On the face of it, yesterday marked the end of one of the more underachieving seasons in Ipswich Towns recent history. Yet, a day which promised to be particularly unfulfilling just weeks previously, actually turned into a day of enormous positivity, enthusiasm and enjoyment for Ipswich fans. And Roy Keane was only a part of the reason....
On Saturday 11th April 2009, Ipswich were beaten 3-1 by Doncaster. The boos that rang out for Jim Magilton at the end of the game were loud and the manager himself seemed to echo the thoughts of the fans- this season was a lost cause. From that moment on, apart from a skirmish with Norwich, the season was over and it was going to be a gradual wind down towards its end. At which point, everybody could go their separate ways and try to forget any of it had happened.
The Norwich match, and the win that accompanied it, provided what was seen as a welcome respite.
However, nobody could have predicted the complete and utter turnaround in the feeling around the ground the next time they came to visit.
Yesterdays match was preceded by an enormous wave of optimism throughout the club, heralded by the startling changes to personnel at the management end of things. Suddenly, season tickets were being snapped up, a meaningless end-of-season match was requiring the ticket office to look excitedly towards their "sold out" sign and the national media couldnt get enough of what Roy Keane was going to do to his new club.
Even the club themselves got caught up in all the excitement- Portman Road found itself bedecked in blue, white and red flags hanging across the street, whilst a Jazz band sauntered through football favourites just outside the away end.
Portman Road became busy in the way it only really does for a big game, with queues of people stretching across the streets waiting to get through the turnstiles. The club shop lined people up outside as the new home shirt became an item everyone wanted to be associated with, presumably with "KEANO" spelt across the back. A small group of kids walked past pointing excitedly at the picture on the front of the programme- "thats keano!".
Inside the ground it was no different, as not only was there the introduction of Roy Keane to the crowd, but some early goals to entertain and make the game safe as early as anyone cared to remember.
But then Roy Keane stood to the side, because his part in all this had been completed. The rest of the afternoons highlights were provided care of Norwich City Football Club, who once again managed to spectacularly collapse when attempting to avoid relegation. Rarely have mexican waves started round the ground so early in the afternoon. The final scores, confirming their fate, lifted spirits even further.
The turnaround was complete. Fans left Portman Road for the last time in 08/09, excitedly looking forward to what was to come over the summer and in the following season. Given the disappointment of the season just finished, and given the mood in the stadium just three weeks previously, the change in atmosphere was astonishing. A breath of fresh air, indeed, and one that will last well into next season.
The managerial changes may not only be good appointments, but they seem to have been particularly astutely timed in changing the mood around the club.
Not to mention Norwich Citys fine efforts in all this too....
No comments:
Post a Comment