Player of the Month -- March 2006: Jason DeVos

Indeed, with the problems the club has had it's a miracle Town were even challenging at all.

The fact remains that by the end of the March, Town had lost just two out of their previous 14 league games suggesting that next season could see the Tractor Boys among the front runners once again.

With so many problems up-front this season, Ipswich were never going to score as many goals as they did when Bent and Kuqi scored 39 of Town's 85 in 2004/2005.

As such, Royle has had to rely on his back-four in order to grind out results that have enabled Town to remain in the top-half of the Championship table.

And whilst Town have only kept two clean sheets since the start of 2006, the back-four have conceded an average of just 1.4 goals per game since the start of the current season – just 0.3 worse than third place Watford.

The form of Jason DeVos has helped improve the standard of Ipswich's defence, and has meant the team no longer need to score four goals to win a match.

DeVos has shown tremendous strength and ability at the back and is well deserving of being handed the captain's armband when Magilton's not in the side.

He scored the opening goal of Town's crunch game at Preston this month with a classic header, and is an asset to the club in both penalty-boxes.

Having arrived on a free-transfer from Wigan in 2004, the Canadian international is yet another piece of shrewd business by Joe Royle, who can feel confident of Town's chances next year if the likes of Alan Lee and Danny Haynes can remain fit.

And who knows? It just might well be DeVos who is the first to lift the Championship Play-Off trophy next year at the new Wembley stadium. Well, let's hope anyway….