Ipswich Town boss Mick McCarthy felt his side should have been awarded a late penalty in this afternoon’s 1-1 home draw with Preston North End but admitted that a draw was very much the fair result.
Daniel Johnson gave the visitors a seventh minute lead and the Lilywhites were well on top before Daryl Murphy’s low 25-yard shot levelled things up in the 38th minute.
A scrappy second half was memorable only for several controversial refereeing decisions. Preston’s Ben Pearson had a goal disallowed for a very tight offside call, while Joe Garner had weak penalty appeals waved away after he went down softly in the area.
Most contentious of all was when Town sub Luke Hyam’s shot was clearly handled inside the area by Paul Huntington with just six minutes to go.
“It was a fair result – I’ll take the point,” said McCarthy. “We’ve had to come from behind again. They’re on a good run, they’re a good side and are very hard to break down.
“You can’t win them all. We’ve been on a good run, we remain unbeaten (in six) and if you can’t win it then don’t lose it.”
He continued: “We didn’t get going and I haven’t got an answer why so don’t ask me. I haven’t got an answer why we keep conceding goals like that either. The season throws all up all sorts of things doesn’t it? You concede early goals, late goals, you get good away runs, good home runs. It’s all a real mixed bag.
“All I know is that was a real tough Championship game. Fair play to them they deserve a point.”
On the controversial officiating decisions, he said: “Simon Grayson has just been asked about all that and he thinks they might have had a penalty. If you want to move Garner you can’t knock him over with a bulldozer, but if he wants to fall over he looks like he’s been hit by a baseball bat when you’ve just tickled him! The referee didn’t give that one or book him for diving. I guess it should really have been one or the other.
“They had an offside goal, which I’m told is very close. I’ve not seen it, but the linesman flagged very early.
“The one incident I have seen again is our penalty appeal. And we should have had a penalty. It hits his hand and then he grabs it and pulls it under his body.
“By the way don’t anybody say ‘Mick McCarthy bemoaned the referee’ because I haven’t, I’m just answering a question.
“There was all sorts in the game. If he gives it he gives it, if he doesn’t he doesn’t. I’m sure we’ll get one another time.
“At the end of the day they deserved a point, we deserved a point and that’s how it ended. I can waffle on but that’s about he long and short of it.”
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