Ipswich Town came from behind twice to beat Bristol City 3-2 on another dramatic night at Portman Road, recording their sixth consecutive victory to keep them second in the Championship.
Anis Mehmeti and Tommy Conway scored either side of Ali Al-Hamadi's cameo strike, but Conor Chaplin fired home the equaliser with 10 minutes to play before Leif Davis smashed the ball into the net off Rob Dickie to win the game at the death.
Ipswich did their best to find their way through in the opening 10 minutes, dominating possession without really creating anything significant in the final third. Their touches and passes seemed a little heavy, although Bristol City’s only real opportunity in the early stages came from a short corner which Ross McCrorie flashed wide of the target.
Both teams tried to test each other with fairly weak attempts, but the crowd came to life as Sam Morsy regained possession in midfield and pressed forward. He picked out Kieffer Moore ahead of him, but the striker was given little space to manoeuvre, forcing him to lash a low shot into the gloves of Max O’Leary in the 20th minute.
The tempo of the match really dropped after that. Ipswich lacked the killer pass to truly test O’Leary, although they came inches away from taking the lead via a corner in the 33rd minute. Davis’ delivery met the head of Moore, who flicked it on for Chaplin at the back post. The attacker only had a split second to react, hitting the post from point-blank range.
The Robins did have chances, however. Harry Cornick’s pinpoint cross from the right found Nahki Wells in the middle of the box, but the veteran striker couldn’t beat Hladky with his header in the 38th minute.
As the half threatened to fizzle out, the visitors had one big chance left in them, pouncing on a heavy pass that bounced off Luke Woolfenden. It allowed Mehmeti to set up Jason Knight, who spun before firing a looping effort at goal. Woolfenden got back just in time to make the block before Town cleared the resulting corner.
The half-time break saw Fabio Wardley and Frazer Clarke go face-to-face ahead of their boxing match at the O2 Arena on March 31st. The home fans were clearly riled up when the latter revealed he was wearing a Norwich City shirt, receiving fierce boos as he did a lap of the pitch at Portman Road.
That anger quickly turned to concern as Moore went down with an ankle injury, although he was able to soldier on without receiving treatment. Down the other end of the pitch, Bristol City were able to take the lead in the 54th minute.
Hutchinson was shrugged off the ball, allowing the Robins to break up the left flank. Mehmeti was able to cut inside and curl a shot at goal, deflecting off Woolfenden before rolling into the back of the net.
A quick run from Wells saw him cut into the box and strike the corner of the post with a powerful shot just second later. It was quick something had to change quickly.
Kieran McKenna rolled the dice with four substitutions. One of the men introduced was Al-Hamadi, who bagged the equaliser in the 63rd minute.
A quick run from Wes Burns, who was brought on alongside the Iraq international, saw him set up Leif Davis on the edge of the area. The left-back took aim, but Al-Hamadi got the final touch, scoring his first goal at Portman Road at the perfect moment.
The game was set up perfectly for Ipswich to stage a comeback and take all three points, but it was Bristol City who came closest in the 74th minute. A long-range strike from Mehmeti forced Hladky into an outstanding save. Mark Sykes tried to set up Wells for the rebound, but Cameron Burgess was able to clear it away from the danger by putting his body on the line, winning a free-kick in the process.
It was a clear warning sign, and the Robins made them pay in the 77th minute. A lobbed ball over the top saw Mehmeti played down the right, allowing him to hook a cross into the box. Substitute Conway was given far too much space between the two centre-backs, allowing him to divert the ball over Hladky with a looping header, making it 2-1.
Ipswich were never going to lie down and accept that result, and they were back level just three minutes later as McCrorie was booked for a foul on Al-Hamadi down the left. Davis delivered the free-kick onto the head of Chaplin, fizzing the ball ino the net off the gloves of O'Learly to equalise.
The late drama continued. Burns' darting run into the box caused Bristol City problems, and Cameron Pring had no choice but to bring him down inside the box, with referee David Webb awarding a spot-kick. Chaplin held onto the ball, but passed it to Al-Hamadi to take in the 85th minute.
The home fans held their breath as the young attacker stepped up, but his low strike was easily held by O'Leary.
Town continued to press forward, playing Davis into space down the left flank. He had options to his right, but ended up going for goal himself, firing the ball into the net off Rob Dickie to win the game in the 89th minute.
Jack Taylor came close to capping off the win in stoppage time, striking the post from the edge of the area, but three goals were enough to see Town take the win on another dramatic night in IP1.
Town XI: 4-2-3-1: Hladky; Tuanzebe (Clarke 75'), Woolfenden, Burgess, Davis; Morsy, Luongo (Taylor 60'); Hutchinson (Burns 60'), Chaplin, Harness (Harness 60'); Moore (Al-Hamadi 60')
Bristol City XI: 4-2-3-1: O'Leary; McCrorie, Vyner, Dickie, Pring; Gardner-Hickman, Williams; Cornick (Sykes 62'), Knight, Mehmeti; Wells (Conway 76')
Attendance: 28,001 (410 away)
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