"But I have a lot of time for Jim as a man and as a footballer. I admire him immensely. I wish him well and I wish the club well."
Royle also says there was no animosity between him and the club following his departure in the summer of 2006: "I am still in touch with plenty of people at the Ipswich - I speak to chief executive Derek Bowden regularly and I have spoken to chairman David Sheepshanks.
"Every club I managed was dear to me - and all four played in blue! Ipswich is special to me - I look for their scores every week and I always read the websites to find out what's going on. I love Ipswich Town - I have a lot of time for the club."
Click here for a full record of league finishes by every Ipswich Town manager of the professional era ontaining full league tables & results along with historical league tables from after every game.