MARCUS Evans is hurting.

His dreams of leading a club into the Premier League have soured after the millions he invested have failed to pave the way to the promised land.

But the man who spent years looking for a suitable investor remains convinced that the mysterious owner is the right man for Town.

Former Ipswich chairman David Sheepshanks insisted: “Marcus invested in the club and everything he has been done since, in terms of his financial performance, has been absolutely outstanding.

“It is an extraordinary irony that sadly the more money that has been put in, success hasn’t followed. Like all Ipswich fans, I feel very sad – but no one will feel that more than Marcus Evans himself.

“He will have learnt a great deal from his experience so far but he is a very clever guy and I have no doubt that he is determined to get it right.”

Sheepshanks, who has stepped down from one of his remaining positions at Ipswich to concentrate on his work as project chief at St George’s Park, maintains there are signs that Town can be a Championship force again.

He added: “I went to the Birmingham game and that was the best football I have seen at Portman Road since Jim Magilton was manager when some of the football we played was outstanding.

“Some of the personalities might change but for me, I thought we set a standard that night and I hope Paul Jewell will draw confidence from it and Ipswich fans can look forward to more of the same next season.”

Sheepshanks will no longer be chairman of the Ipswich Town Football Club Charitable Trust, but he will remain a passionate supporter of the side he led into the Premier League before suffering the pain of administration.

He said: “I am a vice-president of the club, I will still go to games and you can still cut me in half and I will be blue and white.”