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Thought he had a very good game yesterday. I must admit when Walton got injured I was concerned whether Hladky was up to the job of covering for him but if he continues to show the form he did against QPR then imo Walton is going to have a job to get his place back in the side.

For me he’s been our stand out player so far this season and each game has made at least one crucial save to keep us in the game and yesterday was no exception when he saved that 40yd lob in his top right corner after the Rangers player tried to catch him off his line. Like you I thought we’d struggle a little with Christian Walton injured for a while but clearly this hasn’t been the case.

It’s pretty clear to me that Kieron McKenna has recruited himself some exceptional coaching staff which is benefiting the players in every area of the squad.

When we signed Hladky he was a top keeper at that level, Golden Glove winner, record number of clean sheets, really competent with ball at feet etc etc. In true Ipswich tradition as soon as the guy had a couple of dodgy moments a certain element of the fan base jump on him and make his job 50 times harder with unnecessary extra pressure.

I had no concern with Waltons injury meaning Hladky had to step up because for me he has always been every bit as good, in fact there were times last season when we were doing the stupid rotation thing that I actually Said it was Walton that possibly needed to be rested.

This is why we have back-up keepers, really nice to see him get his chance now.

It seems he got a touch when both posts were hit so great save, I thought when Walton had a poor spell last season Hladky should have been given a chance but obviously KMc didn't.

Yes everyone was stating how lucky we were with the one that hit both posts but as you say in fact it was another brilliant save that none of us noticed at the time.

Mauswara wrote: ↑

Sun Aug 20, 2023 10:24 am

This is why we have back-up keepers, really nice to see him get his chance now.

To be honest we’re as well off for keepers now as I can ever recall.

What's he like under crosses and commanding his area? Whenever I've seen him, he looks like he's as good a shotstopper as you get, but a little skittish and not great at commanding area and dealing with crosses. Hope once settled and confident, that won't be an issue, but if teams cotton on to something like that which you struggle with, they can really target it and make your life a misery.

Vaclav is an able deputy with or without Walton. Now the latter is on injury roster Hladky really has a chance to further prove himself. Maybe he's not recognized as our #1 but yesterday at least showed why he's proved a valuable asset over time.

He's not without flaw, no goalkeeper is, but having such a competent team around him right now must inspire a certain amount of confidence. The Slicker kid we brought in maybe won't feature as much as some would envisage and there's another back-up name we possess can't quite recall right now. It isn't Hayes.

On subject of keepers, People talked down Bialkowski as a poor team member or unreliable and that may (have) been true on occasion but you can't dismiss the name put in a number of match winning performances and for a time at least, was one of the true stars of the squad. Not sure if still with Millwall, they conceded three earlier to 'some opposition' but somehow seems doubtful Bialkowski would have been involved there.

Ricco wrote: ↑

Sun Aug 20, 2023 4:38 pm

What's he like under crosses and commanding his area? Whenever I've seen him, he looks like he's as good a shotstopper as you get, but a little skittish and not great at commanding area and dealing with crosses. Hope once settled and confident, that won't be an issue, but if teams cotton on to something like that which you struggle with, they can really target it and make your life a misery.

His handling and collecting of crosses etc have been impeccable so far, Walton wasn't without flaws in that department for sure.

Bluemike wrote: ↑

Sun Aug 20, 2023 6:06 pm

Ricco wrote: ↑

Sun Aug 20, 2023 4:38 pm

What's he like under crosses and commanding his area? Whenever I've seen him, he looks like he's as good a shotstopper as you get, but a little skittish and not great at commanding area and dealing with crosses. Hope once settled and confident, that won't be an issue, but if teams cotton on to something like that which you struggle with, they can really target it and make your life a misery.

His handling and collecting of crosses etc have been impeccable so far, Walton wasn't without flaws in that department for sure.

Excellent, that's great to hear, long may it all continue.