There were always going to be some casualties.

Ipswich Town’s summer of transfer love in 2021 saw 19 new signings arrive at Portman Road, all hoping a move to a big club with new energy would be the perfect next step in their careers.

But it was never going to work out for all of them. It couldn’t possibly.

First Louie Barry returned to Aston Villa after struggling for minutes. Then it became clear Scott Fraser couldn’t find his place in the Ipswich side, despite clearly having plenty of ability. He joined Charlton.

East Anglian Daily Times: New Ipswich Town signing Joe Pigott, pictured alongside chief executive Mark Ashton. Photo: ITFCNew Ipswich Town signing Joe Pigott, pictured alongside chief executive Mark Ashton. Photo: ITFC (Image: ITFC)

Tom Carroll’s been released, Rekeem Harper’s been out on loan and come back, Vaclav Hladky has found himself glued to the bench and a host of loanees have returned to their usual homes.

Now Joe Pigott has been loaned to Portsmouth. Of the 19 signings from a year ago, 12 remain. More could move on.

It must be stressed that Pigott’s departure doesn’t necessarily mean the end of his Ipswich career at this stage. He will still have a year left on his Town contract when his season at Fratton Park is up. But the chances are we will have seen the last of him in a Town shirt.

Sadly, it just didn’t work out for a player who arrived looking like he could be the 20-goal striker Town have been missing. He heads out on loan with just three to his name in 29 Ipswich matches.

East Anglian Daily Times: Scott Fraser and Kyle Edwards celebrate with Joe Pigott after he had given them the lead from the penalty spot.Scott Fraser and Kyle Edwards celebrate with Joe Pigott after he had given them the lead from the penalty spot. (Image: © Copyright Stephen Waller)

There are reasons why it didn’t go well for Pigott in Suffolk and it’s hard not to feel sympathy for the 28-year-old.

The first factor was Macauley Bonne.

With the No.9 shirt on his back, Pigott started all three of Town’s meaningful pre-season games as the new campaign fast approached, with the former Wimbledon man clearly in pole position to lead the line in Paul Cook’ 4-2-3-1 system.

But he looked a little flat on the opening day against Morecambe and, when Bonne came off the bench and bagged a stoppage time leveller, a love affair was truly born. As the early weeks of the season ticked on, Pigott regressed into a supporting role as Bonne soared.

He did score at Burton in the season’s first away game, with the dubious goals panel eventually providing him with his first Ipswich strike, and he netted from the spot against his former club when Bonne missed the visit of Wimbledon with a knock.

But, incredibly, he didn’t start another league game until the middle of December from that point.

He has his qualities, of course he does. His touch is good, he can drop deep and link play nicely and he is a hugely popular (and amusing) figure in the Ipswich camp. But it just didn’t happen on the pitch.

Limited appearances from the bench and sporadic cup games weren’t enough for him to push his case at a time when Bonne was on fire and had become the darling of the Ipswich Town fans.

East Anglian Daily Times: Pigott struggled for regular football at IpswichPigott struggled for regular football at Ipswich (Image: PAGEPIX LTD 07976935738)

Factor two was incredibly tough. In the middle of October, Pigott lost his father.

Losing a parent must be an incredibly difficult time for anyone to deal with, especially when you are as close as Pigott and his dad were. Rightly, work is the last thing on your mind.

The striker continued to give his all and was rightly praised by so many within the Ipswich camp for his professionalism at an extremely difficult time.

But it didn’t happen on the pitch, with the striker given limited opportunities and not grasping them when they did come.

East Anglian Daily Times: Could Joe Pigott leave Ipswich Town this summer?Could Joe Pigott leave Ipswich Town this summer? (Image: PAGEPIX LTD 07976935738)

Then there is factor three – he just doesn’t fit McKenna’s system.

We never saw the best of Pigott but the way the Town boss likes to play means the Town approach would never bring that best out of him, either.

In Kayden Jackson, Freddie Ladapo and prime target George Hirst, McKenna has identified strikers capable of stretching defences and getting in behind, while also bringing other attributes to the table.

Pigott’s appearance record under McKenna gave us a pretty good indication regarding the striker’s future, with only five league starts heading his way as the Town boss shuffled his pack in search of answers he never truly found.

The starts came at pretty regular intervals for Pigott. A (rare) start followed by two games on the bench. That pattern was repeated three times before a long break ahead of his final Ipswich start at Crewe.

East Anglian Daily Times: Joe Pigott, pictured in pre-season action at Needham Market.Joe Pigott, pictured in pre-season action at Needham Market. (Image: Archant)

There were signs of life but no true spark, making it clear an Ipswich exit was always likely.

Pigott wants to play football and a loan to Portsmouth, where he feels like a Danny Cowley kind of player, seems a perfect fit for him.

There’s no recall clause, so he’ll be at Fratton Park for the season, with the hope being he will join full-time.

Yes, there’s a year left on his Ipswich deal once his time in Hampshire is done, but with the Blues dreaming of being in the Championship next season, Pigott’s time at Town is surely done.