This was one of Town’s best performances of the season. They were rarely under any sustained pressure, and they knew where the net was.
I was very impressed with this performance. From start to finish, the Blues were in cruise control. Arsenal loanee John-Jules enjoyed his first league start by opening the scoring in the 22nd minute, and what a sublime goal it was! He dispossessed Shrewsbury captain Luke Leahy 45 years from goal and then went on a mazy solo run which took him inside the box before he unleashed a perfect strike into the far corner of the net. I would already rank it as one of the goals of the season and arguably the best so far. We may not need to search for a new striker after all, on this showing!
After the break, Ipswich increased their lead with a typical Conor Chaplin goal. His left-footed shot from just outside the box found its way past the helpless Shrews keeper Marko Marosi who seemed to be unsighted, as the ball nestled into the net, via his outstretched palm. Two minutes into stoppage time Town got a third through second-half substitute Kayden Jackson, who took advantage of a Sam Morsy effort that was cleared off the line but only to the feet of Jackson, who made no mistake from close range. The scoreline may have flattered the visitors a little, but there was only going to be one outcome here, and Town thoroughly deserved to go back to Suffolk will all three points! With 67% of possession, they employed the perfect operating system.
Town stay top of the table after their fourth victory in a row, and three of these wins have been away from home! Normally, when Ipswich travel away, I get a little nervous, but today I remained relatively relaxed throughout, and this was because the Tractor Boys had an iron grip on proceedings. The big away following ( 1,343 ) must have really enjoyed this one – I know I did, and it will surely boost the home gathering for the game next week at Portman Road against Barnsley. Shrewsbury lacked a cutting edge and only had one shot on target in the entire match. Ipswich by contrast had six.
The Blues have already surpassed my target for August, and they still have another very winnable game to play. James Norwood will be determined to be a thorn in our side next Saturday, but they will need more than him to ruffle our feathers because the lads are now playing with real momentum. It’s an exciting time to be following the Blues.
Shrewsbury Town: Marosi; Pennington, Dunkley, Flanagan; Dacosta (Bowman 73), Leahy (captain), Bayliss, Nurse; Pyke (Bloxham 73), Shipley; Udoh (Caton 73).
Ipswich Town: Walton; Donacien, Woolfenden, Burgess; Vincent-Young (Jackson 75), Evans, Morsy (captain), Davis; Chaplin (Aluko 81), Harness (Edwards 81); John-Jules (Ladapo 75).
Attendance: 6,556
Referee: Neil Hair
