Is This A Change In Fortunes For Ipswich Town?

I have heard it said many times in football that it is not the result that we should all look closely at but the performance.

On Saturday afternoon at Portman Road the real Ipswich Town finally showed up and it was an excellent team performance that almost won us all three points, against high flying Reading.

As Tom Lawrence later alluded to, the new signings certainly made a difference and fellow Welsh international Emyr Huws, who had joined on loan from Cardiff on deadline day, was a real breathe of fresh air in the middle of the park.

Toumani Diagouraga was making his home debut too and did not disappoint. He has a calmness on the ball and can see a pass. Obviously he is still struggling to reach full match fitness but what I have seen so far has been very encouraging.

Ironically it was the withdrawal of Cole Skuse through injury after 21 minutes, that seemed to change the Blues fortunes and we became a much more of an attacking force from that moment on.

Having Steve Taylor in our ranks is also a very big plus in my view and if he can remain injury free (which is a big if? ) he could be a vital member of the squad. He is real quality and we have already seem glimpses of his Premier League credentials.

We came very close to gaining all three points against a side that was sitting third in the table and once again, it was Tom Lawrence who provided us with those crucial goals.

What a revelation he has been and although I liked very much our other loanee striker Ryan Fraser, who is performing well now in the Premiership with Bournemouth, I really do think we have a real gem in this Leicester City winger.

Strangely, The Foxes seem so short on confidence and goals these days so it is an irony that Town pinned down a deal for him until the end of the season. I bet they are regretting that now!

The one disappointing aspect of this match more than even the result was our choice of our substitutions.

Reading made it 2-2 after 78 minutes and then 4 minutes later manager Mick McCarthy brings on Jordan Spence and Teddy Bishop – whilst sitting on the bench were strikers, Brett Pitman Kieffer Moore and Freddie Sears!

A more positive approach may well have yielded all 3 points.

Frank Weston – Editor of vital Ipswich