Town’s home game with table-propping Burton Albion ended in a drab 0-0 draw with the visitors having the better of the few chances. In the second half of a match watched by Portman Road’s lowest league crowd for almost 20 years, Blues keeper Bartosz Bialkowski saved from former Blue Darren Bent when through one-on-one and brilliantly in the final minute from Kyle McFadzean.

Bersant Celina replaced Freddie Sears on the left of the trio behind lone striker Joe Garner in an otherwise unchanged Town side. For Burton, former Blues loanee Stephen Bywater was in goal, while Bent was up front.

The visitors dominated possession in early stages played in heavy rain but in unthreatening areas and without creating a serious chance. On six on-loan West Ham midfielder Martin Samuelsen shot well wide from distance.

In the 12th minute Lloyd Dyer, who turned down a contract with Town after a successful trial two years ago, cut in from the left and hit a shot not too far over Bartosz Bialkowski’s cross bar.

On 25 Dyer was shown the game’s first yellow card for pulling back Ward as Town looked to break with the Blues still to get going.

The Brewers, who had lost their previous five games in all competitions, continued to see more of the ball as the game reached the half-hour mark with both keepers still untested. On 32 Hope Akpan shot over for the away team.

As half-time approached with Town still having made little impression, sections of the Sir Bobby Robson Stand began to make their criticisms of manager Mick McCarthy’s style of football clear.

Seconds before boos greeted the half-time whistle, a Celina cross from the left was nodded behind at the far post.

That reaction to a thoroughly dull first half came as little surprise with the Blues having failed to register a shot on or off target. On the rare occasions when Town had been in potentially dangerous positions a pass had always gone astray.

The bottom-of-the-table Brewers had seen most of the ball, albeit while looking similarly unthreatening.

Town needed to be much better after the break if they were to claim a second win in succession following last week’s victory at Sunderland.

The Blues began the second half on the front foot, Ward and Jordan Spence seeing early crosses in from the right cut out, then the former Spurs youngster saw a subsequent ball into the box deflected behind.

From Waghorn’s resultant corner from the right, Callum Connolly flicked on at the near post and the ball reached Celina beyond the far post from where he hit a shot on the turn which was blocked.

But it was the visitors and former Town striker Bent who should have scored in the 57th minute. The 34-year-old was threaded in behind Cameron Carter-Vickers but was unable to beat the advancing Bialkowski, who blocked.

The Blues had faded after their brighter start to the half and as the hour mark approached boos rang around the frustrated Portman Road crowd.

Manager McCarthy was evidently similarly less than impressed with proceedings and made a double substitution, debutant Mustapha Carayol and Stephen Gleeson taking over from Ward and Connolly.

Carayol, who joined on a deadline day free transfer after leaving Nottingham Forest, immediately made an impact, cutting in from the right before being felled just on the edge of the area to the right. The freekick was tapped to Waghorn, whose powerfully hit effort flew across the face with no Town player able to add a touch.

Bent made way in the 71st minute to warm applause from his old fans and Northern Ireland international Liam Boyce took over up front for the Brewers.

Sub Carayol wasn’t too far away from a spectacular debut goal in the 80th minute with a well-struck effort from the right which scraped the side-netting. The effort, Town’s closest of the afternoon, led to sarcastic cheers and a reprise of the earlier chants regarding McCarthy’s football.

Two minutes later, Carter-Vickers headed over from Waghorn’s right-sided corner, then on 85 Celina scuffed a weak effort through to Bywater, again to sarcastic cheers.

Burton almost won it in the final minute when Kyle McFadzean’s near-post header from Samuelsen’s corner on the right seemed destined for the roof of the net until Bialkowski pulled off a brilliant reaction save to turn it over the bar.

Soon after, the final whistle went to loud boos and further chants regarding manager McCarthy from the Sir Bobby Robson Stand.

Town never looked like getting anything more than a goalless draw from the game, creating few chances - or more accurately half-chances - throughout.

The Blues were marginally better in spells in the second half than they had been in the first but Bywater was still never seriously tested.

Burton were closest to breaking the deadlock with Bialkowski, again the Blues’ man of the match, making a sharp save from Bent and then his stunning late reaction stop from McFadzean.

The crowd of 13,815 - 17 fewer than the season’s previous smallest home Championship crowd for the Reading match - is the lowest Portman Road crowd for a home game in the league since 13,212 attended the Blues' 1-0 victory over Swindon in October 1998.

A dismal draw from what was viewed as a must-win game sees the Blues stay 12th, eight points from the play-offs ahead of next Sunday’s East Anglian derby at Norwich City.

Town: Bialkowski, Spence, Carter-Vickers, Chambers (c), Skuse, Connolly (Gleeson 60), Ward (Carayol 60), Waghorn, Celina, Garner. Unused: M Crowe, Iorfa, Webster, Hyam, Sears.

Burton: Bywater, Brayford (c), Allen, McFadzean, Bent (Boyce 71), Akins, Dyer (Sordell 80), Naylor, Davenport, Samuelsen, Akpan. Unused: Campbell, McCrory, Buxton, Barker, Sbarra. Referee: David Webb (Lancashire). Att: 13,815 (Burton: 169).

Photo: TWTD

warktheline added 20:32 - Feb 10 @geddis, so you are a politician ! Now using 'too simplistic' excuses! Laughable so you are!
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cat added 20:38 - Feb 10 Warktheline- we live in hope. Norwich are a spent force, their in decline, there's no doubting that. We've more chance of nicking something this time around than any of the more recent away encounters, but not on today's performance, as if repeated we will be whipped left, right and centre.
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Geddis78 added 20:39 - Feb 10 Politician? Just a different viewpoint to yours. But let's not bicker, neither of us are happy with how things are and we want the same thing. I don't think it is all McCarthys fault but as I have said before, for the sake of the club, I want someone else in next season. I just don't think it will sort all the evident problems. Cheers all.
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wayway added 21:03 - Feb 10 Well this the reality folks, this is it until Evans PLC sling their hook. The trouble is that apathy no reigns, fans are staying away and giving up their season tickets. What we really need is Action against these absent owners. Forget McCarthy, with any other owners or board of directors he would have been out 2 years ago. If you want change to save this once great club then act NOW. The pity of it is you will get no help from this page, the EADT and Evening Star or Radio Suffolk. They are all too cosy with the current owners and too afraid to rock the in case they lose their press passes. What I would like to see in Mondays EADT is an editorial calling Evans PLC to sell up and go. I will not be holding my breath though. How about you leading a campaign Mr Ham? No. I thought not.

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blue75 added 21:04 - Feb 10 Seasider today was my first game alone as well I have been know to travel with a group of nearly 30 I'm the only one left now, makes it all the more depressing. On a positive I am expecting us to beat naaridge a week Sunday it's just how we are absolutely crap one game do the unexpected the next.
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NSL added 21:54 - Feb 10 Bit David Brent this. Who's going to buy this exactly? I would literally rather pay 25 quid and watch ipswich than read this, and that's saying something
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KiwiTractor added 21:56 - Feb 10 Dire. I long for the day that McCarthy and Evans are no longer associated with our club. Full stop.
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grubbyoik added 22:13 - Feb 10 Let's not take anything away from Burton..their players were well organised.. comfortable on the ball.. pleasing on the eye.. and tactically astute.. Everything we were not.. I liked the look of carter-vickers.. Bart got us out of jail again. Garner was his usual busy self.. Mcarthy has to go.. I ve never seen anybody live off his past mediocrity like he does..
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Esseeja added 22:23 - Feb 10 If SWN98 has found out about our board is he face turning towards us? Otherwise I could not give a s**t about results anymore. I don't even care if Norwich finish above us anymore - that's how bad MM, ME and Milne have drained me out.... And I'm still going to wear the shirt in hope that something changes, because I have never heard a result with sh****r tactics than this bag of s**t, McCarthy, if you leave, YOURSELF, the fans will actually see something of you and thank you for finally making that decision as we all know Evans is the laziest owner in the world - and Diana is supposed to be the worst.

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BlueMachines added 23:33 - Feb 10 Geddis. Okay so don't blame the manager. Blame the players. But Mick doesn't pick players on form does he? He picks the same players week in week out regardless of whether or not they play well. That's been proven time and time again so then we can only then in turn blame Muck. Also Mick is winding (or trying to at least) up the fans with his comments in the week. Fact is it isn't his decision to stay first and foremost. IF THE CLUB decide to offer him an extension then I guess he can decide whether or not to stay but that's only IF THE CLUB DECIDE to do that. For those that likes FACTS that is a great one 👍

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Minneapolis_ITFC added 02:28 - Feb 11 Last week there was Super Bowl, now we're back to Super Bore.. Haven't got the inclination to add anything further. Whatever is said won't make a damn difference i.e. McCarthy and Evans will continue to be in "control" and the team will still underachieve and make little to no progress. Worth asking can both individuals please f-ck off and find another club team to put into disarray.. You're not wanted here, surely it's blatantly evident to them ?

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MicksZzzTactics added 06:41 - Feb 11 @Swn98 Sorry to hear you are "departing these shores" chappie ....sincerely gonna miss the weekly DELUGE of beyond awesome & predominantly strikingly silent downvotes of yours! :-) :-) lol But tell you what dear chappie, since I know how to program how about I write you a nifty little so called auto-script as a 'Going Away Present', which will then automatically downvote ANYONE of your favorite arch foes here on TWTD, without any real interaction on your part (other than regularly being online on The Net itself)!!! So ehhhh just fill out a complete list of said arch foes ....and ehhhh put in on a 'MZT Homing Pigeon' available at any *BAD* Joke Shop near you! :-) :-) lol Just to give an additional helping hand, said list should obviously at a very minimum include these particular stoic TWTD member names below whom you have soooo spoiled with your special kind of "undivided attention" in recent years: - @MicksZzzTactics (yours truly of course!) - @Warktheline - @Therein61 - @Spanishblueblood - @Blue75 - @Lightningboy - @Prebbs007 - @Vanmunt - @Oldegold - @Blueboy1981 etc. etc. etc. etc. :-) :-) :-) :-) PS: Oh by the way for once you actually wrote something (in that partening post of yours) that I personally can only wholeheartedly agree with: Aye sadly THIS board here has surely degenerated! But I might add, sadly so has the object of it's existence i.e. our apathetically owned & dinosauric led once proud & revered football ball club!!! And degenerated has also anything from even the merest interest in it to the strongest passion about it from a steadily increasing chunk of the *non-complacent* and fully *objective* among our tragically steady decreasing number of fans! BON VOYAGE MON "CHAPPIE" ....J'ESPÈRE VOUS REVOIR!

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bobble added 06:46 - Feb 11 the dark lord and whatsisface were inept and were sure to take us down, mick is a nowhere man who will keep us in the same place( but slowly sliding) while fans walk away.....so many smaller clubs like bureprton and Lincoln seem to have managers who want their teams to have a go, but not mick..why have we got into a no risk no fun no football era ?
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therein61 added 07:35 - Feb 11 SWN There's an irritating pillock in every bar in the country who causes a brawl then slips out of the back door when it kicks off
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Northstandveteran added 07:55 - Feb 11 From season ticket holder, to attending half a dozen home and a couple and away matches, to one game a season, to listening to the match on the radio, to watching the scores on football focus, to sometimes not finding out the score until the evening. From 15 friends going home and away, to 8, to 4, to 0. All in the space of 5 years. Isn't it a shame when you have zero interest in the team you have followed since a 7 year old in 1981? Almost like a divorce

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AdyCOYB added 09:31 - Feb 11 Having seen this team against Bristol City, Derby County and now Burton Albion there appears to be a common theme. Why an earth do we concede possession from the off, we are the home side we should be putting teams on the back foot. It's looks as if we are the away side relying on counter attacking. This has all got to be down to Mick as when you play at home by being on the front foot you encourage the supporters to get behind you. This does not happen! Before people knock me down I thought Cole Skuse had a decent game as he is there not for the pretty football but to protect the back four, break up the oppositions attack and get important blocks in which he did today. But again Bart has had to save us twice today, his save from the corner was world class. However this is a sad state of affairs when you are playing the bottom side (No disrespect to Burton at all), we are talking about how well our goalkeeper performed!

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Bert added 10:18 - Feb 11 We all agree that yesterday was awful and that both players and MM are responsible and accountable for such a woeful performance. Most posters on here provide an opinion based on what they saw but many of those listed by our veritable scribe simply come on here to down or up arrow just for fun. Phil must tear his hair out that this great site has been taken over by those who only want to abuse others.How sad is that ?

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Cloddyseedbed added 11:14 - Feb 11 I've waited a while to calm down before adding my thoughts. Yes it was the worst game I've seen this season on a cold bleak winters day. It takes a strange mentality to turn out to support your club in adverse weather conditions, knowing your most certainly not a good team anymore and your struggling and in fact coming out 2nd best to a team on the bottom of the league your in. The club in general is seen in a poor light nowadays by the media and fans alike, will it change, no it won't. Not while the present owner and MM are together. The only way things will change is with a more positive owner and manager. Clubs can not be successful being managed like we are at present. Cash strapped right across the club, from, entertainment at half time, refreshments, leaking roof's above our heads on match days and on the pitch boredom! If Evans hasn't the money or won't spend the money on basics it doesn't bode well to progress in any way shape or form, he is draining the club of all forms. He needs to get out or change. Neither of which I can see happening. What other football club would allow a manager to dictate to the club what players are brought in to the extent of players nobody else wants, journeyman on short few month deals and players who have bad injury records. They can't get in other teams in and around us or below. My god, I'm exasperated. The quality and in most parts effort is just not there for all to see. Ward arrived, scored a hat trick then drifted away to nothing. Celina, most gifted player but most of the time can't be arsed and not improved. Shows glimpses of what he can do and scores a bit but attitude problems, these players are allowed to get away with it for months on end. Apathy both on and off the pitch is rife! If players have bad games they are left in the team because they are good old boys, workers. Sears, classic example, hasn't done it for months, some would say longer, yet he's still given game time and at the club, why? Apathy. McGoldrick, dribbles around a lot when he's on the pitch, often final decision is wrong, hasn't done it for years, still here. Apathy. No inspiration from above, no aspiration from manager and coaches, just same old boring apathy! If you think giving MM another extension to his contract is acceptable and the same apathy allowed to continue within the club and MM telling all around him how good he is I'll despair. There are players here that are good, but need different coaches to install different tactics and approaches to games and improve their confidence. There are also many players here that are past it, injury prone or do not have the right attitude but are allowed to say comfortable. Move them on. We need inspiration not APATHY in our club. Evans and MM neither of you are fit for purpose. Regarding the game yesterday, like always, I attended. For the most of it was bored and cold, but the tactics, play and outcome was one I have been accustomed to on many occasions. After all, we were playing the bottom club, what more could we expect from our clubs present set up. They think it's ok to take inflated season ticket prices to watch such crap and whilst so many of us keep turning up the apathy will continue. Thank heavens for Bart, who I might add has been offered a new contract, but has yet to sign it. Without him I think we would be where Burton are now. No other positives or comments about yesterdays game I wish to make. Up until yesterday I was very pleased that MM seemed to almost certainly be leaving the club at the end of the season or hopefully sooner. Yesterday, with all that has been said in the press this week and MM's bullishness in press conferences this week I fear his cockiness is because him and Evans have renewed their vows for a further contract extension. FFS.......NOOOOOO. Season ticket sales for 2018/19, your having a laugh.

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dusty added 14:03 - Feb 11 I'm so upset by the whole situation that I no longer have the energy to write a post!
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wayway added 14:29 - Feb 11 For the first time in a long while I came away from Portman Road having lost my voice. Nothing to do with the actual game but trying to hold a conversation with the person sitting next to me. TEN ROWS AWAY
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greenkingtone added 16:54 - Feb 11 I fell asleep listening to it. Until something changes I am not freezing my ass off at PR.
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thechangingman added 17:04 - Feb 11 There's not much else to be said is there? It's truly heartbreaking to read of so many loyal, positive and articulate fans giving up, but I can't disagree with them. These are unprecedented low-times for Town and the worst thing is I can't see the light at the end of the tunnel anymore. I'll be Town till I die - but the club might be dead before I am...
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black_shuck added 17:36 - Feb 11 “The light at the end of the tunnel is just the light of an oncoming train.”
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Davidwb20 added 17:42 - Feb 11 For all those supporters who defend MM you must want this once proud club to totally collapse, supporters vote with their feet so look at the attendance for this home game. Sensible supporters stayed away away for this one!!
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JamesBlue91 added 00:03 - Feb 12 Mick McCarthy's RED ARMY, BARNSLEY FC!!!!! Mick McCarthy's RED ARMY, BARNSLEY FC!!!!!
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