Manager Mick McCarthy says he always expected this season’s Championship relegation battle to go the distance. More than half of the division are still anxiously looking over their shoulders with only six games remaining.

McCarthy said: “I think if you remember when I came in, I thought that wherever we might be, whether we ever got out of the bottom three, for three clubs to go down it was always going to go to the last game of the season.

“Whether bottom and second bottom are cut and dried, they’ve got more points than they’ve ever got and even the bottom team Bristol City have still got a chance with six games to play.

“You wouldn’t back against Peterborough because of what they’ve been doing. Huddersfield have had a great run. The ones that drop into the bottom three, they’re the really devastating blows for people.

“It’s not been any different than I thought it would. Some weeks it’s been better, some weeks it’s been worse.”

He says there’s stress whether you’re at the top of the division, as he was as Sunderland and Wolves boss, or nearer the bottom as he is now with Town: “It depends what pressure you put on yourself.

“The last thing I want to do is be going out of this league. I want to be here for the long-term and the way that’s going to happen is by me keeping the team up and staying in this league.

“But I don’t go home thinking about that, worrying about it because that does affect your thinking and decisions that you make and perhaps how you treat people. We’ve got Derby County, deal with that one.”

But battling for promotion, even unsucessfully, has obvious advantages over being at the other end of the table: “When you’re up at the top, you’re not getting relegated, whatever happens, you’re not going down.

“You might miss out on it and you might see it as a missed opportunity, but you’re not going out of the league completely.

“It really does get pressurised at the top, let me tell you, as you can see by the results that teams have had at the top.

“It’s causing havoc with the top teams rather than the bottom teams, actually. The bottom teams don’t look under pressure, they’re all playing with gay abandon!”

Where would McCarthy rank keeping Town in the Championship when compared to his other achievements in management?

“It would be my best because it’s my current,” he says. “Whatever you do in the past, nobody ever comes round and pats you on the back and says how well you’ve done at the World Cup or says ‘Wasn’t it great when you won the Championship at Sunderland?’.

“It all gets forgotten, so this would be the best because it’s the most recent, it’s my club now, all the others are forgotten really.

“They’re in the history books and some day late on I’ll be able to remember any achievements. But this is what I’m doing, and this would be the best one for now.”

Photo: Action Images

ericgates added 08:44 - Apr 6 That reads like if we go down, then Mick will go.
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Urchin added 08:55 - Apr 6 Eric gates- well one of u is talking rubbish and I know who I'll put my money on.
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Guthrum added 10:16 - Apr 6 eric gates - that was also how I read the phrase "I want to be here for the long-term and the way that's going to happen is by me keeping the team up and staying in this league." Tho I think with McCarthy and the way we've been playing, we have the best possible chance of staying up - and a very good one as we are still ahead of the game, with a small cushion and there are fewer and fewer games for those below to overtake us (while some from above are dropping past, too).

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wkj added 10:24 - Apr 6 Football aside; anyone else here jus really fancy having a few drinks with mick? bet he'd be a right laugh
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bluemikey100 added 10:31 - Apr 6 love it mick WERE PLAYING WITH GAY ABANDON as were near the bottom we gonna win our next two games then were safe we be nearer the top but still be playing with GAY ABANDON lol
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brittaniaman added 10:34 - Apr 6 IT was that Disaster of a start under Jewellio which done us in !!! 7pts. out of 39pts. So big Mick has done us wonders in his time here Let us hope we can get those remainder pts. to keep us up !!!!! To think the last 2 seasons teams have stayed up on 48pts.??? BUT this season is so different
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Keaneish added 11:05 - Apr 6 There have been some funny, some ridiculous and some absurd comments posted on here from doom and gloom merchants, but after reading that article, yours takes pole position ericgates!!!
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DiamondGezzer added 07:11 - Apr 7 bluemikey100, what position does this Gay Abandon play in, is he yet another loan ? lol
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