This season has seen us do a bit of both. Under former boss Paul Cook we scored freely but leaked almost as many. Under Kieran McKenna, our defence is no longer as porous, but we struggle to find the net. Two many draws have cost us dearly.
Under Cook, we thumped Doncaster 6-0 and defeated Portsmouth away 0-4; along with Wycombe 1-4, so goals were plentiful then. Under McKenna, we have scored just 21 goals in 18 league games (and this includes that emphatic 0-4 win at Gillingham.) Conversely, our defence has been resolute throughout, conceding a mere 7 goals in the process. Under both bosses, we have witnessed some very entertaining football, and this is why attendances at Portman Road have been good all season. When we were within sniffing distance of the top-six for a while under McKenna, gate receipts increased yet further, but he found himself always playing catch-up after our very indifferent start. In the court of football justice, this is how I think they would defend themselves, and I will play the role here of the prosecution and the defence. What we must ask ourselves is whether we want an attack-minded manager or a defence-minded one? Ideally, we need something in between, so can McKenna provide this?
Paul Cook: He knew that the club needed a big lift and quickly decided on an aggressive policy of change. In the closed season, he removed all the dead-wood and sent them packing to Colchester United, replacing almost the whole squad with newbies. We all knew that this massive transition would take time, but a huge win at home to Doncaster, and big away victories at Wycombe and Portsmouth gave us hope. Cook felt he needed more time to develop his squad but in the end, he ran out of it, and the owners and Town supporters ran out of patience with him too.
Kieran McKenna: He started life at his new club with two wins on the bounce, and a man who few of us ever knew had started well. We could all see why he was so highly regarded because he quickly began to sort out our leaky defence, and he was getting points on the board! He went nine games before having to share the spoils, and in that time Town notched up six victories! Sadly, draws started to mount up later in our campaign – which could easily have culled us all three points, and so our season slowly ran out of steam. Ironically, the squad he inherited has performed much better under him than Cook – with the notable exception of Macauley Bonne. Paul Hurst’s forgotten men, Janoi Donancien and Kayden Jackson have also enhanced their careers, under his leadership. McKenna has proved his worth already, and with a bit of fine-tuning to his squad, and some more fire-power upfront, next season could be a whole lot better!
