Ipswich Town v Brentford
Saturday 9th April 2016 – 15:00
Portman Road
Opening Thought – Jamma
Another opportunity missed, another 2 points behind the top six, and another season in the Championship in prospect. After the Blues’ latest lacklustre showing, this time against a spirited Charlton, can we finally wave goodbye to our play-off hopes? Looking at the seven-point gap to Derby in 6th, the answer would appear to be a resounding ‘yes’. Even Mick McCarthy admitted in his post-match comments that it would now require an extraordinary effort, which would most likely involve beating the Rams on the final day. Interestingly, the manager also seemed to drop the latest hint of his frustration over the limitations he is working under. He said that he was delighted to be able to welcome Teddy Bishop and David McGoldrick back into the fold. But he went on to imply that he would have preferred not to have had to throw them back in quite so quickly, pointing out that they weren’t ready for any more than a cameo role. It was as if he was sending out a subliminal message to supporters and Marcus Evans: ‘I’m doing my best here, trying to pick the creative players everybody’s clamouring for, but in an ideal world I would be able to call upon other options’. With all the speculation surrounding the Aston Villa vacancy, could the wily McCarthy be issuing a cleverly timed appeal for support, from owner and supporters alike?
Mick has remained consistent in his assertion that he has been backed sufficiently by Evans in the transfer market. But his insistence that he ‘wouldn’t be able to find anyone better than my players’ is starting to sound a bit hollow. The concern amongst Tractor Boys and Girls back in January was that we hadn’t invested enough in the squad to sustain our momentum through until the end of the campaign. Our results in 2016 would certainly back this up, as Town have won just five of sixteen matches in all competitions and failed to win back-to-back games. Comparing our trajectory with the resurgent Sheffield Wednesday provides a good illustration of how rapidly we have fallen behind our rivals. Going in to our game at Bolton a month ago, we were poised nicely just outside the play-offs, a point behind sixth-place Wednesday and with a game in hand. But three wins out of four have seen the Owls soar to the lofty heights of an eight-point cushion over us, whilst eating up the game in hand. In the same period, Ipswich have won just one out of six. It is difficult to put your finger on just why our progress has stalled so spectacularly. Maybe the players have simply reached the limit of their capabilities, having overachieved in 2014/15, or could the team be feeling the double-edged pressure of raised expectations, from both inside and outside the club, and the heightened demands from supporters? I also can’t help but wonder whether the fortunes of a certain other East Anglian club could have a bearing on things. I don’t think it’s just me who could sense a lighter mood amongst the Blue Army while the Canaries were seemingly plummeting back towards the Championship. Now that our feathered friends have given themselves a decent chance of survival, though, the atmosphere at Portman Road has taken a turn for the worse again, with the realisation that we are likely to spend at least another season casting an envious eye up the A140. Perhaps now, when the weight of expectation has been lifted, we will see a performance with the shackles taken off…
The Opposition – Brentford
Founded on 10 October 1889, at the Oxford and Cambridge Hotel in Brentford, where a meeting was held, between the members of the Brentford Rowing Club, to decide between association football or rugby union, to serve as a winter pursuit for the rowing club and its members. As a result of a vote, by 8 votes to 5, taken 6 days later, association football was successful as the sport to partake in.
The football club started out playing its home matches at the Clifden House Ground in Brentford, from November 1889 to March 1892.
In October 1892, Benn's Field in Little Ealing was the club's new home. The football club decided to move nearer to Brentford and in December 1894 they moved to Shotter's and stayed there until April 1898. Due to high rent increases, the club were once again forced to move on, so in September 1898 the club moved to the Cross Roads Ground, in Little Ealing, and this was used until April 1900.
As the club grew, Boston Park Cricket Ground, in York Road, Brentford, was then used from September 1900 to April 1904. Finally, in January 1904, the club agreed a 21-year lease on an orchard. The clearance of the orchard, over 200 trees, and the levelling of the land took several months. Griffin Park, as it became known, was now ready for use as a football ground after banking was raised along three sides of the ground and an enclosure, moved from their previous ground, was erected.
In 1920, Brentford became a founder member of the Third Division South. During the late 1920s and 1930s, the club began to make real progress. In the 1929–30 season, the side won all 21 of its home matches in the Third Division South, but still missed out on promotion. They are the last of six teams in English football to amass a perfect home record, and the only one to do so over a season of 42 matches or more. After several more near-misses, promotion to the Second Division was finally achieved in 1932–33.
Two years later, Brentford reached the First Division and finished 5th in their debut season, which is still the club's highest ever league finish.
The club was relegated in the first season after the War, and a downward spiral set in, culminating in relegation to the Third Division in 1953–54 and the Fourth Division in 1961–62. In the process, Brentford became the first team to play the other ninety-one clubs in league football.
The survival of Brentford FC was threatened by a projected takeover by Queens Park Rangers in the late 1960s, a bid that was only narrowly averted with an emergency loan of £104,000.
The club continued to yo-yo between the third and fourth divisions during the next three decades. The club won promotion in 1962–63, 1971–72 and 1977–78 but only on the final occasion was it able to consolidate its place in English football's third tier.
After a 45-year absence, Brentford were promoted back to the Second Division (renamed the First Division with the advent of the Premier League in 1992) in the 1991–92 season, as Third Division champions, though they were relegated again the following year.
There followed several seasons of the club narrowly missing out on promotion via the play-offs.
The club were then relegated to the Third Division (by then the bottom division of the Football League) the following year. Brentford won promotion as champions again in 1998–99.
Former BBC Director-General and Bees fan Greg Dyke was announced as chairman of Brentford on 20 January 2006 as part of the takeover by Bees United, the Brentford Supporters Trust.
Brentford were relegated to Football League Two in April 2007.
On 25 April 2009, Brentford sealed the League Two championship under the management of former player Andy Scott. Scott's excellent first calendar year in charge was recognised with an award, the BBC London 'Manager of the Year 2008'. Scott was also awarded the League Two Manager of the Month award for April/May 2009.
At the end of the 2011/12 season, in which the Club finished 9th in League One, missing out on the play-offs by 6 points, the club's supporters voted to sell the entire club's shareholding to supporter-investor Matthew Benham.
The 2012–13 season saw Brentford go on an FA Cup run, taking holders Chelsea to a fourth round replay, and mount a promotion challenge, missing out on automatic promotion on the final day of the season before losing the play-off final to Yeovil Town.
On 25 June 2013, Cliff Crown was elected Chairman of Brentford Football Club.
On 18 April 2014, Brentford were promoted to the Championship after they beat Preston 1–0 at Griffin Park in front of 10,774 people, sparking a pitch invasion. This meant The Bees' return to the second tier after a 21-year absence.
Last season, they impressed and finished one place ahead of Town in the final table, in 5th, before being knocked out in the play-off semi- finals by Middlesbrough.
One To Watch – Alan Judge
My most vivid memory of the opening day at Griffin Park – besides the stoppage-time capitulation – is of the torrid time that Alan Judge gave Josh Emmanuel and Jonas Knudsen down the flanks. After his proposed January transfer never materialised, he is most definitely still the Bees’ one to watch.
Judge was a teammate of Jonathan Douglas as the Bees took the Championship by storm last term and, like his fellow Irishman, started his professional career at Blackburn. However, that is about where the similarities end, as, to my knowledge, the under-fire Douglas has never been referred to as ‘the Irish Messi’.
The winger joined Rovers’ academy as a 17-year-old, turning professional shortly after. He made his First Team debut against Grimsby in the League Cup at the start of 2008/09, before spending the majority of the following two seasons out on loan, first at Plymouth and then at Notts County. Judge impressed at Meadow Lane sufficiently to earn a permanent contract (and the ‘Messi’ nickname) and his time with the Magpies was punctuated by individual awards. First, he claimed both the Players’ and Supporters’ Player of the Year in 2011/12, before going on to be named in the League One PFA Team of the Year for the following campaign. Such form saw him rewarded with a second chance back at Ewood Park, but he departed again after a single season, having made just 11 league appearances. The 27-year-old initially moved to Brentford on loan, and was seen by many as the final piece in the jigsaw, as he scored 7 times in 22 appearances over the run-in, including the goal that clinched promotion against Preston. Judge played alongside Douglas in the middle of the park last term, helping the team to an unlikely play-off appearance. He has carried on his good form into 2015/16, hence the continued speculation surrounding his future. His season has gone from strength to strength, as he was nominated for the Football League Player of the Year award in January, before making his full international debut against Switzerland last month. As one of the Championship’s most skilful players, Judge’s direct running is a threat to any defence, and he will be sure to keep Chambers and Knudsen on their toes.The Manager – Dean Smith
Smith started his playing career with Walsall in 1989. Over the course of five years, he played 166 league and cup games.
Signing for Hereford United in 1994, three years and 146 appearances later he moved on to Leyton Orient.
In six years with Orient, he made 309 appearances in all competitions, before earning a move to Sheffield Wednesday in 2003.
After a season with Wednesday, he moved on to Port Vale, retiring in January 2005. He scored 54 goals in 566 league games in a 16-year career in the Football League.
Returning to Leyton Orient, he worked as assistant manager until January 2009.
In July 2009, he was appointed as Head of Youth at Walsall, before taking the management reins in January 2011. He took Walsall from relegation certainties to safety in his first four months in charge.
He took Walsall to the 2015 final of the Football League Trophy, before leaving the club to manage Brentford in November 2015.
Past Match - Video Highlights – Trev
I’m not sure anyone needs reminding of what happened the last time we faced Brentford, but just in case:
Trev's Trivia
Player to play for both Clubs
Jay Tabb ITFC 2013-present Brentford 2000-2006
Jonathan Douglas ITFC 2015-present Brentford 2011-2015
Media Watch - K L Blue
Is it time for Ipswich to wake up?
http://www.edp24.co.uk/sport/is_it_time ... _1_4485822
Bart on McGoldrick and Bish:
http://www.sudburymercury.co.uk/sport/m ... _1_4485756
Goodbye to the play-offs:
http://www.haverhillecho.co.uk/sport/fo ... -1-7315207
Russell Claydon's Blog:
http://www.haverhillecho.co.uk/sport/fo ... -1-7315207
Stat Time
Head To Head
Ipswich Town Wins.................5 (62.50%)
Brentford Wins......................1 (12.50%)
Draws.................................2 (25.00%)
Ipswich Town Goals...............18 (ave. 2.25 per match)
Brentford Goals....................7 (ave. 0.88 per match)
Head To Head at Ipswich
Ipswich Town Wins.................3 (75.00%)
Brentford Wins......................0 (00.00%)
Draws.................................1 (25.00%)
Ipswich Town Goals.................9 (ave. 2.25 per match)
Brentford Goals.....................1 (ave. 0.25 per match)
The Predicted Teams
Ipswich Town
With the play-offs now looking a tall order, Mick may be tempted to switch things around a bit, and possibly give one or two fringe players and/or youngsters a chance. Daryl Murphy will again be missing as he continues his recovery from a calf injury.
33 Bartosz Bialkowski
4 Luke Chambers
5 Tommy Smith
6 Christophe Berra
3 Jonas Knudsen
8 Cole Skuse
19 Luke Hyam
17 Kevin Bru
20 Freddie Sears
42 Luke Varney
11 Brett Pitman
Brentford
Like Charlton on Tuesday night, Brentford come into the match on the back of some decent results, with back-to-back victories against Nottingham Forest and Bolton. They are just about now safe from any threat of relegation, and so Dean Saunders will be looking for a balance between keeping the confidence going and planning ahead for next season.
27 David Button
2 Maxime Colin
6 Harlee Dean
29 Yoann Barbet
3 Jake Bidwell
12 Alan McCormack
28 Nico Yennaris
15 Ryan Woods
18 Alan Judge
7 Sam Saunders
21 Lasse Vibe
Marko's Caption Contest
Wolves scores:
Frosty 5pts
Barmy Billy 4pts
Ashfordblue 3pts
ITNO1 2pts
LEAGUE TABLE
Ando 75
DerickIpsw 74
Frosty 69
Blueblood 64
Barmy Billy 61
Nicscreamer 56
Number 9 49
James Scharmann 46
Herforder 36
Quasar 34
IpswichtownNO1 28
Shed on Tour 25
Ashfordblue 20
Bluemike 19
Watership Down 19
Floors 16
Hallamblue 12
Tangfastic 11
Charnwood 10
Kerry Blue 9
Longjohn 9
Foxy Lady 8
Loudnproud 6
Ohiotractorboy 3
Karlywoo 1
Try this:
Match Referee – Philip Gibbs
His ability to read the game is fine apparently
Final Thought - Frosty
Having never lost at home to Brentford, if ever there was a game to keep our slim hopes this season alive it’s 14th-place Brentford.
The ‘Bees’ are a side who to me haven’t looked as threatening since Mark Warburton was in charge and results would probably bear this out.
As we know from last season, there is always the very real chance that a side above us on the table will ‘choke’, as we have seen season after season in this league. That’s why a win on Saturday still leaves us with a chance. (Let’s face it, Derby have had their moments).
Still, one has a reason to be wary of Brentford as, after three consecutive losses to Blackburn, QPR and Charlton, their last two matches have seen them beat Bolton at home 3-1 and Forest away 3-0 so we will still have to be on our game.
The only immediate ‘other’ fixture that really concerns us this round is the hope that Fulham ruins Cardiff’s visit to London. I guess one could also argue that if Reading can beat Birmingham that probably puts the Brum out of their misery this season.
What else is there to say really?
Nonetheless have a great day if you are attending on Saturday
COYB!
IPSWICH TOWN 2 BRENTFORD 1
[/quote]
But Can Douglas score against his old club???? NAH 
