Ipswich Town will make the short hop over the North Sea to play three of their pre-season friendlies.The Blues plan to play one match in Holland and a further two in Belgium in mid-July.

Ipswich Town will make the short hop over the North Sea to play three of their pre-season friendlies.

The Blues plan to play one match in Holland and a further two in Belgium in mid-July.

Manager Joe Royle was keen to combine the right sort of preparation for the team while going somewhere that the supporters would enjoy.

Royle said: “We are hoping to confirm the teams we are playing in the next 12 hours or so but all three are in the top flight of their respective countries.

“The football should be of a good standard and hopefully it will be good for the fans in terms of being able to get to and affordability.”

The Blues return for pre-season training on June 26 and have a warm-up match in East Anglia before travelling abroad.

There may even be some new players to cast an eye over by then, although Royle will not know for sure how much he will have to spend until after the forthcoming share issue is well under way.

Royle said: “It is unlikely that anything will happen this month and we will have a clearer picture after the share issue as to what we can afford.”

Meanwhile Ipswich Town goalkeeper Lewis Price was in top form, keeping a clean sheet as Wales Under-21s moved a big step towards qualifying for next season's UEFA Under-21 championships last night.

Brian Flynn's team scored a 2-0 win in the first leg in Tallinn, with senior boss John Toshack in attendance to add encouragement and support for a vital match.

The Welsh side included a host of experienced players who have already moved up to Toshack's senior squad, because Wales desperately needed to get through this qualifying tie.

And the decision to use the likes of Price, Lewin Nyatanga, Joe Ledley, David Cotterill and Andrew Crofts - who have all won full caps in the past year - was proved to be justified.

Now Flynn and Toshack must decide how strong a squad they will have to field on May 24 for the second leg at Wrexham to secure a place in the competition proper next season.

Bristol City's Cotterill (penalty) and Arron Davies of Yeovil Town got the Welsh goals.