Ipswich, the great entertainers: Ipswich Town 3-2 Bristol City match review
It was another bonkers night under the lights at Portman Road on Tuesday, as Ipswich came from behind twice to seal a 3-2 victory against Bristol City and help to strengthen their promotion push in the final stretch of the season.
It was a game that was symptomatic of the pulsating and often chaotic football that Ipswich have played this season, offsetting their defensive frailties with fast-paced and aggressive possession football. It was truly a game of two halves, as the first half saw little to no action, with the Blues looking lacklustre and struggling to create chances. However, the second half provided enough entertainment to last three football matches. 5 goals, a missed penalty and both teams hitting the woodwork provided a rip-roaring 45 minutes of non-stop action.
It was the visitors who went ahead initially against the run of play, when Anis Mehmeti’s shot found the back of the net, with a slight deflection from Town defender Luke Woolfenden. The Robins did well to diminish the Blues’ attacking presence in the first half and made the most of their opportunities on the counter. In fact, Bristol City had a golden opportunity to extend their lead minutes later, as Nahki Wells left two Ipswich players in his wake before striking the post.
This swiftly prompted a quadruple change from Kieran McKenna, a decision that produced near instantaneous results when Ali Al-Hamadi netted his second goal for Ipswich since joining in January, with fellow substitute Wes Burns involved in the build-up. Ipswich looked revitalised and attacked the Bristol goal relentlessly, but once again their unstable defences were breached as Tommy Conway struck to put the Robins back in front.
But the word ‘quit’ doesn’t exist in the vocabulary of this Ipswich team. Kieran McKenna’s men have now amassed 28 points from losing positions after this match, 7 more than any other Championship side, and they seem to thrive under the adversity of going behind. Their second equaliser saw left back Leif Davis whip in a cross to the near post from a free kick, which met the head of Conor Chaplin, usually the smallest man on the pitch. Davis currently leads the Championship in assists and has been absolutely critical to the Tractor Boys’ attacking success this season, providing marauding runs down the left wing and pinpoint deliveries from set pieces. The Ipswich offensive continued, and they were presented with a gift from the Robins to seal the victory when they were awarded a penalty. However, goal scorer Al-Hamadi failed to double his tally for the night with a soft effort (agreeing as much in the post-match interview.)
But it was the fullback Davis not three minutes later, who added to his two assists with the all crucial third goal, this time latching onto the end of one of Ipswich’s many attacking forays to seal the winner and send Portman Road into rapturous celebrations. It could’ve been more too, with Jack Taylor hitting the post in injury time with a signature long range effort.
The victory marked another incredible comeback from the Tractor Boys and their sixth straight win in a row, on a night when their promotion rivals Leicester and Leeds also secured three points. If McKenna and the boys can maintain this momentum and fend off the challenge of the likes of Leicester, Leeds and Southampton, they’ll be the first team to achieve back-to-back promotions to the Premier League since Southampton in 2012. The run-in certainly won’t be easy for Ipswich (it includes games against Southampton, Hull and fiercest rivals Norwich) and the stakes of promotion back to the biggest league for the first time in over two decades couldn’t be higher. The only thing that seems certain is that the football the Super Blues will play will never be boring!
