Ipswich Town manager Mick McCarthy revealed that Luke Chambers apologised for his performance after scoring a last-gasp winner in this afternoon’s 2-1 home win over QPR.

This was no Boxing Day blockbuster with the first half, in particular, instantly forgettable.

Junior Hoilett capitalised following a series of mistakes in the fourth minute of added time in that opening period, getting in front of Chambers to give the visitors the lead.

Ipswich then produced two shots on targets and two goals, Jonathan Douglas acrobatically finishing in the 77th minute and Chambers heading home in the second minute of stoppage-time.

“Chambo has come in and apologised for his performance to everybody else,” said McCarthy. “Well that’s a captain’s performance because if you’re not having the best game, come up and score the winner. Everybody forgets about how you play then.

“His performance won’t be written down in history, but scoring the winner will be. I love that about my team – they all keep going.”

The Blues boss continued: “It’s a really important win. As the saying goes, it’s got the money off our back because we haven’t been winning many at home.

“I don’t think it was wonderful entertainment. I think it was a fairly horrible, turgid game that was going nowhere. It had nil-nil written all over it in the first half until we defended abysmally and conceded a goal that was just appalling for us to concede.

“That was from a number of levels. It wasn’t just from one player. Typically for us there was about five little errors that ended up with the ball in our net. That allowed them to sit in, which they did, and leave the big fella up front.

“If anything we’ve won it because of our belligerence and tenacity and the aggressive way we play. We just kept going. That’s what’s won us the game.”

When it was put to him that a bumper Boxing Day crowd had been treated to some late drama, he replied: “Yes, but they had to wade through 93 minutes of s***e before we got to that.

“I’d sooner play well and win, but the object of my job is to win games. That’s what will enable me to have a semi-happy Christmas now because we got three points. Nothing else really matters to me. It’s sad but my life is conducted around football results. The way I feel, my mood and my demeanour, all revolves around football results. It’s a fairly shallow, sad old life but f*** it I feel good today!”