Lee Evans insisted Ipswich Town can’t be too disheartened following their 2-0 loss at Bolton.

Defeat at Wanderers was the first under new boss Kieran McKenna, following two impressive victories in the first two matches of his reign.

That’s six points from a possible nine under the new manager, a record which could take Ipswich to 75 points if they maintain it over the remaining 20 games of the campaign.

That tally is generally enough to secure a play-off place, with Evans looking at the positives despite their Bolton loss.

East Anglian Daily Times: Lee Evans in action at Bolton Wanderers.Lee Evans in action at Bolton Wanderers. (Image: PAGEPIX LTD 07976935738)

“Not particularly,” the Welsh midfielder replied, when asked if they saw a different side to their manager following their first loss together. “He’s really calm after the game and detailed in what he thought.

“Now it’s about watching it back, seeing what we did well and what we did wrong and then come back.

“Out of his three games, we’ve won two of them. If we can keep producing that between now and the end of the season then we’ll be in a good place.

“It’s about the next game now. We need to fully focus on that.”

Discussing the loss, in which Kieran Lee and Dapo Afolayan scored the goals as Ipswich mistakes were punished, Evans said: “It’s a disappointing day at the office and we didn’t reach the standards we’ve set ourselves.

“Two soft goals killed us in the end. We said it would always be a game of fine margins where the first goal would always be important, so it’s disappointing we weren’t able to back up the last two wins.

“We started the game well but came off it a bit and got a bit sloppy. We started the second half well and penned them in, but soft goals are tough to come back from.

“We’ll analyse it and take it forward to get ready for the next weekend.”

The second goal, ultimately finished by Afolayan, came after an uncharacteristic error by George Edmundson, as he presented he ball straight to the Bolton attacker.

“He came out and apologised straight away,” Evans said of Edmundson.

“He knew it was just an individual error, which happens, so I’m sure he’ll learn from it and come back stronger.”

It was confirmed during Town’s trip to Bolton that Macauley Bonne will remain on loan with Town for the rest of the season, with Evans delighted to see the frontman remain at the club.

“He’s been brilliant this season, scoring loads of goals and being a real focal point for us,” Evans said.

“Everyone knew he wanted to stay at the club if a deal could be done, so now it has it’s brilliant for the club.

“He loves the club and will do anything for to help it succeed, which rubs off on the rest of us.

“The fans have been amazing again, coming in their numbers, so we’re disappointed not to send them home with the result.”