BLUES boss Roy Keane says that the first goal was always going to be important in Saturday’s 3-0 Championship defeat at Nottingham Forest.

He felt his side switched off after conceding two minutes into the second half.

And he revealed the heavy cost of re-stocking footballs that go into gardens at the training ground as his players show wayward finishing in practice as well as games.

“The first goal was always going to be absolutely vital,” he said.

“I’m not sure about the decision that led to it and obviously the deflection didn’t help.

“But I’m not one for criticising referees and you still have to defend the set-piece.

“I was disappointed with our response after the goal. We played na�ve football.

“Forest picked us off, as you’d expect with the home record they’ve got, and that’s what good teams do.”

Keane is still looking to bolster his side with the right type of character - players who can mix personality and experience to settle a side after going behind.

“We saw where we’re at and that’s well short,” he said.

“For all our chances and possession, especially in the first half, there was no-one out there to calm things down and say ‘we’re only 1-0 down’.

“We reacted poorly to the first goal and should have shut up shop for five or ten minutes.

“Instead, we got a bit carried away and didn’t do a very good job of staying in the game.

“We could have kept it tight for a while and then gone a bit mad. Instead, we became too loose.”

On another day Ipswich might have done enough to salvage a point - if they had netted first and re-grouped better after going a goal adrift.

“Three-nil was probably a bit harsh but that’s football,” added Keane.

“I’ve been saying the same thing all season - when you get opportunities at this level you have to take them.

“It’s been the story of our season. Chance after chance.

“We do the same in training, so I’m not sitting here scratching my head thinking ‘I can’t believe it’.

“We lose a lot of balls at our training ground and it costs us a lot of money. Seriously – the balls cost �70 or �80.

“Forest have got good attacking options, good strikers and they can change things round.

“We want more from certain players and if you’re going to get promoted you need a goal threat but you also have to have the right characters.”