'He was desperate to go... he wants to be the main man' - McKenna on Fraser sale

The Scot, one of Town’s 19 summer signings, made only 20 appearances for the club before being sold in a £500,000 deal before the window closed.

McKenna was under no pressure to sell the former Burton and MK Dons man but, after discussions with over the last few weeks, was left in no doubt Fraser wanted to move on in a bid to find a starring role elsewhere.

"I didn’t get the chance to see Scott play in a game or work with him too long, but it was one where Scott was desperate to go, to be honest,” the Town boss said.

Scott Fraser was sold to Charlton after making just 14 league starts for Ipswich Town. (Image: © Copyright Stephen Waller)

“From early conversations with him he felt like he hadn’t quite settled at the club how he wanted. Obviously he came into the club as part of a big recruitment drive when a lot of good players came in.

“He felt he didn’t manage to settle from a football point of view or from a personal point of view, so he had a strong desire to go and play somewhere where he would be an automatic first choice and somewhere he could be the main man at a club.

“I had some discussions with him and respected his opinion on that. He was always respectful and highly thought of here, but just a player I didn’t get to see very much.

“So it was more about respecting the wishes of a player who wants to be an automatic starter and one of the biggest players at the club.

“For us, the group dynamic is very important to me, having the right numbers, the right depth and also having players here who really want to be part of the squad and feel an affinity with where we want to go to and are ready to contribute when needed.

“We felt it was the best move for everyone at that stage. A good offer came in from Charlton and that was something Scott wanted to pursue.

“We feel like we have good numbers and good depth here so we move forward now with the players we have and only wish Scott the best.”

Jon Nolan has signed for Bristol Rovers (Image: BRFC)

Jon Nolan also left Portman Road on deadline day, with McKenna pleased to see him quickly sign for Bristol Rovers.

“In the end all parties were happy with it,” the Town boss said.

“Jon’s not been able to get a run of fitness in games or to train consecutively so he’s really keen to get his career going again.

“The club wanted to support him with that and if he’d stayed here until the end of the season it would have been less likely for him to get some minutes, so the best solution was for him to be free from his contract.

“We’re all pleased to see he’s got a contract elsewhere until the end of the season, where he can hopefully now get a good run of fitness and get some minutes to show what a good player he is.”