Ipswich Town Must Get Back To Winning Ways

In football sometimes, fixtures are thrown up that invite a change in fortune and on Saturday afternoon, Ipswich face bottom of the table Bolton Wanderers at Portman Road.

The Lancashire club are currently winless and they will not be looking forward to a long trek into Suffolk, given their current plight at the bottom of the Championship table.

Their manager Phil Parkinson believes however that the tide will turn sooner rather than later and said of his side’s narrow 0-1 home defeat to rampant Sheffield United in midweek, that only luck had deserted them at this time.

‘Maybe somewhere around the corner something is going to fall to us, someone is going to block to one of us and we are going to smash it into the back of the net!’

Is this merely wishful thinking – or does he really believe that his squad has what it takes to stay in this division?

Just like Sheffield United, (who have now won their last four Championship matches) they came up from Division One last term but unlike Sheffield United,they are struggling to make any kind of impact but Parkinson says his players are giving it their all.

With reference to their midweek home defeat he went on to say,’ We couldn’t have given much more. We gave absolutely everything. The energy levels were great and there were some of the best individual performances we have had this season.’

But Bolton will be further hampered by the absence through injury of winger Will Buckley and central defender Derik Osede, due to hamstring and groin injuries and of course confidence will be low.

What Town need to do is to get an early goal and that is why it is imperative that manager Mick McCarthy gives a start to Bersant Celina because his pace and ingenuity could quickly unlock their defence and their heads will drop again.

The trouble of course with our manager is that he always seems to air on the side of caution. This is perhaps excusable away but not at home and especially NOT if he wants to get supporters to return to their natural home!

Further encouraging news for the Blues is that Luke Chambers is confident of making a return and is now back in full training.

Tom Adeyemi will be all the better for his game time in the under 23 side and his late appearance in a Town shirt last weekend, when we went down 2-0 away to Queens Park Rangers.

Ipswich must start on the front foot and that might mean leaving David McGoldrick on the bench?

After four wins in succession and then two narrow defeats, it is vital we get back to winning way on Saturday afternoon at Portman Road and here is a perfect opportunity!

There are no easy games in the Championship but Bolton with a -10 goal difference are on paper at least, easier than most.

Anything less than a win, would be a wholly unsatisfactory outcome and cause us perhaps to revisit the ‘natives are getting restless’ scenario once more.

Frank Weston – Editor of Vital Ipswich