PERHAPS not season defining but Owen Garvan believes the games against Birmingham City and Sheffield United this week will go a long way to showing how realistic Ipswich Town's hopes of promotion really are.

Derek Davis

By Derek Davis

PERHAPS not season defining but Owen Garvan believes the games against Birmingham City and Sheffield United this week will go a long way to showing how realistic Ipswich Town's hopes of promotion really are.

With City sitting second and the Blades fourth and boasting the meanest two defences in the Championship, picking up points against both is a must if Town want to force their way into the play-off hunt.

Garvan said: “There are a lot of hard games coming up now. We got the Derby match out of the way and at the end of this week we will see where we stand after we play the big boys.

“Birmingham and Sheffield United are always going to be up there so you know if you can beat them you know you can close the gap and puts you in with a good chance of catching the top sides.

“As players you want to play in these big games because these games can decide where you will stand in the league. That challenge is what drives the players on and we will have an idea after these games where we are at.”

The Blues players are relishing pitting their wits against a side that came down from the Premier League last season, are favourites to bounce straight back up and are 10 points clear of eighth placed Town this morning.

Garvan said: “They are second in league so are the second best side in the Championship at the moment.

“They have a big squad with a lot of good players and are more consistent than us, which is why they are up there.

“It will be difficulty coming back with three points but we know on our day we are capable of getting three points.”

Playing in the Premier League remains a top ambition for Garvan but he dismisses talk of top flight clubs coming in for him, with Sunderland the latest to be reportedly keen on the Republic of Ireland Under-21 star.

He said: “A lot of players in the Championship get linked with these top clubs but rarely do you see anything actually happening.

“There is no point in reading too much into it. I'm happy when I playing regularly and I don't let it affect me.

“I'm perfectly happy at Ipswich and the team is doing well so all is good.”

David Norris misses out after a dead leg against Derby County, while Moritz Volz is available again following a one match ban and Gareth McAuley travelled with the squad after recovering from a hamstring pull.

derek.davis@eadt.co.uk