Tommy Smith will be watching from afar as Ipswich Town attempt to find a new level of consistency to force their way into the Championship play-offs.
Smith is waiting for his visa to arrive, allowing him to fly to start his new life in Denver after completing his move to Colorado Rapids, but if it doesn’t come ahead of the weekend clash with Wolves there is talk of a potential farewell on the Portman Road pitch.
If he is still in Suffolk, he will be watching a side six points off the final play-off place, who have managed back-to-back wins just once since August, with the defender believing his former team-mates will need to rediscover that consistency to have any chance of forcing their way in.
“To reach the play-offs you need to gather momentum from this point on and if the lads can do that, start stringing the wins together to develop some belief, then anything can happen,” he said.
“You see it year on year. The one that stands out is when Reading were in the bottom half (in 2011-12), looking over their shoulders, then went on to win 15 of their last 20 games to make it up.
“That’s a massive ask but getting into the play-offs requires that consistency and hopefully the lads can do that.
“I will always call myself an Ipswich Town fan for sure and, while I hope my visa is sorted before then, I might even be here as a fan on Saturday.”
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Smith has seen a lot at Portman Road, playing under four managers and alongside more than 100 players during periods of heavy turnover, but believes the modern day Ipswich Town still has the family feel which has played so big a role in its past.
“There was a time where there was a lot of turnover in terms of staff and players,” Smith said.
“But now it’s back to being a very family orientated club. That’s so important.
“A lot of the staff have been at the club for a long time or were even players themselves before coming back to the club as coaches.
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“They know the ethos of the club, the way they want to do things here, and that can only bode well for the future of the club and bringing the next generation of players through.
“I can’t express enough just how thankful I am for everything the club has given me over my time here and I will remember that for the rest of my life.”
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