It would be fair to say that neither of these teams has anything to play for, with both sat in comfortable mid-table positions. Ipswich approach the fixture sat in 16th place although Paul Jewell will be the first to admit that he’ll want just a couple more wins to guarantee the club’s safety. Watford meanwhile have bypassed the 50-point barrier and with the Hornets positioned in 11th, Malky Mackay is probably already preparing for next season.
There’s no doubt that there is something of a breath of new life around Portman Road these days, with Paul Jewell preparing to rebuild the club following a dismal two years under the leadership of Roy Keane. The Tractor Boys are still recovering and their position of 16th emphasizes that, but under Jewell there has certainly been an improvement of performances and that has encouraged the Portman Road faithful. However, they are on something of a bad run and having won just one out of their last six, they need a victory to regain some confidence. What’s more, having accumulated forty six points already they appear safe for now, but Jewell will know how important it is to get past that 50-point safety barrier and guarantee their status.
Watford on the other hand are just recovering from a slump in form and the Hornets have now risen to 11th in the table. With ten games remaining, it appears highly unlikely that they’ll be able to close the seven point gap that keeps them from the top six. However, with the Vicarage Road outfit not on the best financial footing, they know how important it is to finish in a lofty position and reap the monetary rewards. Malky Mackay’s men certainly look to be finishing the campaign strongly as well, with the club losing just one out of their last seven and collecting seven points from their last three games.
As for team news, Ipswich will be without David Norris who sits this one out through suspension, while Mark Kennedy will continue to sit out due to a hamstring problem. However, Paul Jewell will be able to select Jimmy Bullard who showed no ill-effects following a hamstring injury. There’s just the one piece of information to report for the visitors meanwhile as Lee Hodson struggles with an ankle problem. Despite early fears he had suffered a fracture, test results have shown that is not the case but the full back will still not be available for this one.
Despite Ipswich’s poor form of late, they did manage to grind out a good point against Leeds at the weekend and they are certainly no pushovers. Bearing that in mind we think they will be good value for a point
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