A poor second half display from Ipswich Town resulted in a 2-0 defeat to Blackpool on a wet and windy afternoon at Bloomfield Road.
Vital Report:
Paul Jewell handed new arrival Danny Collins his debut alongside Ibrahima Sonko in defence while Jimmy Bullard made his first start in midfield since re-signing for the Blues. Lee Bowyer was the third change to the starting lineup that won against Leeds United two weeks ago, with Mark Kennedy left out while Damien Delaney and Jay Emmanuel-Thomas dropped to the bench.
Blackpool included former Ipswich striker Billy Clarke in their lineup as well as veteran Kevin Phillips, whom Jewell had been interested in signing during the summer. Daniel Bogdanovic, another reported Town target, was on the bench.
Backed by an away crowd of over 1,500 following the club’s offer of free coach travel, Ipswich started the game well enough with several early chances. Bullard knocked Bowyer’s pass wide on 6 minutes before Michael Chopra had a shot blocked after racing into the Blackpool box, with Bullard powering a strike wide on the rebound. The hosts then wasted a free kick before Carlos Edwards hammered well off target from 25 yards.
With ten minutes gone however, Blackpool began to threaten. Sonko reacted well to block a low effort from Barry Ferguson, but the Senegalese defender then played Brett Ormerod onside 5 minutes later only for the ex-Preston striker to curl his shot into the side netting under pressure from Edwards. Shortly afterwards, Gary Taylor-Fletcher was denied a penalty following a challenge by Collins.
At the other end, Sonko came close to finding an opener from a Bullard corner, but he narrowly missed making contact with the delivery and ended up clattering into the far post for his efforts. Aaron Cresswell then had a free kick deflected narrowly wide for a corner on the half hour mark as the Blues sought to get back on top. They might have gone 1-0 down ten minutes later however, Phillips curling a shot from 18 yards which Town keeper David Stockdale initially spilled before gathering.
As half time approached, Keith Andrews sent a long range shot skipping past the left-hand post before Edwards tried from a very similar position with a similar result. Four minutes later referee Colin Webster blew for the end of a first half in which Ipswich and Blackpool had been fairly evenly matched. Town may have had more shots, but the hosts had looked closer to breaking the deadlock having mustered the only attempt on target so far.
The weather had been dry and relatively bright at the start of the first half, but following something of a deluge at Bloomfield Road during the interval, the players came out for the second period in wet and windy conditions. Despite that however, the hosts began the half much more brightly, Taylor-Fletcher hooking over the bar from a free kick after 47 minutes.
Two minutes later however, Blackpool did make the breakthrough, thanks in no small part to some poor Town defending. Ex-Blue Clarke was under no pressure at all as he brought down a cross from the right inside the Ipswich area, and even though he mishit his shot on goal, Gary Taylor-Fletcher was in place to tap home at the far post and make it 1-0.
Ferguson was booked following a cynical block on Chopra running into the Blackpool half before the Scot thumped a long shot off target, but it was not long before the hosts found a second. Ormerod looked set to test Stockdale as he charged into the box, but after taking the ball wide of goal, the veteran elected to cross. Town had bodies in the area but none of them were able to stop Barry Ferguson who made amends by finishing from close range to double the Seasiders’ lead.
Blackpool were now growing in confidence, Clarke striking over two minutes later as the home fans began chanting “we want seven” in the hope of their side replicating Peterborough United’s scoreline from the Blues’ last away game. In response, Jewell sent on Emmanuel-Thomas and Jason Scotland in place of the ineffective Bowyer and Grant Leadbitter.
Despite the changes, the goals looked to have put the game beyond Town who were lacking any real penetration up front. Collins was booked for a foul on Phillips who struck over from the free kick, then at the other end, Bullard scuffed a poor long shot wide three minutes later, prompting taunts from the home crowd including “what a waste of money” and “get your hair cut!”
The story of the final quarter of an hour was then dominated by frontman Daryl Murphy, who squandered a number of chances to get Town back in the match. After narrowly failing to reach a Cresswell free kick, the on-loan Celtic striker was played in on the left by Andrews but sliced his shot terribly to send it well wide of the near post. The same pair linked up again five minutes later, but despite being closer to goal this time, Murphy ended up slicing the ball in almost exactly the same way as he did the first time.
Blackpool almost made it three two minutes from time when substitute Ludovic Sylvestre forced an excellent save from Stockdale at close range, the rebound then falling to Phillips who fired over. Fellow sub Bodganovic then chipped an effort over as the match entered three minutes of stoppage time.
Remarkably, Ipswich still hadn’t had a single shot on target, and it took until the 92nd minute for Tangerines keeper Matt Gilks to be tested. Ironically, it was Murphy who took it from an almost identical position to his previous two efforts, only this time he struck crisply to force Gilks into a smart parry around the near post. With the full-time whistle sounding a minute later, it summed up the lack of genuine threat that Town had offered throughout the second half in particular.
The result will have been a frustrating one for the travelling supporters and for manager Jewell having hoped to see his team back to form after the win over Leeds. Ipswich had made a good game of it in the first half, but after Blackpool’s first goal, the Blues never looked capable of getting themselves back into the contest. Chopra again looked isolated whilst Bowyer was well below par, and despite plenty of effort from the likes of Bullard, Andrews and Edwards, Town created almost nothing within the hosts’ box.
On a brighter note, Collins looked relatively solid on his debut having dealt well with aerial balls and may yet be able to forge a good partnership with Sonko, who also had his moments despite the goals conceded. However, with new faces being added to the team in almost every match, it is clear that despite possessing a number of experienced, quality players, Ipswich are not yet working as a team.
Town do have the makings of a good side, but on today’s evidence, it could take a while yet before Jewell is able to get the best out of his team – however frustrating the wait may prove to be for all concerned.
Blackpool: Gilks, Evatt, Baptiste, Hill, Cathcart, Southern, Taylor-Fletcher (Bogdanovic 81), Ferguson (Sylvestre 76), Clarke (M Phillips 69), K Phillips, Ormerod – Not used: Halstead, Hurst
Ipswich: Stockdale, Cresswell, Edwards, Collins, Sonko, Leadbitter (Scotland 65), Bowyer (Emmanuel-Thomas 64), Andrews, Bullard, Chopra, Murphy – Not used: Lee-Barrett, Delaney, Ainsley
Were you at Bloomfield Road on Saturday? Are you worried about our current form? What have you made of the performances of our summer signings, and are you confident that Paul Jewell’s team will ‘click’ eventually?
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