Kieran McKenna hails Ipswich’s ‘decent progress’ after Blackburn defeat

Ipswich manager Kieran McKenna hailed his side’s “good step” and “decent progress” after they defeated Blackburn with a 3-0 Championship win at Portman Road to remain third.

Two goals in the opening 12 minutes and a third just before the full-time whistle was enough for the promotion-seeking Tractor Boys to make it four wins from four in all competitions.

Blackburn conceded an own goal in the third minute by debutant Eiran Cashin, while Town midfielder Jack Taylor netted the second – eight minutes later – and former Rovers striker Sam Szmodics was on target with the third in the 88th minute.

McKenna said: “I think it was a good performance, a good result and a good step for us.

“I thought we executed some stuff well in terms of how we played over the pressure at times and had big chances just from flick-ons and second balls but also played through the pressure really well.

“Good to get the early goals and I think defensively, our intensity in the first half was really, really good, never really dropped to give the opposition a moment.

“Another game that we would have liked to have really killed off earlier in terms of the third goal.

“We were’t as clinical as we could have been but actually I thought our intent and ideas was really good.

“We just didn’t manage to get the finish or should have had a penalty but I thought the intent of the players was good.

“Another day of decent progress and a good three points.”

Meanwhile, the visitors’ head coach Valerien Ismael said that the first two goals killed the momentum of the match as his beleaguered outfit drew a blank to remain 20th.

Ismael, who claimed his team should have been awarded a second-half penalty, said: “The two goals in the first half just killed the momentum and everything in the game.

“In the first half Ipswich got nothing, just the two goals and apart from that it can’t be possible that we concede every time and come back into the game away against a strong team.”

He claimed they should have had a penalty when Yuki Ohashi was tackled by Darnell Furlong in the box and added: “We try in the second half and it was another clear penalty on Yuki and I think at some point the ref has to do the job.

“It’s another big decision. We urgently need VAR in the Championship because the players allow themselves to make bad tackles and we won’t have those situations every time.

“It’s just embarrassing every time, every week, week in week out, massive decision.

“It doesn’t change the first half, we conceded the two goals but in the 90-minute games, maybe it can be the key moment when you come back into the game.

“At the minute we try to find ourselves and try to find a solution to the situation.

“We need to stay calm, to ride the storm and to wait until the players come back and to have more and more energy, more and more competition.”