Ipswich Town boss Mick McCarthy is mighty relieved that he got Teddy Bishop to sign a new contract last week.

The teenage midfielder was given a standing ovation when substituted in the 71st minute of his home debut on Saturday. Confident on the ball and forward-thinking, the academy graduate played a starring role in the Blues’ 2-0 win over Millwall.

It’s early days of course, but, having also impressed in the 1-1 draw at Derby County, the Cambridge-born youngster – who has been with the club since the age of seven – looks the real deal. He’s certainly given a previously workmanlike midfield an added dimension.

“He’s a proper footballer isn’t he?” enthused McCarthy, breaking out into a beaming smile at the first mention of Bishop’s name. “I have to say I got him to sign his contract on Thursday (a two-year deal with the option of a third) because if he hadn’t he wouldn’t have played.

“Let me tell you, all the scouts come and watch, all the warning signals have gone up with them seeing him play once like that (at Derby) and he was just as good today. He glides past people.

“We made sure we got him tied down before putting him out there again.”

Asked if the club had purposely been keeping the midfielder under wraps, the Blues boss replied: “Not really. He had a lot of injuries last season. Even after Derby he didn’t train for a week to 10 days.

“Are we protecting a youngster? No, we want him to play. But don’t ruin him as well though.

“We had a great substitute with Luke Hyam coming on. That was one of the hardest decisions, leaving him (Hyam) out, because he’s been a stalwart of the team, but he took it the right way and he was excellent when he came on.”