Town boss Mick McCarthy says winning games will be the key factor in encouraging fans back to Portman Road, Tuesday’s 0-0 draw with Brighton having been watched by the lowest crowd at a Championship game at Portman Road for almost three years.

Tuesday’s official attendance was 15,228, the smallest since the 14,953 recorded at the Blackburn home game in December 2013. Both games will have actually been watched by fewer fans with season ticket holders counted in the attendance figure regardless of whether they are at a match.

McCarthy said he noticed the disappointing crowd when he reviewed the game later in the week: “I thought that when I looked back at the game on Thursday morning, but I didn’t hear what it was.”

In addition to the low attendance on Tuesday, summer season ticket sales were down around 1,000 and McCarthy says the only way to reverse the current downward trend is to win games.

“Just seeing it disappointed me," he added. "I didn’t really notice it the other night. I don’t walk out onto the pitch and go, ‘It’s a low crowd’, I’m focused on the game.

“But seeing it this morning I did. The crowd looked pretty sparse. I don’t like that, I prefer to have big crowds but the only way we’ll get them is by winning games.

“And at the moment, we’re not, so we’ll have to get back to that, like we did four years ago when we were bottom of the league with seven points and the crowds were low.

“We got crowds in because we started winning games and we started to have a bit of success. If we start to do that again that’s when they’ll come back.”

Is it just winning football that gets the numbers through the gates? “If you’ve got any other reason as to why, if it’s that they haven’t got the money [that people don't go to games], which people haven’t, it’s tight, but you tell me any other reason people come to watch.”

Are entertainment and goals also factors? “When I came in four years ago and we were bottom with seven points - and I haven’t done anything different over those last four years - did the crowds increase? Why was that? [Winning games].”

He added: “Very rarely have I ever come away from a game I’ve gone to watch and I was supporting a team and they win and I go ‘Didn’t enjoy that today’, whether it’s rugby, tennis, whatever I go and watch.

“The person I see who wins it, it’s generally more entertaining than when you get beaten, isn’t it?

“I could name a couple of teams who would spin that they play some lovely entertaining football and we’re not playing them any more.

“And by the way we’re not trying not to play entertaining football, let’s clear that up. We don’t play unentertaining football, we’re not trying to do that.”

Today’s opponents Huddersfield boosted their home crowds by subsidising 15,000 season tickets - an adult seat cost £179 - in the summer, off-setting the cost against £1 million of the additional £2 million in TV money Championship clubs are receiving this season.

As a result, the Terriers their home crowds have hit higher levels than at any time since they were in the top flight in 1970/71.

McCarthy says that running that aspect of the club isn’t down to him, he’s only in control of the football side: “I don’t have anything to do with that, that’s not my bag.

“I try and create a winning team, a good environment and manage the playing side of it.”

Meanwhile, former Blues left-back Jamie Clapham, 40, has joined Barnsley’s staff as their first-team coach on what’s initially a short-term basis.

Clapham was previously first-team coach at Coventry working under his former Town team-mate Tony Mowbray until they resigned on Wednesday.

Photo: TWTD

Brownie added 12:48 - Oct 1 Currie 10 - from Memory that game was Christmas time & at the time we were winning games & scoring goals. For the last 18 months we have done little of either. I agree crowds would return in the circumstances you mention but do you think we score the goals to win the games? I don't & my patience under MM is now at breaking point..
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Garv added 12:58 - Oct 1 And this is the foundation of the problem with our football.
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martin587 added 13:03 - Oct 1 MM is so out of touch.Have you just realised that winning games playing attractive football will bring the crowds back.!! As a long standing football manager this should be the norm.Under your management we will never play attractive football.The gates are getting smaller with each match,surely MM can see this,or the Owner,come to that.!
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warkthelint added 13:09 - Oct 1 Boring,sterile,bland football..in a few words that's why attendances and interest is falling alarmingly not winning games , even though it would be nice to win more than we do under this anti-football. It's not rocket science and if he thinks it to do with winning games then he is more deluded and stubborn than I give him for. Certainly explains the predicament we are in and until he goes, and say Burley comes back, we will spin even more into terminal decline.

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ChestnutSe added 13:18 - Oct 1 I must be one of the few on here that has renewed his season ticket and will continue to do so while the club is being so well run by Mick. We don't hammer other teams like Norwich, Aston Villa and probably Newcastle (with all their riches and multi million pound players) but we don't roll over either. Mostly every player gives 100% and MM puts out what he considers to be the strongest 11 available to win the game. Games are usually tight affairs and that makes for entertainment with the result generally in doubt right to the 90+ minute. For the last few years we have been around the play off places and I think most fans would take that. Obviously it's not good enough for those who think we should steamroller every team in this division and play like Barca every week but most fans are a bit more realistic. I think prices do have an effect on attendances as well as its not cheap to go to every game. It's an interesting policy that Huudersfield have employed to cut season ticket prices to encourage more supporters to be able to attend games. I would have thought that Town could give that a go next season and that would boost attendances and help create a more intense atmosphere at PR. I expect other income like shirt sales etc would also increase.

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surgery added 13:28 - Oct 1 ChestnutSe ...presumably that was a tongue in cheek post
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tractorshark added 13:48 - Oct 1 If we play well and keep losing, it won't affect the gate significantly whatever people like to think on here. It may be a contributing reason why people stay away just like ticket prices, distance, family commitments etc. But McCarthy's right. If Ipswich are successful, the crowds will return. That happens everywhere in football, including here two seasons ago. And, by the same token, if we're winning games, we will become naturally more entertaining. People may disagree with me but two seasons ago we got to the playoffs playing a similar brand of football. Had we won promotion, do you honestly think we wouldn't have got gates of 25,000 plus in the Premier League just because we hoof it and are negative? Do me a favour. There's enough glory hunters and fairweather fans out there to compensate for any of you lot who get on your high horse. And I suspect they include a lot of the moaners on here. If you want proof of that, look at that playoff semi-final first leg two years ago.

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Dissboyitfc added 14:04 - Oct 1 pip50...disagree with your point we do have enough quality to entertain and win games and score goals. For a starters he can play the correct players in the correct positions and stop playing his mates. I just hope Josh keeps the RB spot, think we know chambers is starting no matter what! who knows how good this team could be! MICK OUT
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surgery added 14:09 - Oct 1 And tractorshark, perhaps now opposing managers may have found a way to annul our way of playing a similar brand of football
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JimmyP45 added 14:25 - Oct 1 Tell us something we don't know mick. Like saying its bright when the suns out. Brain dead fool we have in charge
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superbob added 14:30 - Oct 1 i've watched quite a bit of academy football and the difference in style to the 1st team is staggering, the longer this ancient manager stays in charge the worse it gets. people who say wait till we get x, y , z players back are kidding themselves. The reason there are so many injuries is probably because of the prehistoric training and fitness programmes. lets get a fresh manager (and backroom staff), with current ideas, who trusts his younger players !!

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christiand added 14:38 - Oct 1 Sh*te football and high pricing might be my guess Mick. Seems like we have incompetence both on and off the pitch. At least Mick owns up to the fact that he is in charge of matters on the pitch, it's DROSS man open your eyes!!!!
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Bildestoned added 14:42 - Oct 1 Penguinblue does MM really keep going on about '....how he saved us' 4 years ago? Certainly it's mentioned regularly by posters here but to the manager's credit I'd say he resists so doing. But as far as I'm concerned I now live a further 20 miles away and I'm afraid the current entertainment standard is insufficient to coax me into a 160 mile round trip!
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Seasider added 18:07 - Oct 2 Mentioned it in Saturdays EADT Bildestoned and even alluded to 4 years ago above. However Penguin Blue,yourself and me all agree about the poor entertainment, that this arrogant man with his outdated outlook and style which he hasn't changed in 20 years;and seems to be proud of.
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