Ipswich proved that patience is indeed a virtue on Saturday, with a patient build-up which led to their winning goal through Kane Vincent-Young after 32 minutes. The move started at the back and then through midfield before Kayden Jackson delivered an inch-perfect cross to the back post, where the former Colchester United defender headed goalwards from close range. It was a splendid finish and worthy of winning the game away at Gillingham, with over 2,000 Town fans there to witness another important victory.
The whole squad is playing well at the moment and it does not seem to matter who manager Paul Lambert picks, they seem to perform excellently. The notable exception perhaps is Alan Judge, who remains an endless enigma. He has the talent but is he really a team player? This time he played just behind Jackson in a forward position but once again he was found wanting when it came to tracking back. In fairness, however, he did come close to scoring his first goal in a Town shirt when he slammed the ball against a post, after a surging run through midfield from Vincent Young.
The Blues are now top of the table, and after so many years of purgatory this really is all rather heavenly! We have strength in depth in all departments and we now seem to know how to keep a clean sheet! That is five in a row which equals a club record, so Lambert has not only sorted our attacking options but has helped the team to defend as well and of course, our midfield is arguably the strongest in this division anyway.
I am very encouraged by what I have seen from the Tractor Boys so far this season. When Lambert rotates he does so with intelligence and we are reaping the benefits of his flexible approach to management. There are constant changes of systems as well as personnel and yet that unbeaten league record remains intact.
I always say you should never look seriously at a table before Christmas but the way the Blues are performing just now, it is very hard to resist thinking that this really could be our time for automatic promotion!
FW editor of Vital Ipswich
