Tractor Boys are first home opponents

Last updated : 16 August 2008 By Tony Scholes

We've won our first home game in each of the last two seasons, something of a change having gone four successive seasons having secured one draw and three defeats on our first Turf Moor outing.

Last season's win though was a false dawn as we struggled all season to pick up victories at home, that 2-1 success against West Brom was one of just seven wins at home and it was our worst home season since Frank Casper's team won just six in the 1989/90 season.

We've got to improve on our home form, there's no doubt about that and a win against Ipswich would be a good place to start.

Our Opponents


Ipswich ended last season just one point away from the play offs after a season where they dominated at Portman Road. No side won as many home games as Ipswich, their total of fifteen wins was two better than next best Bristol City and Hull.

That should have been good enough to see them guaranteed at least a play off place but wins at Sheffield Wednesday, Crystal Palace and Scunthorpe were their only successes on the road and only Barnsley and Colchester won as few.

Manager Jim Magilton set about strengthening his squad over the summer and brought in four new players ahead of the new season. The first to arrive was 21-year-old Dutch defender Pim Balkestein from Heerenveen. He was followed by Leicester defender Gareth McAuley and striker Kevin Lisbie from Colchester before goalkeeper Richard Wright returned to the club from West Ham.

All four of them started in the first game of the season last week which they were very unfortunate to lose 2-1 to Preston. Lisbie, just as Martin Paterson did for Burnley, got off to a goalscoring start when he gave them the lead after just two minutes.

Not content with those signings, Magilton has this week added two more and is set to make that three. Ivan Campo, the former Bolton midfielder, was first and on Thursday they completed the signing of Charlton full back Ben Thatcher.

Yesterday they agreed a deal with Newcastle for the transfer of Shola Ameobi but despite speculation there has been no signing of David Nugent from Portsmouth.

Team News


Ipswich will be without David Norris and David Wright. Norris is on his way back from injury and played in their Carling Cup win against Leyton Orient but will not be risked. Wright has an ankle injury and the likely replacement at right back is Alex Bruce who was the subject of much speculation a couple of days ago.

One of this week's new signings Ivan Campo won't play but manager Jim Magilton has confirmed that Ben Thatcher will play a part although due to a lack of match fitness this could come from the bench. If he does start then Pim Balkestein is the one likely to drop out.

One player definitely set to play is Jon Walters. The former Blackburn player missed last Saturday's game but returned in midweek.

Ipswich's likely team: Richard Wright, Alex Bruce, Tommy Smith, Gareth McAuley, Pim Balkestein, Jon Walters, Owen Garvan, Velice Shumulikowski, Danny Haynes, Pablo Counago, Kevin Lisbie. Subs from: Shane Supple, Alex Bruce, Jordan Rhodes, Ben Thatcher, Tommy Miller, Alan Quinn, Alan Lee.

Click HERE to see the full Ipswich squad


Owen Coyle believes he has some tough decisions to make in naming his team but I would suspect the eight players who played at both Hillsborough and Gigg Lane will all be in the staring line up today. That leaves the other three places.

Coyle said he had always intended playing Brian Jensen at Bury, not matter what happened in the opening league game against Sheffield Wednesday. He reckoned it was a tough call last Saturday. I think, having kept a clean sheet he'll stick with Jensen.

I also believe Joey Gudjonsson is likely to get the nod over Remco van der Schaaf who had something of a nightmare debut last week. He was never able to get into the game and the midfield area certainly functioned better after he'd been substituted.

Now that leaves the defensive positions. Christian Kalvenes came in for Michael Duff, but today Clarke Carlisle is available and I feel sure he'll come straight back in. The one safe position seems to be Graham Alexander's at right back, but if Carlisle does come in it could be for any of the other three.

It is a matter of take your pick, but I think he might just move Stephen Jordan back to left back with Carlisle partnering Steven Caldwell in the centre.

t's all guess work but we could line up: Brian Jensen, Graham Alexander, Clarke Carlisle, Steven Caldwell, Stephen Jordan, Joey Gudjonsson, Chris McCann, Wade Elliott, Chris Eagles, Robbie Blake, Martin Paterson. Subs from: Diego Penny, Michael Duff, Christian Kalvenes, Alan Mahon, Remco van der Schaaf, Kevin McDonald, Ade Akinbiyi.

Last Season


Andy Gray
Andy Gray - scored the equaliser
When you've made a good start to the season, but have drawn your previous two home games, you are very much looking to make a bright start to the next game.

Steve Cotterill had concerns ahead of the home game with Ipswich last season. He'd lost Michael Duff to injury in the previous game against Crystal Palace and he was also missing Chris McCann.

That meant the loss of two players good in the air, and with Ipswich bringing back Sylvain Legwinski it meant there could be problems for the Clarets in that department. And so it proved.

Legwinski it was who got in front of Kyle Lafferty at a corner to head them into seventh minute lead and just two minutes later Alan Lee doubled that lead when he looped in a header from a right wing cross.

Thankfully we pulled one back on eleven minutes through Kyle Lafferty. Graham Alexander and Robbie Blake combined to free Wade Elliott down the right and his pin point cross was met by Lafferty who headed in his first goal in almost ten months. It was almost Hillsborough like.

It was still 2-1 at half time and we had to be thankful for that as Ipswich were very much the better side and we were constantly losing possession. The second half though was a different matter.

On the hour Alan Mahon played a ball through for Andy Gray, but goalkeeper Neil Alexander got their just ahead of him. Fortunately he could only play the ball onto Gray and it looped up and dropped into the net for what was his only home league goal for us last season in open play.

With half an hour to go we were in with a chance of winning it, but apart a clear penalty for a foul on Lafferty being turned down we weren't able to get the winner and had to settle for another single point. That was a point we certainly weren't expecting nine minutes into the game.

The teams were;

Burnley: Gabor Kiraly, Graham Alexander, Clarke Carlisle, Steven Caldwell, Stephen Jordan, Wade Elliott (Steve Jones 79), John Spicer, Alan Mahon (James O'Connor 89), Kyle Lafferty (Ade Akinbiyi 85), Robbie Blake, Andy Gray. Subs not used: Brian Jensen, David Unsworth.

Ipswich: Neil Alexander, David Wright, Jason De Vos, Alex Bruce, Dan Harding, Jonathan Walters, Owen Garvan, Sylvain Legwinski, Tommy Miller, Billy Clarke (Pablo Counago 71), Alan Lee. Subs not used: Shane Supple, Chris Casement, Fabian Wilnis, Danny Haynes.

Previous games against Ipswich


Previous 20 Seasons

Season

Div

Ven

Result

Att

Scorers

2002/03

1

a

2-2

22,736

Gnohere Papadopoulos

..

h

1-1

15,501

Blake(pen)

2003/04

1

a

1-6

22,048

Facey

..

h

4-2

11,343

Little May Chaplow Blake

2004/05

C

a

1-1

23,183

Blake

..

h

0-2

11,969

.

2005/06

C

h

3-0

10,496

J O'Connor G O'Connor McCann

..

a

1-2

24,482

Ricketts

2006/07

C

h

1-0

11,709

McCann

..

a

1-1

20,254

Lafferty

2007/08

C

h

2-2

9,852

Lafferty Gray

..

a

0-0

20,077

.



Click HERE to see all our results against Ipswich