ROY Keane left Gresty Road with mixed emotions after his Ipswich Town team beat League Two Crewe 1-0 after extra time in the second round of the Carling Cup at Gresty Road last night.

The Blues manager was overjoyed at keeping in the competition but concerned at the wear and tear placed on his players after having to play another extra 30 minutes.

Keane’s main objective is to take Town into the Premier League and to this end Saturday’s home game against Bristol City is paramount.

Skipper David Norris scorched home a splendid 102nd minute winner after a hard-fought victory that depended much on Brian Murphy having a splendid game in goal.

“Playing extra time for the second time in the Carling Cup inside 14 days is not ideal,” said Keane.

“But if you had asked me before the start whether I would take an extra 30 minutes as long as we went through I would taken that..

“We made hard work of it and did not play as well as we have previously this season.

“We were not as sharp, but we showed the grit you need to win cup games against lower opposition on their own patch.

“And full marks to Crewe who were tidy as I expected and also put in a couple of tackles or so.”

At one time Ipswich had seven full internationals on the pitch, and Keane was pleased with the debut of one of them – Trinidad’s Jason Scotland.

“I did not plan to play him for 75 minutes, but he will gain from that,” added Keane.

“We had to be careful with players like Carlos Edwards coming back from injury and Darren O’Dea who is short of games.

“David Norris was an inspiration and Brian Murphy was sharp and his body language was good.

“Chuck’s (Norris) finish was excellent and I’m looking for a home draw in the next round.

“Our back four and keeper will be rightly pleased with our first clean sheet of the season.

“It’s been a tough start to the season, and our fans also deserve a home match.

“We didn’t pick up any injuries and we now look ahead to Bristol City.’’

For the first time ever, Ipswich have now won their opening four away matches and with a home draw with Burnley thrown in remain unbeaten.