Boss Mick McCarthy says owner Marcus Evans remains firmly behind him, despite Town's disappointing season and a significant number of fans calling for a change of manager at Portman Road. He also reiterated his intention to see out his contract with the Blues.

Asked what his message would be to those supporters who believe he is no longer the man to take Town forward, McCarthy said: “You expect me to sit here and argue my corner?”

Pressed further, McCarthy said he’s become increasingly weary of talking with the media about his position, the matter never having been discussed with Evans or club MD Ian Milne.

“Over the last month, and I’ve thought about this actually, [I’ve got] a little bit tired of speaking about my position, my job, and answering questions from you or from anybody else about my position and what I think and what I’m going to do.

“Because I’ve never had that discussion with anybody else, like Marcus or Ian Milne. It’s just other people questioning whether I should be the manager.

“At the Supporters Club AGM, I said to them that my contract runs out in 18 months’ time and I’ll continue to do my best and that’s all that’s ever going to happen.”

Has Evans remained firmly behind him when the two have talked? “I haven’t spoken to him for a couple of days, but in answer to your question, yes, I believe he is, I don’t doubt that.”

He added: “That’s probably the last thing I’ll say about my job and we’ll just see.”

McCarthy said at the end of October that he was in his most difficult spell since taking over at Town in November 2012 with matters not having got any easier since then.

“We’ve hardly been ripping it up," he admitted. "It has been the toughest spell, I don’t think I need to spell that out for anybody.

“If you look at just results and the way it’s gone in the past from 14th, ninth, sixth, seventh, we’re in run of games that we’ve not suffered really in terms of results since my first season here.

“It is the toughest period, but we’ve not been out of games. It’s been crazy really because when we had seven clean sheets out of 11 games we could score, we had all our better players, in inverted commas, our creative, scoring players missing.

“Now we’ve got them back we can’t keep a clean sheet to save our lives, we just keep making mistakes.

“We made two against Rotherham, two against Forest and we made a mistake on Saturday. And it really does make it extremely difficult to get back in the game.

“If you’re not on top of your own game when you’re conceding like we’re doing it makes it doubly difficult.”

Is he concerned about the situation with the Blues yet to record back-to-back victories this season and in 17th only five points off the relegation zone?

“And seven points off the play-offs,” he was quick to point out. “That’s just the way it is. And I look at other teams that are probably on around 30 points, which is not an insurmountable amount for us to get back, five points, that are supposedly having good seasons and doing really well.

“I’m always worried when results aren’t as good as I’d like or performances aren’t as good as I’d like.

“That wouldn’t change if we were in the top six and I thought we were just dropping out of the top six. Yes, I’d like results to be better and we’ll continue to work to do it.”

Given the negativity surrounding the club at present, among supporters at the ground, in the media, on social media such as Twitter, does he feel it’s easy for his players to concentrate?

“I don’t know whether they’re interacting with fans on Twitter or reading [the media], I’ve no idea,” he said.

“If they’ve got any sense, which probably most of them haven’t, they wouldn’t read it and they wouldn’t interact with fans.

“I’ve always tended to find that it’s better to isolate yourself. It’s doesn’t make you feel any better hearing anybody else’s comments because I’ve always felt worse than anybody else could make me feel if I’m not playing well or results have been going badly. That was as a player and it’s the same as a manager.

“Having other people telling you it’s not going well when it’s as plain as the nose on my face it’s not going great, you just don’t need that. It doesn’t make it any easier.

“I didn’t think the atmosphere was bad on Saturday at Portman Road, to be honest, and I thought right to the very end they stayed with us, and coming off after the game.

“But I get it, it’s not going to be the most positive atmosphere in the ground, around the town, in the media, in the local media because everybody wants Ipswich to win, everybody who is an Ipswich fan. Me included.”

Photo: TWTD

LimitlessBlue added 06:10 - Dec 13 Waffle! please go.
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Penguinblue added 06:33 - Dec 13 Please keep the e-mails, letters, messages flowing to Marcus Evans /MEG and Milne. Ok they will not answer but they will get the message of what an awful dour football team McCarthy has turned our club into. Ask how the owner of a massive corporate entertainment business can employ such a negative manager, arrogant and contemptuous of its customers. It runs against all the platitudes on the MEG web-site. Altogether now - McCarthy OUT

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Penguinblue added 06:35 - Dec 13 Where is the poll TWTD? The time to act is now - we could have a manager in charge for the transfer window and an end to this sad chapter. McCarthy OUT
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trncbluearmy added 06:38 - Dec 13 but he`s not backing you is he? he is just making you look a idiot whilst he play`s with (our) club,which, rather unfortunately,is his to play with! Does anyone in Suffolk with money give a toss?
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Mick_Mills_Tache added 06:43 - Dec 13 Anyone else fed up with the constant rubbish falling out of his mouth? It was 7 clean sheets in 11 games but, no, we couldn't score....we scored 6 times in those 11 matches and went 8 hours without scoring a single goal!! #FOMM #MickOut
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airliner added 06:44 - Dec 13 Usual rubbish spouted by a dead man walking. Marcus is running this club into the ground
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bobbyramsey added 06:54 - Dec 13 OMG, not another 18 months of this shi7e? Unbelievable...................
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blueconscience added 07:08 - Dec 13 Is this the dreaded vote of confidence?
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Suffolk_n_Good added 07:26 - Dec 13 In answer to the headline: yes, he still backs you because he's as deluded as you are!! Finally, this seems like he his a man losing the will to fight much longer, I know he says he'll see out his contract, but it's the tone of the speech that gives me hope that this nightmare will be over soon..... Please Father Christmas deliver us a new manager for Christmas, (we've been good all year!!!! :)

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martin587 added 07:29 - Dec 13 Sounds like his epitaph to me.Time to go.!!
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notleyblue added 07:39 - Dec 13 How depressing.
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algarvefan added 07:53 - Dec 13 Sadly we have an owner, to whom we are just another asset (or not depending on how you look at it), I think Mick has done his best but gradually the quality of the squad has dropped until we are now where we deserve to be, no more, no less. Getting rid if Mick may change the team selection and/or the tactics but the quality of the squad will not improve unless some money is spent and that's obviously not going to happen! I think it's what's known as a catch 22 situation.......Gloomy isn't it!

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BrettenhamBlue added 07:55 - Dec 13 Penguinblue I've sent my e-mail, but is it really going to make a difference? I don't believe it will.
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blrmy added 07:59 - Dec 13 When is Marcus Evans, our owner, going to be held accountable? MM is the diatractor, much bigger issue that the local media should be addressing if they had any journalist talent and desire to do so.
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blrmy added 07:59 - Dec 13 ^distractor
0

TR11BLU added 08:01 - Dec 13 Come on Phil, run the poll, lets see the strength of feeling....or not Dino out now
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H1960 added 08:01 - Dec 13 Deluded fools
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Michael11 added 08:11 - Dec 13 “If they've got any sense, which probably most of them haven't, they wouldn't read it and they wouldn't interact with fans." Just get gone!! How can he get away with saying things like this? We have every right to question the players and the manager? How the hell can he be so full of self praise when we're in exactly the same league position at the same time of the season as when Roy Keane was sacked. Yesterday's comment about taking it game by game is the key to success. What an absolute plank! Surely a solid 3-5 year plan introducing youth players would've been a better idea rather than scraping draws with Rotherham week by week! Get out and take the annonymous crook with you.

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iaintaylorx added 08:14 - Dec 13 I think, sadly, we all know this is the case. How he is getting the backing of our owner, still, after poor results and shockingly poor performances is obscene! I appreciate giving managers time to turn things around, but it is clearly obvious what he is doing, is NOT working and his tactics are so out of date. He can't manage our players and is ruining some players' careers. The fact he says "Over the last month, and I've thought about this actually, [I've got] a little bit tired of speaking about my position, my job, and answering questions from you or from anybody else about my position and what I think and what I'm going to do" is like he is surprised he is being asked the questions and why they are being brought up in conferences! It's because we WANT and NEED a change. Do what is best for this club and step down. Yes, money needs to be thrown at the club, but people are making our ME is poor! He is our owner who is worth millions! MICK, MILNE AND EVANS OUT!! Please do not see our your contract as that shows how stubborn you are and pure and utter arrogance - not that is what you are anyway!!

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H1960 added 08:17 - Dec 13 Of course MM will want to see out his contract, Evans stupidly extended it during the middle of last season, it will cost him big bucks to pack him and he won't go, who would turn down £3m a year, to quote Fraser in dad's army (reminds me a bit of the way ITFC is run) WERE DOOMED
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iaintaylorx added 08:21 - Dec 13 Also, he says "7 points of playoffs". One time it was 6, before that, it was 5... Does he notice that is increasing and the one for relegation is decreasing? GET OUT!
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blue75 added 08:34 - Dec 13 McCarthy will never walk, and I don't think Evans will push him until we're relegated or can't get promoted. That is unless us the fans make our views heard at matches the only way to get him out is to make some noise!!!
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cornishblu added 08:38 - Dec 13 Michael11....my point entirely ...not only does mick now dismiss his supporters he is having a pop at his players....clearly they have no sense as they still trundle out to support this manager , they have no sense as they play this boring brand of football, play in wrong positions and don't obviously complain that certain members of the team regardless of performance standards are undroppable!! Next two games are massive for us ...esp Saturday ..if we don't get 4 points out of these we can hope Mick does a Santa and gets the sack !!

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poldark added 08:44 - Dec 13 I did notice the article says McCarthy says" Evans says" why no statement from Evans or even his big mate Milne it all comes from McCarthy . I was at the home game with Cardiff the supporters just sit and except the awful football until McCarthy hears supporters calling for his head this will not change make PR unpleasant for Evans and McCarthy stop buying programmes and merchandise hit Evans in the pocket and let him know we hate what is happening.

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Burnzee1991 added 08:56 - Dec 13 You keyboard warriors will quickly regret writing a very good manager off due to a dip in form. The club spends no money has very little resource and he is keeping us competitive in this league! Look at Derby, look at QPR, look at the trouble Brighton will be in this season if they don't go up! MM to stay he's a great manager and doing a great job with what he has available to him. We should be emailing Evans to spend in January and give Mick the funds he gave Jewell and Keane, perhaps then we would be real contenders.

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