Football Season Review

A disappointing season for Ipswich ended with a ninth-place finish. A good start to the campaign raised expectations but results began to slip and they dropped to eighth in the league. Boss Paul Lambert left in March amid fan protests. Paul Cook was appointed manager but picked up only four wins from the last 16 games as Ipswich slipped out of play-off contention. Scoring goals was a problem all season. They finished the campaign as the third lowest scorers, managing only 46 goals. Towards the end of the season they failed to score in six consecutive games. Cook has been highly critical of the current crop of players. There promises to be a large turnover of players in the summer. Experienced first teamers Luke Chambers, Cole Skuse, Stephen Ward and Alan Judge have already been confirmed as leaving the club. Ipswich were not helped by injuries to three of their best performers this season; James Norwood, James Wilson and Flynn Downes all made less than 20 league starts. Ipswich always seemed to fair better with Norwood in the team. He was their top scorer with nine goals. It promises to be a vastly different set of players that start next season for Ipswich. Cook is a proven manager at this level so if the new players gel together quickly they should be fighting for at least a top six spot which will no doubt be the minimum requirement.

Player of the Season: James Norwood