Ipswich Town extended their unbeaten run to 11 games in all competitions, coming from a goal down to beat Plymouth Argyle 3-2 at Portman Road.
The Blues fell behind early on thanks to a screamer from Morgan Whittaker, but an own-goal from Bali Mumba saw the two sides head into half-time level before George Hirst and Marcus Harness struck, winning the game despite Joe Edwards' late consolation.
You could tell inside the opening 20 seconds that this was going to be an open game. Both sides needed some last-ditch defending to keep the other at bay, while Town fashioned the first chance in the third minute.
A sumptuous ball from Leif Davis down the left picked out Nathan Broadhead, who had space to run into but very little support. He still managed to cut inside and find Conor Chaplin, who in turn looped the ball over to George Hirst, who looked to be offside. The flag stayed down as Michael Cooper rushed off his line, but he managed to whisk the striker’s tame effort off the line.
It took a moment of magic to open the scoring, but it was Plymouth who provided it in the seventh minute. Morgan Whittaker brought the ball forward down the right, cutting inside past George Edmundson before curling a stunning effort into the top left corner from outside the area. Vaclav Hladky stood no chance.
Aside from a few brief moments, the Blues looked disjointed in the opening stages of the game. The visitors didn’t turn the screw, but they had chances to capitalise on sloppy passes and lethargic defending, which are incredibly uncharacteristic when describing this team.
The quality was nowhere near the levels that we’ve come to expect from them, but the grit and determination from the likes of Sam Morsy, Massimo Luongo and Brandon Williams made up for it to an extent, with strong tackles denying the Pilgrims a chance to test Hladky as the clock ticked towards the half-hour mark.
With their attacking threat looking severely weakened, Ipswich relied on corners, but often ended up playing them short where Plymouth quickly rushed to close down Davis and Omari Hutchinson, who were unable to pick out a cross into the box.
The Pilgrims remained persistent, however, with a quick pass playing substitute Mustapha Bundu in behind Town’s defence and clean through on goal. George Edmundson rushed back and brought him down inside the box, but the referee deemed that he got the ball and opted against awarding a penalty.
It woke the hosts up in the final minutes before half, as Broadhead was presented with a golden opportunity to equalise as he was played down the right. He held onto the ball for too long, however, and his shot was eventually blocked.
They did get their goal in the first seconds of first-half stoppage time, as a goalmouth scramble from a corner led to a backheel from Luongo, which deflected off former Norwich City man Bali Mumba before trickling into the net and catching Cooper off guard.
Plymouth knocked on the door in the early stages of the second half, with Davis at fault for a calamitous pass that they almost capitalised from. In truth, he found the first half of the match tough in terms of picking out the right pass, but he managed to find Hirst with a superb through ball, allowing the striker to rush through on goal and fire Town into the lead in the 55th minute.
An exceptional tackle in the box from Luongo prevented Argyle from equalising just seconds later, before a quick counter up the other end saw Hutchinson spin his man and fire a deflected shot at goal to win a corner.
As the clocked ticked on, Plymouth started to find their feet, and Ipswich started to realise that they had to sit a little deeper instead of vigorously pushing for a third goal. Hladky made an excellent save to deny Dan Scarr from a corner in the 78th minute as the visitors turned the screw.
That being said, Ipswich can carve through teams at will when given the chance, and Steven Schumacher's side gave them that chance in the 86th minute as Davis delivered a low cross from the left. It found substitute Marcus Harness in the middle, who saw his first shot blocked before firing the rebound into the net.
Plymouth refused to lie down and accept defeat, as a quick ball from the right found Joe Edwards unmarked in the middle of the box. He took a touch before calmly tucking the ball into the back of the net in stoppage time, but it couldn't help his side avoid defeat in Suffolk.
Town XI: 4-2-3-1: Hladky; Williams, Woolfenden, Edmundson, Davis; Morsy, Luongo (Taylor 65'); Hutchinson (Jackson 77'), Chaplin (Clarke 83'), Broadhead (Harness 65'); Hirst (Scarlett 77')
Attendance: 29,027
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