Ships In The Night

ITFC 1-2 Hull April 13th 2013 

Sharon was traveling back home after working in Devon & Cornwall for the week so Max “won” her ticket. There was also a £10 per ticket promotion for the game so he used my customer number to get his mate Mat and dad Andy tickets. Max also arranged to meet them for prematch beers at the Thomas Wolsey which seemed like a good idea at the time, so we got the Park & Ride into town rather than drive. After three pints of Ghost Ship it was time to leave the pub and head to Portman Road. I was meant to get the tickets for Sheffield Wednesday away before the game but ran out of time so that didn't happen! "Oh well I can get them afterwards" I thought.

The first half was dull and quite poor from an Ipswich point of view, the only talking point for us at half time over another pint of Adnams was the penalty that Guirane N'Daw gave away midway through the half. My immediate instinct was that the ref had made the correct decision but Max was adamant that it was just a shoulder barge. Mat & Andy who were nearer the front agreed with me, but having now seen the incident on TV I'm not so sure - who'd be a referee?

I missed the first couple of minutes of the second half, something that I never do, blame the drink, or am I just easily lead? The rain which was forecast for the afternoon duly arrived, I didn't mind as I was undercover. 

David Stockdale one of four keepers used by ITFC last season 

Ipswich looked like a different team, whatever Big Mick had said at the interval seemed to be working.  We dominated the second half and leveled the scores after Anthony Wordsworth converted a decent Luke Chambers cross, heading it past former blues loanee keeper David Stockdale, to register his first goal for the Tractor Boys in the process.

Hull were ragged and all over the place, their manager Steve Bruce also looked like he was losing the plot, going apeshit on the sidelines. We couldn’t turn our pressure into goals and with time running they got a corner which we failed to clear, Robbie Brady, chipped the ball back into the box giving substitute Robert Koren an easy header for the winning goal.

That result almost gives Hull automatic promotion but based on that performances they'll need to improve or their stay in the Premier League will be short lived.

As we were walking out after the final whistle Max got a call inviting us back to the Thomas Wolsey which unfortunately we excepted. I still hadn’t got the tickets for Sheffield Wednesday! 

Back to the pub

The return visit to the pub seemed like a good idea at the time but I was to later regret it, perhaps not so much as my visit to the Kesgrave Bell later that evening for even more Ghost Ship. All of this beer certainly took its toll on me (no pun intended). Suffice to say I was sunk without trace on Sunday and certainly not a candidate for the Adnams “Man of the Match”!

Bad boys!

Ships In The Night by Be Bop Deluxe - Oh those Saturday night beers!