In short
Ipswich Town’s Easter Monday 2-1 comeback win over Birmingham City at Portman Road, plus promotion-race outlook and squad/injury updates.
Guests
Mark Heath (host), Rossi Roscoe (fan/ratings contributor), and AJ (fan/pundit).
Guest backgrounds
all are Ipswich Town supporters who attend matches and discuss tactics/atmosphere; Rossi is described as closer to fans and does matchday “ratings,” while AJ focuses on match analysis and club context.
Key claims
Ipswich’s first-half reaction after going behind (and after Azor Matasiwa’s injury) was “outstanding” and deserved the win; the second half was flat/slow and became a recurring issue. Atmosphere was “normal,” with no notable away-end disruption despite off-pitch Farage/Mark Ashton concerns. Casey McIntyre’s first Town goal was match-winning and a relief after a goalless run; Ben Johnson scored from an open-play deflection/looping cross; Jacob Greaves impressed defensively.
Notable examples
missed chance saved by Birmingham keeper Beadle; George Hurst’s role in the build-up; Ibrahim Osman’s late threat and a disputed goal-line/out-of-play moment; Christian Walton’s late save; Azor’s “dead leg” and Wes Burns’ late withdrawal. Promotion: Ipswich are second, level on points with Middlesbrough/Millwall, with two games in hand and “favorites” to go up, aiming for 16 points from 21.
Written by AI. May contain mistakes. Listen to the episode to check what was said.
Chapters
Tap a time to open that second in VODiscussion on Haircuts and Personal Anecdotes
1:08 to 2:49
The hosts share personal stories, including haircuts and game day experiences.
“Even good old Peachy, bless him, when I saw him yesterday for game day and I was saying he's growing his beard out and he's getting like greys in his beard.”
AJ's Amsterdam Trip and Dutch Food
2:49 to 4:59
AJ shares his experience in Amsterdam and discusses unique Dutch food.
“It's not like biting into rock hard food.”
Setting the Stage for Football Discussion
4:59 to 5:47
The hosts prepare the audience for a focused discussion on football.
Kieran McKenna's Post-Match Comments
5:47 to 8:19
The hosts discuss Kieran McKenna's insights on the match against Birmingham City.
“thought and get into breaking it all down.”
Atmosphere and Fan Reactions at the Match
8:19 to 10:46
AJ and the hosts analyze the match atmosphere and fan reactions.
“First comeback win on Easter Monday, since the last one on Easter Monday two years ago, the famous Jeremy Samiento moment.”
Casey McIntyre's Performance and Match Highlights
10:46 to 14:01
The hosts highlight Casey McIntyre's standout performance in the match.
“Yeah, I mean, it all happens in the first half, doesn't it?”
Post-Match Reactions
14:01 to 14:48
The hosts discuss the recent match performance and standout players.
“Someone who has taken a lot of flack and has often been kind of referred to as a bit of a scapegoat, perhaps, as we have in football.”
Casey McAteer's Performance Overview
14:49 to 17:07
Analyzing Casey McAteer's contributions, including his goal and overall impact.
“because this was a big, obviously, for the team.”
Kieran McKenna's Insights
17:08 to 20:37
Kieran McKenna shares thoughts on McAteer's goal and his season so far.
“your references there, obviously missing that first opportunity because he, I thought, well, you know, he's really lively in the first half.”
Evaluating George Hurst's Game
20:38 to 23:14
Discussion on George Hurst's performance and public perceptions.
“But first of all, we're going to hear from Kieran McKenna.”
Show all 26 chapters
Other Key Performers in the Match
23:15 to 26:52
Highlighting other players' performances, including Ben Johnson and Jacob Greaves.
“Talk to me about other players you like then, Rossi.”
Analyzing Second Half Struggles
26:53 to 28:00
The discussion focuses on Ipswich's performance issues in the second half.
“I think the one that I would mention in particular would be Jacob Greaves.”
Analyzing Ipswich's Second Half Performance
28:00 to 29:49
The hosts discuss Ipswich's struggles during the second half of their match.
“Ipswich, as all matters, were definite issues there.”
Impact of Key Player Absences
29:50 to 31:36
The discussion shifts to the absence of key players and its impact on the team's performance.
“But yeah, just not a great second half, which has become a running theme.”
Controversial Moments and Refereeing Decisions
31:37 to 34:10
The hosts analyze a controversial refereeing decision during the match that affected Birmingham.
“match fitness because the only game they've played in the last two and a half weeks was a behind closed doors friendly against West Ham.”
Injury Updates and Player Recovery
34:11 to 36:30
The hosts provide updates on player injuries and potential recoveries for upcoming matches.
“Not actually what he said, but essentially saying I haven't seen anything definitive from the angles that I've seen.”
Assessing Squad Depth and Future Matches
36:31 to 38:42
A conversation about squad depth, player performance, and prospects for future matches.
“So do you just want to bring us up to speed on that, AJ?”
Ipswich's Promotion Chances and Season Overview
38:43 to 42:00
The hosts discuss Ipswich's position in the league and their chances for promotion.
“You're a man with clearly a lot of experience of having dead legs.”
Ipswich's Position and Upcoming Challenges
42:00 to 44:48
Discussing Ipswich's current standing in the league and the challenges ahead.
“Again, that's kind of hinging on goal difference, but because they have these two games in hand on Borough and Coventry, they're in a really fantastic position now.”
Predictions and Player Performances
44:48 to 46:31
Examining predictions for upcoming matches and the need for improved performances from players.
“Heathie, you're top of the league with 43 points.”
Ipswich's Strengths and Competitors' Weaknesses
46:31 to 48:51
Analyzing Ipswich's strengths and how competitor teams are faring in the league.
“It's interesting looking at the form, isn't it?”
Kieran McKenna's Press Conference Antics
48:51 to 53:06
Highlighting humorous moments from Kieran McKenna's press conferences and interactions with journalists.
“And that is the makings, the markings, sorry, of a top team.”
Derby Day and Listener Engagement
53:06 to 56:00
Promoting a listener-driven event in Australia and discussing football culture among fans.
“Not quite so adversarial, of course, but something to look out for.”
Reflecting on a Potential League Rivalry
56:00 to 56:28
Discussion about a club's rise and the potential for future competition with Ipswich Town.
“when they're in the championship, and hopefully Town will be in the Premier League.”
Reflecting on a Potential League Rivalry
56:30 to 57:10
Discussion about a club's rise and the potential for future competition with Ipswich Town.
“use the code KOA10 at molecular-uk.com for all their excellent car cleaning products.”
Looking Ahead to Key Matches
57:10 to 57:22
Preview of an upcoming important match for Ipswich Town and social media engagement.
“Friends, Listertown, it's in their own hands, but they've got a really big game this weekend at Norwich to build up to.”
Transcript
Automatic transcript. May contain errors.0:00Ross Halls:Moto Casino, America's social casino. Welcome to Moto Casino, where the excitement never ends. With thousands of the hottest free-to-play social casino games, fastest payouts, and the best promotions in the industry. No tricks or gimmicks. Owned and operated in the USA. Moto Casino is a free-to-play social casino. No purchase necessary. 21 plus to play. Void word prohibited. Sign up today for a generous welcome bonus. Moto Casino, America's social casino. Download the Moto Casino app today.
0:39hello friends and welcome to your tuesday edition of the kings of anglia ipswich town podcast i hope you easterd well i am mark heath i'm joined by my two youngish friends today to reflect on another win for it's rich town the perfect easter present if you like uh two were overdoing yesterday it was hard going a bit of a slog at times but they got the win that's all that matters and now you'd have to say friends looking at the table they are overwhelming favorites to secure that promotion place um two games in hand level on points with borough and millwall it was a very good easter indeed fritzwich town um how was it for you rossi roscoe looking very hairy we've just been talking about your state of play with your hair um you've got a haircut uh penciled in for today the missus has told you've got to keep it long are you going to comply uh my barber also says it looks she likes
1:25Ross Halls:it as well so i don't know i think i've got to just accept um people you know rule my life when it comes to my haircut and beard so i'm just gonna let them do it um i'm getting i'm 30 in july so i'm getting to that that age where i need to just have a set haircut um i don't know i think i'm very lucky i can grow you know a lot of hair you know stew i'm sure he's very when he sees me. Sorry, Steve. Even good old Peachy, bless him, when I saw him yesterday for game day and I was saying he's growing his beard out and he's getting like greys in his beard. And then I was like, hopefully when I get to your age, I'll have a nice little greys as well.
2:10Ross Halls:But then he took all his hat off and went, well, this could be your future as well. Bald head. And I was like, please no. But anyway, we've got a bit of a tangent here. I'm good though as a whole. I also got a nice little bonus. I found some milk away bars. Basically, when we got into the press or when we got our accreditation yesterday, we were given chocolate by the Itchers Town staff and I completely forgot to eat them on the match day. So, nice little bonus. AJ clearly didn't get any chocolate. Did you get some, AJ? No, I didn't. So, this is the second time in this day that I've been mugged off, as we'll come on to later.
2:49yeah that's when you arrive they had like a whole
2:52Ross Halls:tray of chocolates you must have you got there too early yeah this is the problem yeah I don't do a Ross and Shelf about 5 minutes before then again I feel like instead of coming up and spending time with us Ross comes in and then he just goes and sits in his little photographer's cave downstairs instead so they all I mean photographers as a species just like to sit and moan about things that's my that's my experience of photographers so that's maybe what Ross is turning into AJ you were off last week you massive slacker um you're in Amsterdam how was it it was really good as I said to you off record it was nice to hit like one of the four days a year that Amsterdam isn't horrible weather um which was good not too hot not too cold nice and sunny I've been there a million one time so it was good to go again good to go to utrecht um sophie my better half got to do all of her shopping that she wants to do because she loves dutch shops because there's all sort of like little knick-knack stationary kind of things that she loves um if she could move the shops from the netherlands to england she would do it in a heartbeat 100 percent um and i get to have all the food that i love as well oh you know what should i show you one this is a good one actually this is just the weird side of dutch food before we kick off so i've got it to my left here sandwiches right big on sandwiches in the netherlands especially cheese you can't bring cheese back unfortunately as good as it is but what they do do in the netherlands and this is nuts for anyone who's not like even like lived in netherlands it's really odd do you know what they sometimes have on bread chocolate sprinkles that's crazy i mean chocolate's a bread i suppose but actual chocolate sprinkles like that actual Yeah, kind of.
4:39It's not like biting into rock hard food. It's not like that. But yeah, and as someone who grew up on this, especially as a kid, I do need to have like a source in supply or else I will die out, basically. And you really cannot get it in this country. So I have to make sure I go back every once in a while to fill my suitcase with like five boxes and bring them back. And when do you eat these? Like for breakfast or just as a snack? What's going on? whenever whenever you feel like you need them they're there lovely stuff right then friends you're pleased some of you to know that we'll be talking about football today and really nothing other than football having done quite a hardcore pod last week which i'm led to believe i think is the second most listened pod we've done this season only behind the one following the the win over old friends norwich which of course is relevant again this weekend but today is all about football friends big game yesterday great to get back to the football at portman road a big game minutes which Town pulled out the win 2-1 against Birmingham City it was a tough watch at times a bit of a slog at times in the second half but they got the win which sort of matters now at this stage of the season let's hear from Kieran McKenna first of all and then we can we can maybe have an opening thought and get into breaking it all down.
5:49Kieran big win comeback win what did you make of that?
5:53Kieran McKenna:Yeah I think a brilliant win if I'm honest in many ways first comeback win of the season is really important. I think it's been coming, I've said that over the last few weeks and months, every time we've had a setback, our reaction is getting better and better and I think today was the best one because the group took a big body blow in the first half. It was a different first half than I expected, to be honest, in terms of how the opponent came and tried to make the game. So it was hard to get a rhythm, hard to get the ball in play in the first 20 minutes. It was probably about three minutes. So it was difficult, but we were by far the team who wanted to go and take the game on and win the game.
6:37Kieran McKenna:We have a big, big chance to go 1-0 up. Their keeper makes a really good save and they go up the other end and score a really well-taken goal. So that's a big blow at this stage of the season for this group. And the reaction that they found from that moment, Azor going off as well, another big blow. The reaction from there to half-time in the goals that we scored and could have had a couple more before half-time was outstanding for me. That was the key phase of the game and the phase where we deserved the win. We know second half, it didn't pan out how we wanted it to be. We wanted to come out and get on the front foot and take the game to the opponent and try and go for the next goal.
7:16Kieran McKenna:We didn't manage to do that. We'll look at that and learn some lessons of what we could have done better. but on the other hand, there's some big challenges in there. One, from our point of view, we've got a lot of players out there who are probably not quite 90 minutes fit yet, people coming back from injury, important players missing, so that was a big challenge physically. And you have to say an opponent who's got a really good squad bringing on big talent off the bench and playing without consequence in terms of they're just coming on and throwing everything to get something for the game, but it's maybe not going to be absolutely pivotal in their season.
7:54Kieran McKenna:So those factors can make the second half difficult. You get them halves at the end of the season. Apart from a few moments, I thought the players managed it well. So, yeah, we know things we could do better in the second half, but I think the big bit, the reaction in the first half, the performance in general in the first half in a different sort of game, I think thoroughly deserved the win. Okay then, AJ, you kick us off I think two things to start with One is the atmosphere Because clearly given everything that's been going on around the club I don't want to go through all that again That's kind of done now We're drawing a line under that But clearly the first game back There were questions as to what the atmosphere would be like Would there be any kind of fans making points On either side of the debate Would Mark Ashton be there, all that kind of stuff So what was that like And then also, of course in a kind of thing of perfect symmetry.
8:49First comeback win on Easter Monday, since the last one on Easter Monday two years ago, the famous Jeremy Samiento moment. So from a point of view of ticking things off, that's a big one as well. Do you want to tackle those two things? Yeah, start with the atmosphere. I thought it was fine. I thought it was very normal. And I think that Ipswich fans have moved on in a really good way, which is a big positive. You obviously wrote that bit on the Monday morning. back in everyone to unite behind the team. And it felt like that as well. It didn't feel like a weird or different atmosphere. And that was one of the fears that I had with the timing of the Farage fiasco is that you have two whole weeks, barring the women's game, of course, where it can kind of simmer.
9:32And then you come back feeling a little bit weird and a little bit awkward, especially not having had the game on Good Friday. But I think the mood was pretty good. I think it was lifted probably in the match itself by the fact that Millwall had gone and lost in the earlier kickoff at Homes and Norwich. So again, it switches the focus again because you can so easily fall in and out of focus with this promotion race when things go against you and then all of a sudden, oh, hang on, we've got a chance here. If we go win this and then Millwall have lost and then you're piecing it all together again.
10:05So I think that was one thing. I didn't hear any comments from the away end at all, which surprised me. I was so certain that Nigel Farage, he's one of your own, was going to come out of the Birmingham end. We didn't have that one or anything from Birmingham fans surrounding that situation. Mark Ashton was in attendance. There's some nice photos that we got of him. So he was there. And it feels like business as usual, which, look, as we've said, there are still questions and things that we feel need to be answered and addressed more thoroughly. But in the midst of a promotion run-in, the full focus has to be on what Ipswich do on the pitch and it feels like we're at that point, which is really, really positive.
10:45What was the second point again? Remind me. Comeback win. Comeback win. Oh, my God, finally. Yeah, I mean, it all happens in the first half, doesn't it? That's the game in a nutshell is the first 45 minutes, a really tough start to the game, which felt a little bit flat. Crowd dipped a little bit. Ipswich should go ahead. They don't go ahead. Then they go behind. We've seen that story before. And then your heart sinks as well, thinking, well, it's been more than two years since we've seen Ipswich win a game from behind. April 1st, 2024. And this game's April 6th, 2026. And in that time, they've not won a single game from behind.
11:24And you felt that again, coming back to the crowd. You felt it in the crowd. There was a real nervousness. And I don't know whether that impacted the players or whether the players' nervousness impacted the fans. Because for about five minutes after that goal, they looked all over the shop and it took a few minutes to kind of settle down i think dar o'shea played a big part in that and then they hit the comeback um and the way that they did that the way they turned the momentum with the first goal and how that lifted the crowd was absolutely massive um and as kieran mckenna said it's been coming they deserve to have it before now they should have had it at stoke as we all know and there's probably been other opportunities but they've got it now and it's a proper monkey off the back isn't it superb rossi you obviously closer to the fans i suppose you spend a lot of time with your fans um your fans their fans it's which town fans um it's hard it's hard to tell when you're watching off sky and yesterday was one of these ones where they're doing it off tube as they call it where they've got two guys sat in a studio somewhere and it really kills the kind of um what do you call it the ambient sound of the stadium because they're actually there you don't really get it it's really it sounds really muffled so what what was it like in terms of atmosphere and did you see any kind of um kind of fallout from what's happened off pitch?
12:36Ross Halls:Not really. Obviously, it was a lovely, glorious sunshine, a lovely Easter Monday day. You know where it's getting closer to summer and spring is here when, you know, town fans have got shorts on, you know, you can see a blue because people are happy to just wear their shirt instead of, you know, wearing a big coat and, you know, making sure, even me, I didn't wear my famous orange coat, as AJ say. He always calls me the big orange when I turn up for match days. But no, yeah, the atmosphere was just as you were, really. I think everyone was just excited to be back watching football after, you know, international break and, you know, what's gone on.
13:17Ross Halls:But yeah, no murmurs of anything, really. I know we saw a Farage 10 shirt outside. Someone took a picture of it, which was someone very brave. but in terms of the crowd Birmingham fans fair play to them they were loud the Brummies they love their football don't they but yeah it's always strange when you've got it's a Sky game but they're in a studio I know it's probably cheaper for them and it's probably easier for them just being in a studio because then they can go and watch other games but it's nice to actually have a proper TV crew pitch side before the game at half time and stuff like that I know other networks do that don't they but i think itv did that for a game recently for the milwall game i think they were pitch side yeah um but yeah i'm sure they do some of the some of the pundits maybe even presenters they wish they can do that but you know in the studio it's probably easier but uh but no um it was just a lovely lovely day and uh come back with get in there boys um it's been a long time coming i'm pleased by that now then uh come back win uh star of the show i would say and i was doing the ratings yesterday.
14:23Someone who has taken a lot of flack and has often been kind of referred to as a bit of a scapegoat, perhaps, as we have in football. That's the kind of culture around it. Certainly has not hit the heights that we hoped he would do, has not kind of justified that price tag yet. But I thought Casey McIntyre was great yesterday. Best game I've seen him play for Itchwich Town and obviously ends up getting the match-winning goal. Shall we hear from him first and then we can maybe have a little chat around Casey because this was a big, obviously, for the team. Been in that moment for a little while.
14:55Yeah, I mean, you can tell when I celebrated how much it meant to me. I've come close before, but it's never really went my way. So to get one today and obviously be the winner, I'm over the moon with it, yeah. Tidy little finish as well, the end of a good move and you kept your cool? Yeah, I mean, I had a similar one about literally like 10 minutes ago, whatever it was. I should have stuck away. So I was a bit annoyed not to score that. But when the move was building, I got myself into a good position and Hersey slid me through lovely and I don't have too much to think about. I've just slid down and he's a keeper, so I'm really over the moon with it.
15:25You mentioned the earlier chance. That must have been a tough moment because they broke down the other end and it's 1-0 all of a sudden. Yeah, I think I was really annoyed with myself because I'm thinking if I score that chance, that doesn't happen. I take responsibility for obviously not putting it away, but it just shows the character from the boys and we come back straight into the game and we end the first half on top. I think the first half, the whistle goes and we don't really want it to go because we were really on top. but it's football obviously the second half it was a different kind of game they came out and showed their quality and we had to hold on and sometimes in these games you need to show what you're about and that's what we did today Not just the goal you must have been pleased with the overall performance you look very sharp this afternoon Yeah I felt it we had a good break we had a good friendly last week I went to West Ham which obviously kept got some fitness into the boys and needed to play I played quite a lot of minutes in that game so it's good to keep that up and obviously coming into today it was a late call on myself so yeah I was really buzzing to start the game and hopefully I repay people for getting that goal.
16:18How tough has it been when you haven't been scoring? Yeah, it's tough. I mean, every attacker wants to score goals, you know, and when you're not scoring goals, it can feel like I can get on top of you a lot, you know. I'll be the first one to say that I've not hit the heights that I wanted to hit this season. I know that and I can take that when people say that. That's part of being a footballer. But, you know, I've worked hard every day and today it's paid off, yeah. We could really see what that goal meant for your teammates as well. The celebrations were lovely, how much they enjoyed. They were so passionate about it for you.
16:43Yeah, I mean, I was buzzing, they were buzzing and it's nice because I've worked hard tirelessly day in, day out and to get the first one, it's like a big relief for me but I know it's time to get more now, it's not time to stop and think about that, I'll enjoy it today and then tomorrow it's back to the drawing board and we go on to think about Norwich and that's what you can do as footballers and it's obviously going to be a tough game at the weekend that we can all look forward to Okay, so Casey McAteer then your references there, obviously missing that first opportunity because he, I thought, well, you know, he's really lively in the first half.
17:17Obviously he has that huge opportunity, misses it, save whatever. I think McKenna said it was an excellent save from Beadle in the Brum goal. And then literally Birmingham go up the other end and score. And there's a nice bit later on in that same interview where he says that George Hurst came over to him and kind of picked him up. He said his head was down after that and Hurst came over and sort of said, you know, it's on to the next one kind of thing, put that behind you. And then obviously he goes on and scores. It was a beautiful goal, I thought. Lovely bit of play from several players. Wasn't even meant to be starting, though, AJ, Casey McAteer.
17:50This was back-to-back starts, but he wasn't meant to be starting. And he comes in, in my opinion, and tell me if you agree, has his best game in a town shirt. Yeah, first of all, I do agree. Thought this was his best performance in a town shirt, and I think it follows the trajectory that he's been on. I kind of pinpointed the Derby game where he came on and got the assist in that game. and since then when he's been involved it feels like we've had the steady progression Millwall before the international break I thought he was actually really good you look at the way that he was kind of being a direct runner, he won what felt like about 80 odd corners I think it was probably about 4 but he was constantly involved in that side and on another day he wins the corner that leads to an Ipswich goal from a set piece, obviously didn't happen that way but I was really encouraged by that display.
18:41And yeah, he was supposed to be on the bench. He was supposed to be Wes Burns back in. When the team was put to the players over the weekend, it had Wes Burns in it. And then Wes Burns kind of felt something that Ipswich didn't want to risk at all, which you can understand with his record. So Wes dropped out of the squad and Casey comes in and wow, how does that end up working out as well? I mean, it's the brilliant side of fate in the way. And yeah, I thought he was excellent. There was something about his play in general where I've seen kind of a lively side of Casey McAteer before. So the Millwall game was a good example, but there was just something a little bit different.
19:21I can't quite put my finger on what it was, but whenever he got the ball, there was a real kind of spark to him. You saw it with the chance that he ended up missing or that was saved. He gets the ball and you see the confidence So he flicks it over a defender to open up the space. This is someone who I thought his confidence would be on the floor after this season. Yeah, he's flicking the ball over, gets into that little gap in the box and has the shot. I think he should do better with it probably. But yeah, it's a good enough save and he did all the hard work to be let down a little bit by the finish.
19:55But yeah, delighted that he didn't let his head drop after that. The goal that he has, he takes really, really well. The movement and the link-up's good. big credit to George Hurst for his role in this one because he's in a crowded area with a lot of bodies and the way he turns into space and then plays the ball forward for the run of McAteer. Also McAteer to stay on side was excellent. Low finish, 2-1. You could tell, and I know Callum will want me to mention in this, but I also felt that you could feel really around the press box that it was going to be a Casey McAteer game. If he was going to score, if he was ever going to score this season, it felt like it was going to be this one.
20:34And I think everyone's delighted that he's off the mark now. 100%. I'm going to ask you about Casey McIntyre in a second, Ross. But first of all, we're going to hear from Kieran McKenna. You must be delighted for Casey McIntyre to be the match winner as well, because he's had so many opportunities, it just hasn't really fallen for him across the season, and for him to pop up with his first town goal in such a crucial moment, it felt perfect for him.
20:56Kieran McKenna:Yeah, brilliant day for him. Yeah, I don't mind saying Wes was going to start. the game we thought was going to start when we named the team and then he wasn't quite ready in training yesterday so we had to make a late change there and I only say that because it's even more credit to Casey because if you're not fully engaged and if you've not prepared yourself well you're not ready to come in and do the job that he'd done today especially in the first half so a brilliant moment for him I thought he was really unlucky with the one that he ran through as well to be honest I think you have to give big credit to the goalkeeper for the save and yeah for him to come into the team like that and score to win a goal is a great moment for him and another great lesson for the rest of the group.
21:38OK then, Ross, what did you make of McAteer? Because I think now we are seeing why they brought him in. You know, he's very, very similar in terms of qualities to Wes Burns, isn't he? He's got that pace, that directness, that physicality. He's a real athlete, like Wes Burns is. And I thought he was great yesterday. What did you make of him?
21:54Ross Halls:Yeah, he had a pretty good game. Yeah, he always works hard. I think Keira McKenna's team, most of the time, you see players they work really hard um i won't get too carried away though it's just one game i know he's you know he's gradually getting you know better he's you know he has some good games here and there but uh just one game one goal he needs to back this up i think we've said this many times where we're like got too excited with players and then oh they have a bad game or they just go go away for a bit so um but no he really deserved that moment we've been waiting for case mccteer to get his first town goal um you could just see the just the passion in his celebration he was just so happy, relieved.
22:29Ross Halls:And even the town players, you know, McAteer mentioned in the audio we played that even the town players were celebrating it so much. And of course, at the end he did the fist pump at the end there. I think I was on the other end of the pitch, but I asked a few town fans, they gave it a 7 out of 10. It was fine, but it's just a great moment for him. And as I said, he just needs to back it up. But for him, starting games is probably what he needs to do. And that is his second straight start. We just now need to back it up. And a fun little stat I saw, shout out to Statman on Twitter, that Casey McIntyre, his initials, only town player that has Easter in his name.
23:10Ross Halls:So nice little added thing just to link up to Easter. So there we go. Lovely stuff. First goal, first fist bump. Talk to me about other players you like then, Rossi. I was on ratings yesterday, which I'll be honest, I don't really enjoy doing ratings because they are obviously a conversation starter. But it always amazes me how differently people see a game, I suppose, depending on what you're looking for. And yes, Alex can relate. George Hurst yesterday, Ross, I'm interested to get your take on this. I thought he did all right yesterday. I thought he had a pretty good game. I gave him a seven.
23:41In the comments afterwards, people saying he was awful and deserved no more than a five. Other people saying that they thought he was good. So how would you assess George Hurst? Any other players you want to kind of highlight?
23:53Ross Halls:It was fine. I think, once again, he's now a scapegoat in this team. Kexton McIntyre has been a big one, but George Harris, I think, will be. I think because of his number nine, the start of the season with him, well, basically when he played Birmingham, of course, he stepped up to that penalty, happy days, bread and butter and all that. That's what I do. Since then, I don't know, there's just been a bit of a – they've been put on a pedestal and it's – yeah, I don't know. For me, at Portman Road, I can't really see the forwards in the first half because good old Steve Baller, our photographer, captures the action in the second half.
24:29Ross Halls:So I can really say what I saw of George Hurst in the first half from the view I've got. And yeah, once again, he works hard, George. And that is, the thing is with Kieran McKenna strikers, they've got to do a lot of stuff, don't they? A lot of hard work. And sometimes maybe you don't see that because you want him to score gold. Why is it, George? Sometimes his first touch is a bit of a trampoline. but in this game he didn't really have much really to go on really does he it was more out wide Jack Clark of course running with the ball I think he was fine but just a few loose touches here and there but I have a feeling George is going to have a big moment at some stage and he's sending the games I think he's going to be key he's going to have another Barnsley night maybe which would be very nice It would be nice if it was this weekend wouldn't it AJ what did you make of first and give me some names of other players you want to highlight I guess we should also talk of course about Ben Johnson, who was a very unlikely first goal scorer.
25:25Yeah, none of us had that one, that's for sure. I mean, credit to the way that he's taken on these three games out of position in left back. I know he's missed a versatility, but he's hardly played. He's been out of the squad when Ipswich have ever been there. And I think he's been brilliant, all things considered, across the board, the Sheffield Wednesday game where he gets the assist, then against Millwall where he keeps Femi Aziz quiet for pretty much the whole 90 minutes of the game and then in this one where he gets the goal and real credit to him for that because it's a bit of a weird goal where the ball, Birmingham tried to clear a ball it deflects off Casey McAteer ends up at Furlong and Furlong's cross loops brilliantly but it loops over everyone I think it's supposed to be aimed towards George Hurst and it's nowhere near him but no one spots the run of ben johnson because who who the hell expects ben johnson to be in the left side of the penalty box from open play um and he takes it quite well to be fair to him in that in that situation um not the finisher not the finish of a defender i i would say and um yeah beedle's beaten it's neumann who ends up trying to clear off the line but well over the line replay showed it was over the line you get a little hawkeye goal line graphic uh which show how far over it was.
26:48So, yeah, real credit to him. Other stands out. I think the one that I would mention in particular would be Jacob Greaves. I thought was excellent in this game. Headed everything away. Defended really bravely. Had a bit of a point to make, given that Cedric Kipro is back from his suspension as well. He was given the nod to start in this one, but thought he was really, really good. So really impressed with him. Interesting how the little tactical tweaks changed things as well because you can see things in a couple of ways with this one. That's Matasiwa going off, which was a huge blow in the second half, and we'll come on to that.
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27:29But essentially with him off the pitch, I thought Ipswich lost all their composure. But at the same time, with bringing Anis Mometti onto the pitch, I thought that Mometti was kind of the instigator of a lot of what Ipswich wanted to do going forward. And his introduction sparked them into life a little bit with that comeback. So in that five-minute period where they did score the goals and did come back to lead the game and go on to win it, I thought that that change, albeit forced, was perfect and did exactly what was required. At the same time, wow, after the break, Ipswich, as all matters, were definite issues there.
28:06Which sets us up perfectly for the next talking point, which is that second half struggles. We know it's been an issue that Town haven't turned and in a consistent full performance, if you like, for a while. And that was definitely the case after the break here. Ross, what did you make of it watching? Because watching on TV, it was a bit of a struggle. They were very flat, and some players completely vanished in the second half.
28:30Ross Halls:Yeah, I think we need to make a new rule. Halftime, let's not have a halftime, just continue playing. Just crack on, yeah. Yeah, because halftime was annoying because Town had that momentum. They could have gone on to score 3, 4, 5 if they really wanted to. And, yeah, unfortunately, that stopped everything. And then second half, I can't really remember what happened, to be honest, because Matt was really poor for both sides. Birmingham, they, of course, then are trying to find an equaliser, which we'll get on to, I'm sure. But I don't know. This town just lacked urgency, really. I don't know. I think maybe we were just happy with 2-1.
29:08Ross Halls:I think we're just like, OK, you know, Birmingham probably not going to offer anything. thing we can't you know um i don't know just it just felt so just meh i don't know um as you mentioned somebody some players just snackered dan neal bless him he um probably that wasn't in the script probably him playing you know the amount of minutes he played um but also fair play to mckenna so maybe not do a like for like for us all matters he could have brought on jack taylor or jens guzste but he brought him a metty um and of course that changed the game in the first half But second half, yeah, sadly, it's become a bit of a regular occurrence.
29:47Ross Halls:You know, thankfully, we didn't need to worry. You know, Birmingham didn't get that goal, although we get on to. But yeah, just not a great second half, which has become a running theme. Was it for you, AJ, you mentioned there not having Azor in. Obviously, we'll talk about Azor in a bit. Was that the kind of way you saw the problems coming from in the second half or any other reasons? Clearly, there were players playing in spots they wouldn't have anticipated playing before the game. Yeah, I think it's a big part of it. I think that there was a lot of times where Ipswich players essentially were looking to him and he wasn't there because he's the only player.
30:23I know that Daniel has a lot of similarities and being without Azor doesn't feel as big a blow as it would have been four or five months ago. but there's no one like him so when Ipswich players look for him to do the things he does and he's not there it's quite a culture shock for them so given that I think the biggest problem then was ball retention because they struggled to win back the ball and when they did get the ball back actually holding it was really difficult and that's what Matasiva is so good at and protecting the back line those kind of very seamless tackles where he doesn't even get short sturdy with the way that he comes in or all of those things that um ipsuch really lacked in that second half so being without him was a big blow um at the same time it wasn't just down to that because they did get into good areas and essentially just weren't good enough they were too slow decision making was poor i think it was a tired group and you could sense that the second half for me broke down into one team that was pushing, but ultimately have nothing to play for and are not a very good team in Birmingham.
31:33You've seen that with the results and where they are on the table. And an Ipswich team that have no match fitness because the only game they've played in the last two and a half weeks was a behind closed doors friendly against West Ham. So there's the difference there. Birmingham had gone and played that 90 minutes against Blackburn on Good Friday. Town don't have the same kind of freshness and you could see that one team was getting a bit of a second wind and the changes also impacted that. I thought that Ibrahim Osman coming on was a huge game changer for Birmingham. The pace he had, the way he hits a ball probably could have on another day had a brace, to be perfectly honest.
32:11He was the real outlet. And Ipswich didn't have the same kind of feeling about them because the starters were tired for playing more than an hour 70-80 then towards 90 minutes and the substitutes who came on also didn't have that freshness because they just haven't been playing. Yeah, Ross, the elephant in the room there, AJ's just mentioned, Osman, and Birmingham should have had an equaliser, shouldn't they? I mean, Chris Davies came out after the game and said it was scandalous, absolutely scandalous decision. We scored a legitimate goal, and I have yet to see an angle of replay which conclusively says that ball was out of play.
32:47Did you get a look at this? Have you seen it since? What do you make of it?
32:50Ross Halls:Yeah, I was right in front of it, and I want to give a shout-out though to Osmond because I was really impressed by him because I was basically in his line the whole second half and I was like, who's this lad? It's just town. Sign him up. It was really good and I was right in front of that moment and obviously I was a bit deflated when the goal went in and then when the ref decided no goal, I was like, okay. That's fine. That ball was not over the line but okay. and sometimes you need to get the rub of the greens especially with some of our refereeing decisions in recent well this season as a whole I'll take that but I can understand Birmingham's frustrations and their manager because they were really on the up weren't they they really were threatening to get an equaliser but yeah we've got goal line technology but we haven't obviously got goal line you know that's not in the golf so yeah once again the lino wouldn't be able to see it so it would have been the ref's decision and you know what it's happened move on whatever what did McKenna say about it afterwards AJ it was something along the lines of he's not going to lose any sleep over it I mean Ross makes a good point there in terms of things that have gone against town so far this season yeah I think McKenna didn't do it I haven't seen it he said I've been shown some images which I think he kind of said can be seen either way which to me said he's been shown like two photos which show it was in reading behind the lines or sorry between the lines and I think the kind of the feeling was yeah probably should have been a goal but at the end of the day we've been mugged off with enough of these decisions over the last few weeks that I'm not going to be shedding any tears over Birmingham not having this one.
34:50Not actually what he said, but essentially saying I haven't seen anything definitive from the angles that I've seen. But yeah, not losing any sleep was the term that Kieran McKenna used. Two sides of it for me. One, I think that, again, I don't care because it's actually been robbed enough times with poor decisions if you think that, look at the position they're in now. In another world, they should be four points clear of where they are now, and they get two extra points against both Leicester and Stoke, but they don't. On the other side, it again shows that we need better levels of officiating in some ways, but also in technology.
35:30It shouldn't just be in the Premier League. And I'm not going to say, no, let's get VAR in or anything like that. But when there's millions and millions of pounds on the line for these clubs and you have these kind of decisions going against teams, the levels both of officials and of technology need to be significantly better. Also, just to mention second half, obviously Christian Walton makes a really good save towards the end of the game. Was that again from Osman? I can't remember. I can't remember who it was. It was Osman, yeah. And he got his fingertips to it and he pushed it against the post.
36:03Great save from Walton. And O'Shea on the rebound as that one as well, I should say. Try and get the rebound in and O'Shea makes a really big block to deny that. That was a really big moment. Yeah, I know Ross wants to sign Ibrahim Hilsman now, but I don't want any more left-wingers, thanks. He is really good, though, but no more dribbly left-wingers. Never say never, especially if they go up. Anyway, injuries. Obviously, clearly post-match a conversation. We've already touched on Azor getting injured. Ivan Azor wasn't even in the squad. Wes Burns was meant to be starting. He couldn't play. So do you just want to bring us up to speed on that, AJ?
36:39Then we can maybe have a little bit of a chat around, particularly Matasiba and what a blow that would be. Yeah, I mean, the hope with Azor is that it's not going to be that bad would be the real hope with this one because he went down in the first half and then tried to play on. I think he initially went down kind of around 15 minutes, I think. I thought it was a Connor Chaplin tactical move. And then I kind of thought, would Azor be the one you'd put into that situation? He played on and looked absolutely fine, but then ended up coming off. was really out of the blue the way he was withdrawn.
37:15I really didn't think it was going to happen, but he looked okay. Kieran McKenna's confirmed it's a dead leg. I don't know much about dead legs, but Ross informs me that he's had one after a lot of five-a-side, so that suggests to me that he'll be good and ready to go for Norwich. No, probably doesn't, but we'll have to see. There's every chance I'd say that he features and starts in that game. We'll see how he recovers and get an update from Kieran McKenna on Thursday. We imagine the press conference will be, even as on had a calf issue that kept him out of this one. He picked this one up during the international break.
37:48I've heard some suggestions that might have been during that West Ham friendly, but I'm not too sure. Either way, it happened in the last couple of weeks while the others were off on international duty. Not available against Birmingham and Kieran's liners. We don't know for the other games coming up yet, which suggests to me that I don't think he's going to feature against Norwich and we'll have to see beyond that one. And Wes Burns again was close, had a little setback was what Kieran said. And again, we'll be assessed over the next few days to see whether he can play a part against Norwich. But when you look at all of the areas, you think about how Casey stepped in for Wes Burns, you think about how George Hurst, I would agree, I thought was some aspects that frustrated me, but some bits I really liked of his game.
38:33The big concern is going to be Azor Matasiwa because he is so much to Ipswich Town and you saw that in the second half when he didn't play. Go on then, Ross. You're a man with clearly a lot of experience of having dead legs. Do you reckon Azor is going to be able to play Saturday?
38:49Ross Halls:Yeah, he's a beast. I think with a bit of recovery and all the stuff he's got, physios and that, you'll be fine. Yeah, there's just one five-a-side session, sorry, I don't know why I'm going to this, where I got hit. I don't know, I got hit and I was like, oh, it took me a while and you're sort of limping. It is difficult to play on. Um, so he tried his best. Um, and thankfully he was able to walk on his own, but sometimes you just can't shake off. But, um, I think he'll be fine. Uh, famous last words, but he should be fine. Uh, by the way, Heathie, just for the viewers, the subscribers, can you just central yourself a bit more?
39:27Ross Halls:Can you like move your camera? Can you like try to, could you like, do you know what it is? Cause I'm, I'm sick. I like to move around a lot. I can't really sit still. Um, and now in this new kind of look that we're doing, look, it's basically a square. it really it really it really highlights the fact how much i moved during podcasts yeah um so yeah i apologize ross from the the aesthetics um that's clearly triggered you and i apologize speaking of being triggered if you had any you just mentioned red mist have you had any more uh red mist on the old five-a-side pitch no i've been fine i've been fine um some people were surprised by that they were going i can't believe you would that's not you roscoe you're you know chilled laid-back lad but when i crossed that um those cages when i get into those cages i'm a different animal sometimes especially if uh something happens liam from crew actually i could have could have killed liam from crew the other week because um we were battling he normally stays in goal but for this session he came out and um he was like batting with me with a ball and i'm you know a bit of a slippery you know winger so i got got past him but what happened is my balance went a bit he pushed me and i went into the cage i hit my head on the wall and uh yeah it was one of those where i got up quickly but i stayed calm i think i realized it's liam from crew and i you know he's gave me a lot of lifts i was like i can't can't get angry but from with liam so um but no um there was no session yesterday because of course we had a game um but i'm gonna be heading to the the cages on thursday for father's side and uh nah i think i'll be fine don't bite the hand that feeds you in this case the hand that drives you uh okay then um final final talking point then today state of play as it is um looking very good for town aj couldn't have been better in terms of results over over the weekend they're now in second place borough and millwall obviously level on points but um town have two games in hand and if you look at it now you'd have to say that town are favorites to go up it's in their hands i think they need 16 points to to go up so 16 points from 21 which i suppose is what five wins in a draw that still sounds quite a lot from from seven games but the fact is it's in their hands yeah it is um trying to think about the the numbers behind this one essentially they've got goal difference depending they've got a cushion now which would allow them if they lose two games in the next seven, they would still be able to mathematically ensure that they're promoted to the Premier League.
42:00Again, that's kind of hinging on goal difference, but because they have these two games in hand on Borough and Coventry, they're in a really fantastic position now. And who would have thought this as recently as last Thursday? Because the results, you say, couldn't have gone much better. Yeah, maybe it would have been ideal if Borough and Millwall ended in the draw and maybe Borough had lost last night. But you end up with a situation where Borough have only picked up one point over Easter weekend and Emil will get three by losing to Norwich yesterday. Thank you very much, Canaries. That's a nice helping hand.
42:33And yeah, having that is really important because the running's tough. It's really difficult. So yeah, I think, what was the term you used at the start of the pub? Was it like overwhelming favourites to promotion? I'm not quite sure I'm buying into it. I think the bookies have bought into it. I haven't checked the odds, but I think the Ipswich will be with the bookies. very heavy favourites now to go and win promotion. You see a lot of Middlesbrough and Millwall, especially Middlesbrough, fans saying, well, that's it now. Might as well see who we're playing in the playoffs, which we'll go and do this again.
43:02Not quite sure, but there's definitely an opportunity there to go and grab it. That Middlesbrough game in particular looks mouth-watering and an opportunity where if town can go and win that to put clear daylight with a game in hand on Borough, if they can go and do that. tough games in there. Obviously, Saturday, going to Park won't be easy. Going to West Brom, given their situation, won't be easy. Saints, an ultimate game, albeit that's going to come after their FA Cup semi-final. That won't be easy. Ipswich, in my eyes, have the hardest running, but they have that buffer. They have that cushion now.
43:40So that puts them in a really good spot, and they can afford, although we don't want them to, we can afford them to drop some points, but they're also going to have to up their performance levels. because if they play like they did yesterday, especially in the second half, say against Norwich, they will lose. So, yeah, we're going to need to see some more, but this is a chance for them to really put their foot down and establish themselves in second place. How are you feeling about things, Ross, as we see here with seven games less for town and in a good position? And also, of course, speaking about another league table, a little resurgence from Ross in the predictions league.
44:13I don't know if you've got the standings to hand, but once again, I think it's two games in a row
44:18Ross Halls:you've got the score exactly bob on so you're on a row but uh um because i don't think i got i don't think anyone i thought you got millwall did you not no i think i predicted a draw but i think was it you that got one one or no aj got one one aj got one one i went that's right yeah yeah um but yeah we'll start with that because yeah it's second and you know doing well but prediction bang on, ladies and gentlemen. Total charge is on. Heathie, you're top of the league with 43 points. Nice little buffer there yourself. AJ with 39 points. Stu with 38 on 34, which seems a long way from you. Nine points, but I was further down the way, but getting four points has shot me up a little bit.
45:08Ross Halls:So Stu, I'm breathing down his neck. AJ. so if I get prediction bang on this weekend against Norwich first goal scorer in the prediction as a whole always back in the game baby back in there but Kieran McKenna's men it's in their hands and I think they're going to do it you know I think they're going to do it I know we've got some tough games but surely you know the form they're in at the moment they've not even been planned that well yeah technically against Birmingham 2-1 win they didn't play that great, really. And they got the win. And there's been other games like that where you're like, oh, three points, got the win.
45:48Ross Halls:You know, happy days. But these next seven games, they're going to be big. You know, they've got to turn up against Norwich because last time we went to Coward Road, they didn't. In fact, that didn't really matter in the end. Obviously, you know, winning a derby is always great, but in the end it didn't matter because we got promoted anyway. But yeah, the Borough game, as AJ mentioned, and that is going to be massive. I think that is actually going to be the decider in a way because if we beat them, surely that's ours now. That's ours to finish second. So I'm very confident right now, but they need to be playing better and I think they will.
46:26Ross Halls:And I think there's going to be certain players that are going to have moments. So yeah, bring on the next seven games. It's going to be exciting. Looking forward to it. It's interesting looking at the form, isn't it? Where you see Town, despite the fact that they haven't been playing very well. And I can't really think of the last time where I've come away from an Ipswich performance thought, yeah, that was really good. Maybe the Swansea game, but they're unbeaten in eight games now. And you look at Borough, winless in five, beaten at home by Charlton. Frustrated, yes, they could have easily lost that game.
46:57Frustrated by Bristol City and Blackburn. Yeah, they've got quite a kind running in a lot of ways. They host Pompey, but Pompey have a lot to play for. They don't want to go down. and you'd imagine we'll sit deep and try and frustrate on Saturday. And that is the one thing that the borough just cannot handle. They're still going to host Sheffield Wednesday. It feels like a bit of a gimme, but then Sheffield Wednesday went and drew Leicester yesterday, which all went down well in the Heath household. Watford, and they've still got to go to Wrexham as well on final day, which is a really difficult game by the looks of things.
47:27Millwall lost two of their last five now. They're in better shape, but even then when they kind of slip up and have a poor performance, They lose. They lost to Blackburn. Yeah, okay. It was an unfair red card. They lost to Norwich, but they deserve to lose to Norwich. And again, a kind of run in them what Ipswich have. They've got to host QPR, go to Stoke, go to Leicester, host Oxford. But West Brom on Friday is a really difficult game. And then there are also the final two games they've got are against teams who are going to be scrapping for their lives massively to try and get those points in Leicester and Oxford.
48:03So factoring all of that in, It feels like Ipswich are in a good spot. They've got teams as well that will come up. You would hope that, for example, Charlton, by the time that Ipswich go to Charlton, Charlton will be mathematically safe. What are Charlton going to have to play for? Hopefully nothing. You would hope the same with West Brom by the time that Ipswich go to West Brom. By the time that Ipswich go to Southampton, maybe Southampton's automatic hopes would have been totally dashed and they'll be comfortable in the playoffs. They'll be a bit shattered after their FA Cup semi-final against Man City.
48:30They host QPR on final day and that's a game where, again, QPR hopefully will have nothing to play for. You'd imagine that their season's done already, you'd say. So factoring all of those things in, it is daunting, but yeah, they're in the best shape. And unlike the other teams, when Ipswich don't play well, they still get results. And that is the makings, the markings, sorry, of a top team. Absolutely. Okay, right, next then. It's only Norwich away, isn't it, bloody hell? Big game. couldn't be bigger actually at this stage of the season and they will be absolutely frothing at the gills to stick a spanner in the works for its switch town and obviously they're in very, very, very good form as well.
49:12Before we get to the actual game, and clearly we're going to talk about that in Grotesque later in the week, AJ, you asked a question to McKenna about this yesterday and not for the first time, you'd have to bring people up to speed on this. He mugged you off, old friend. Shall we hear it? Final one from me. Nice to have a full week now to focus on what is quite a significant game for a lot of fans going into Saturday, Norwich on the weekend.
49:36Kieran McKenna:I don't know if this counts. Does Monday to Saturday morning count as a full week? You must have a short working week at the East Anglian Times. A full week for me is not Monday evening to Saturday morning. It's nice to have a few days to prepare the game. It's East Anglian Daily Times. Get with the brand, Kieran. Exactly. AJ, it brings up speed then because this is becoming a bit of a recurrent theme Yeah I've had it a few times I've had different instances that happened at Kieran McKenna press conferences there was a time that he got interrupted by his own Apple Watch answering one of my questions I enjoyed that one there was a time I got very brutally shut down when asking about why Marcelino Nunez played on during the Leicester game, which was fair I thought it was a fair question to ask me I think I got a fair response but definitely shut down any questions about that one.
50:32I put Kieran at one point that... I essentially asked, how has it been preparing for these games where teams have made very drastic changes, such as dropping the pot like Swansea did or Watford playing a back five? And he basically said, well, I hope that our preparations are a bit better than yours. Fair enough. Thank you, Kieran. And then this one, again, this week. I knew it was coming because as I asked it, I saw his face kind of shrivel up. And I knew he was going to say something. And yeah, that was the one he came out with. Got the name of the paper wrong, but we'll allow it for this one.
51:15Yeah, I mean, he's got a fair point. Look, I still think it's longer than you'd usually get if it was a Tuesday night. And it's longer than you'd get if you're Millwall playing on a Friday night. You've got time, Kieran. I'm sure he was sat down with a A nice glass of red watching four hours of Y Scout clips of Norwich from the Millwall game. He'll be prepared. He's got time. But he does like mugging me off, that is for sure. And I think, AJ, I mean, taking people behind the scenes, there was an incident a few weeks ago, wasn't there, where you essentially turfed him out of his own meeting. Yeah, kind of.
51:50So in the press conference, the press conference also doubles up as the place where the players and staff do a lot of their meetings. And we get to work in there for a little bit until we essentially get kicked out after the game. It's me and Phil from TWTD working in there after the pre... It might have been Sheffield Wednesday press conference, I think. And usually, some member of Academy staff will come and say, oh, sorry, we need the room. This time, Kieran just burst through the doors, kind of trailed by about five members of his coaching staff. They were about to do a tactical kind of session, I believe, looking ahead to the game.
52:28He then realised that we were in there, to which he said, bloody hell, what are you guys still doing here so long after the press conference? And then as we were about to get up and move, he got all of his coaching staff together and just said, no, no, no, we'll go find another room, it's okay. And we're trying to say, no, it's okay, Kieran. You can prepare for the game in here. But he wasn't having any of it and off he went to go and find another room. Hopefully that went okay. I think it was before Shovel Wednesday, so at least they went on to win that game. But yeah, maybe that still lingers in the back of his mind.
52:57And every time I ask something, he's thinking of how to mug me off in return. Yeah, well, friends, exciting. He stews off this week, half term, innit? So there will be another round to look forward to of AJ versus McKenna. Not quite so adversarial, of course, but something to look out for. Thursday's press is obviously light. It's very light-hearted. We should say that. How will Kieran mug AJ off this week? I'm sure there will be something. I don't know what it will be, but I'm sure that he'll have something up his sleeve for me. Ross looks like he wants to say something. You unmuted yourself.
53:34Ross Halls:No, I just remember back in the day, it was Mick McCarthy versus Stuart Watson. Now, that was adversarial back in the day. Facebook Lives and yeah, it was just like, oh, what's going to happen this week? And even Paul Lambert era as well. Obviously, once upon a time, Paul Lambert called Stu Steve. yeah famously well that's that's that's one of the best things he called him let's be honest various various other things he called him but yeah this is much more gentle i always remember mccarthy with that bloody water bottle you remember whenever it was stew's turn to ask questions he'd immediately grab a water bottle and throttle it before stew asked any questions it was like um like he was getting his frustration out before it even started that was that was pay-per-view tv back in the day wasn't it fantastic uh right then friends that brings us towards the end of this podcast uh have you either of you got any other business you want to raise you want to talk about in this in this sphere in this virtual chat room rossi if you look like you're thinking about something uh no i was thinking about something but no i don't think it's needed so um no business for me good um i have something i need to mention because um we've been meant we've been uh contacted by a guy called connor willgrove on on social media who i think lives in australia and he wanted us to highlight ahead of the derby game this weekend.
54:50There is a derby down under in Brisbane. It's Ipswich versus Norwich fans walking football match. Sort of football I can probably play now. Now I've retired from the game itself. It's on Sunday, the 12th of April at the Albion Sports Centre in Burdett Street in Brisbane. Kicks off at 11.30. So I know we've got quite a lot of people who listen to us in Australia. if that's the sort of thing you want to get involved in. You're around the Brisbane area. There we go. A chance to have a proper Derby day down under. AJ, anything from you? I'd love to go to Australia, but I'm worried that I would get eaten by a spider or something like that.
55:28But it definitely is on my list. You know what? I'll say it's very, very random, but I'll also say congrats to Lincoln City. I went to uni at Lincoln, and that's another story. The fact that they got promoted up to the championship about a decade on from being in non-league. Of course, as I've been familiar with, I think it was in non-league, wasn't it, when they played in Sipcich and then knocked Sipcich out of the cup and then won many a game against Sipcich in League One as well, or at least a handful. So, yes, I do not want to be heading to Sinselbank next season when they're in the championship, and hopefully Town will be in the Premier League.
56:02But it's a hell of a story and delighted for them, a club that I have followed due to uni. and yeah, really happy for them. Yeah, incredible, isn't it? All those years ago, as you say, beating town in the FA Cup live on national TV as a non-league side and now potentially, hopefully not, potentially could be in the same league as them again in the championship next season. Friends, that brings us to the end of this podcast. It's been a nice, concise 55 minutes and counting thus far. Just remind us of our sponsors, if you could, use the code KOA10 at molecular-uk.com for all their excellent car cleaning products.
56:36I keep saying the Banana Dine is genuinely life-changing if you'd like to have a clean car. the interior of it get yourself some of that but everything else i've used of theirs has been been sensational as well so if you do feel able to support them that'd be great local company supporting this pod i'm supporting them that'd be great uh also remind supporters in terms of our social medias follow us on social media across um tick tock we still on tick tock yes tick tock uh youtube x slash twitter facebook and instagram kings of anglia and if you could leave us a five story on itunes again just helps lift us visibility wise in the charts and helps more people find us Friends, Listertown, it's in their own hands, but they've got a really big game this weekend at Norwich to build up to.
57:17Obviously, we'll be back later on this week to do just that. Have a great week until we speak again and we'll speak to you next time.
57:49Thank you.
58:15Thank you.
59:00Ross Halls:10 hours on my feet, traffic, noise, everybody needing something from me. My head is spinning. I just need the world to stop for one second. But then I get home, shoes off, phone out, and I open Modo Casino. Hundreds of slots, classic table games. It's my instant reset. The variety I want and the quiet I need. Modo Casino. The social casino. We're prohibited. No purchase necessary. Visit Modo.us for more details. Download the Modo Casino app today. Must be 21 plus.
59:25Kieran McKenna:Modo Casino. America's social casino.
From the publisher
Mark Heath is joined by Alex Jones and Ross Halls to reflect on Ipswich Town’s 2-1 win over Birmingham City.
The boys discuss Town’s long-awaited comeback victory, praise match-winner Kasey McAteer and hear from both him and Kieran McKenna.
We consider Town’s second half struggles too, plus Birmingham’s disallowed goal, and injuries to Azor Matusiwa and Ivan Azon.
We finish with a look at the state of play - which looks very good for Town - and AJ gets mugged off (again) by McKenna.
Kings of Anglia is sponsored Molecular! Get 10% OFF with promo code KOA10 at https://www.molecular-uk.com/
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