Cup games.
But, under McKenna, he has improved beyond all recognition. Yes, he is powerful in the air, but there’s so much more to his game. The fact that he is left-footed gives balance to our defence, and he is also capable of producing wonderful through balls to start attacks.
Look at his sublime floated pass out to Leif Davis before the full-back set up Chaplin for what proved to be our winner at Swansea.
After those two away wins, we are right in the mix. Our points tally of 66 with 14 games still to go is simply extraordinary. After Leicester’s surprise home loss to Middlesbrough, we are now the team with fewest defeats in the Championship. Just four.
But, as McKenna rightly points out, we have to expect Leeds and Southampton to keep winning relentlessly. It’s almost as though what in other seasons would be viewed as a good away draw isn’t enough in this crazy season.
We have the ideal opportunity to keep up the winning habit this week. Rock-bottom Rotherham come to Portman Road on Tuesday evening, followed by Birmingham on Saturday.
I’m confident we will see off Rotherham, but Birmingham will be trickier. Not surprisingly, they have shown better form since Tony Mowbray replaced Wayne Rooney as manager. The former Town skipper is a decent operator, and his side will certainly be no pushover.
Leeds host Leicester on Friday evening, which could give the table an even more interesting look. All we can do is win our two games this week, which I’m confident we will. We’re not going away!
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