There are occasions when the match itself becomes little more than a footnote within a larger story.
Saturdays match was one such example. For three quarters of the encounter with Hull , a goalless final score looked inevitable. That Robert Koren found a late winner only diverts mildly from Towns stuttering form, leading into an East Anglian derby that becomes increasingly pivotal to Roy Keanes future.
Licking their wounds from successive home defeats, Town looked to stabilise with a side set up to protect, rather than break down. After their exerts in midweek, Hungarian internationals Marton Fulop and Tamas Priskin dropped to the bench. Both David Norris and Grant Leadbitter returned to the side following injury and suspension respectively, the latter taking up a role in front of the back line which had found itself exposed in recent performances. With a single frontman, the onus was shone once again on Jason Scotland to provide firepower.
It was a formation which appeared destined to reward Town with the draw they hoped for, something Keane acknowledged after the match.
Speaking to the BBC: “Overall, Im disappointed, pleased with the effort, but the final ball let us down. After an hour it was looking like 0-0 and away from home that’s okay, from our point of view. I think weve been really open over the last two weeks, so today, with Grant sitting there, we were a bit more solid. We could have been a bit cleverer when we were breaking. We knew we wouldn’t get loads of opportunities, but when we did, could we take them? But they got their noses in front and made it hard for us”.
The first half amounted to little more than a war of attrition between the two sides. Jason Scotland was denied by Mannone in the Hull goal, whilst the home side came closest, hitting the woodwork twice in the closing stages of the half. However, goalmouth action was at a premium, something which would remain for much of the match.
With Town seemingly holding the opposition whilst launching sporadic attacks, Koren finally struck with an effort from distance which gave Brian Murphy little chance as it flew into the far corner of the irishmans net.
Keane felt the goal was perhaps avoidable “I think the goal took a deflection, but I still think we should have done better. It was so naïve as Carlos was fouled but tried to stay on his feet”.
Whilst the goal prompted a more urgent approach from the Town side, they were unable to significantly threaten the Hull goal, although on another day may have had a good case for a penalty on two second-half occasions.
Unlike last weekends defeat to Barnsley , Town were not outplayed by the opposition and largely were able to match them in open play. However, solidity at one end of the pitch appears to be to the direct detriment of the output at the other end of the pitch, something which is problematic for a side whos manager admits isnt blessed with goals. With Town only managing a single shot on target, a defensive error inevitably proved terminal.
With supporter unrest growing in recent weeks, a run of three successive defeats has placed particular pressure on Keanes young side, as they head towards a match which supporters place such importance in. Yet, it’s a situation which Keane feels may help his players.
“Its not nice losing matches but it might be a good thing having a derby next week, as obviously league form goes out of the window. Pressure builds when youre not winning matches. The supporters are always looking for the best, so when you don’t win matches, youre upsetting a lot of people.”
No result would go further towards upsetting supporters than a negative outcome at Carrow Road . Whilst the endeavour and willingness of a Roy Keane-managed side is unlikely to be questioned ahead of such a match, inventiveness is a characteristic which has been somewhat lacking in recent weeks. Whilst a narrow loss away at Hull, having attempted to shut out the opposition, is not a match which will remain long in the memory of most Ipswich supporters, a defeat in similar circumstances to their deadly rivals will unquestionably have a longer-lasting impact, both for supporters and the manager.
No comments:
Post a Comment