Ipswich Town drew 1-1 with Manchester United at Portman Road on Sunday. Town fan Terry Hunt reflects on the action.

 

Now the whole footballing world knows that Ipswich Town thoroughly deserve their place in the Premier League. 

Millions across the globe watched on TV as we more than matched the big-time boys of Man Utd.

What an occasion, what an atmosphere. It brought back happy memories of the 1-1 draw against United in 2000, which acted as a confidence-boosting springboard for a great season. Hopefully history can repeat itself!

There were so many positives to take from that game. After a calamitous start, we totally bossed the first half, deservedly levelled and could have been ahead by the break.

We had the three best players on the pitch in Omari Hutchinson, Liam Delap and Sam Morsy. The skipper was immense, up against supposed superstars Fernandes, Casemiro and Eriksen.

I’ve said it before, but Middlesbrough must have been bonkers to let him go. At the grand old age of 33, he is clearly loving his first taste of Premier League football, and looks as though he’s played there for years.

The youngsters Hutchinson and Delap will have caught the eye in what was billed as the biggest football match on the planet this weekend.

Hutchinson was absolutely brilliant, retaining the ball cleverly in tight situations, working really hard and, of course, scoring his first Premier League goal. I think it was going in even without the deflection.

Delap produced another barnstorming display and, with a bit of luck and maybe a little more composure, he would have been on the scoresheet.

I’m convinced both Hutchinson and Delap will play for England if they avoid serious injury. They are already with the under-21s. It just worries me that someone will snatch them away from us...

Another really pleasing aspect of the United performance was the way we hung on late in the game. Earlier in the season, we were making daft, naive mistakes which were costing us points.

Against United, that didn’t look like happening. Late in the game, we were hanging on. United has upped their levels, and we looked - not to put too fine a point on it - cream crackered, after all the intensity of the first half.

But we kept our shape, made some big saving tackles, and didn’t do anything daft. We needed to learn that lesson quickly, and it looks as though that is happening.

So, I was a proud Ipswich Town fan leaving Portman Road on Sunday evening, after watching my team at least match one of the biggest and most famous clubs in the world.

To think that only two years ago, we were in League One and big occasions like this seemed an impossible dream.

A quick word about Man Utd. I think their new boss has a big job on his hands. In the first half, with their new manager watching intently, they were shambolic, second to every ball. They improved later on, but they’re a millions miles away from being a really top team.

Back to Ipswich. Four points from Spurs and Man Utd is terrific and, as I’ve already said, a real confidence booster for players, management and supporters alike.

But we must be realistic. Despite some great performances and results, we are in the bottom three with only nine points from our first 12 games. We need to put some wins on the board, hopefully in the next four games which look less formidable than the last two.

Having said that, sometimes this season our standards have slipped when we have supposed “easier” games. We simply cannot let that happen. Every single point is precious, and wins will be season-changing.

We will need to strengthen again in January. Just a couple of injuries and suddenly our bench doesn’t look the strongest. The changes against United didn’t really work

But a terrific performance and a valuable point. We move on to Forest. Another draw?

Finally, I see the crazy sacking season has started already, with Steve Cooper axed by Leicester, who are above us in the table. Aren’t you glad you support a sensible club?