Leeds v Ipswich: Ipswich Town manager Mick McCarthy was left frustrated after his side once again failed to secure three points from a winning position.

The Blues went 1-0 up at Leeds in the 57th minute when David McGoldrick’s long-range shot somehow beat Paddy Kenny at the near post, but their lead lasted just five minutes as Ross McCormack converted a soft penalty conceded by Luke Chambers.

It was Ipswich’s ninth 1-1 draw of the season, with 25 points having been now dropped from winning positions (eight draws, three defeats).

Leeds had lost their previous five matches and are now winless in eight, manager Brian McDermott disrupted by takeover talks and transfer bids for numerous players.

Was this a missed opportunity for Ipswich, who are now four points off the play-off places?

“It’s frustrating because we had the game by the scruff of the neck,” admitted McCarthy. “If you’d have asked me at the start of the season though ‘would you take a point at Elland Road?’ I’d have said ‘yes’.

“It doesn’t matter what they’re going through at the moment, it didn’t look they were feeling sorry for themselves tonight. They were doing it for Brian.

“You know my view on it. It’s a point in my pocket, I’ll wipe my gob and move on to the next one and get on with it.”

He continued: “A draw was probably about right, but when we scored we were on top and I thought we could have done better.

“I can’t see on our computer whether it’s a penalty. Chambo (Luke Chambers) says he hasn’t touched him. I’ve just said to him though that every penalty I ever gave away I always said I didn’t touch him! Every time I was sent off I’d never hit anybody!

“He says he hasn’t touched him, I keep looking and I’m not so certain. If you dive in like that in the box though then you give the referee the opportunity to give it.”

He added: “The first bit of the first half was a really ordinary game. I thought we started the second half well and got the goal, but Brian (McDermott) will be saying it’s a rick from their goalkeeper. Both goals came from mistakes really.

“I thought we got the game by the scruff of the neck and we didn’t hold onto it long enough. It was missed header, we let them switch it out wide and fair play to him he (Stewart) attacks our full-back in the box.”

On his decision to drop Stephen Hunt following his man-of-the-match display against Reading last weekend, McCarthy explained: “I would never have dropped him for his performance. He’d cramped up though, you saw how tired he was. He was never going to go Saturday-Tuesday. I just needed fresh legs.”