Ipswich Town’s set-piece leveller against Bolton was dreamed up at Playford Road on Thursday morning.

With the Blues a goal down at Portman Road, heading towards the break, Lee Evans broke to the near post to expertly guide Conor Chaplin’s low corner into the back of the net, with the goal ultimately earning Ipswich a point.

Set-piece work has been high on the Ipswich agenda this summer, in a bid to turn a weakness into a strength, with Evans delighted to find the net and ensure the Town’s training ground work was rewarded at the first time of asking.

“When we were in Loughborough (for a pre-season training camp) we had a long meeting and chat about set-pieces and how important they can be for us and how we needed to be better. Defensively and attacking.

“It was really good for us as a team to get off the mark with a set-piece on the opening day.

“It was one, to be fair to the coaching staff, that they put on us on Thursday so it was lovely for it to come off.

“It was a great ball by Chappers and for me it was about not hitting it too hard, finding the right connection and making sure it went in.”

The two players looked to repeat the trick in the second period, with Evans shot blocked on that occasion, before another corner saw the Welsh midfielder meet a deep Chaplin corner and force a save from James Trafford with a well-placed header.

“We’ve talked about having in-swingers from both sides so it gives me a good chance to get in the box,” said Evans, who was making his competitive return after a knee injury ended his 2021/22 season in February.

“I’m a big lad who should be getting on the end of things so to be a threat in the box is pleasing.

“For me personally to be back on the pitch after such a long time out was an amazing feeling. I’m really happy. I’ve missed days like this.

“It was a brilliant atmosphere. I was so excited for the game today and our amazing crowd can be massive for us this season.

“We can’t thank them enough for coming out in their numbers and hopefully they keep on coming.”

Discussing Ipswich’s opening-day draw, Evans said: “We’re a bit disappointed.

“Credit to Bolton because in the first-half they probably put in the perfect away performance, making it tough for us, but we’ve talked about being resilient.

“Going down one-nil at home, with big expectancy on us on the first day of the season, I think we showed great character in coming back and getting into the game before taking control in the second half.

“We had a few chances to win it but it wasn’t to be today, so we’ll take our point and move on.”