Rowe yes DERBY HERO DELIGHTS WAGNER
DAVID WAGNER hailed Jon Rowe for the goal double that left Ipswich still searching for a first derby win since 2009.
Kieran Mckenna’s high-flying Tractor Boys blew the chance to leapfrog Leicester and go top.
Nathan Broadhead fired them ahead but two Norwich replies from Rowe either side of the break turned the game on its head.
And the East Anglia rivals had to settle for a point after Wes Burns levelled on the hour mark.
Norwich remain 21 points behind Town but boss Wagner was delighted with his players, especially Rowe.
He said: “He had two fantastic goals and I am very pleased for him. Was it his best performance? Probably not but to score two goals in a derby makes him very special. I am absolutely delighted with the effort the players put in. There was great attitude and super fighting spirit.”
Mckenna insisted his side had been superior but admitted the occasion may have got to them.
He said: “That was a 3-0 performance in the first half yet we go in at 1-1. Maybe we missed some chances because the game just meant a little bit more.” Broadhead put two wide before netting in the 34th minute. Norwich half-cleared a corner and George Hirst nodded across goal for him to convert from close range.
The lead lasted six minutes – when it was third time lucky for Rowe as well. He missed with a diving header attempt but Jack Stacey recycled it for another go. Luke Woolfenden blocked Rowe’s acrobatic kick but he scooped home the rebound.
Then less than four minutes into the the second half, Adam Idah headed a long throw into his path for an effort that went straight through keeper Vaclav Hladky.
Burns equalised for the Tractor Boys with a 20-yard drive that fizzed into the bottom corner. IPSWICH: Hladky 5; Clarke 6, Woolfenden 6, Burgess 6, Davis 6; Morsy 7, Luongo 7 (Taylor (90) 5); Burns 7 (Hutchinson (78) 5), Chaplin 6 (Harness (78) 5), Broadhead 6 (Scarlett (90) 5); Hirst 6 (Jackson (90) 5) NORWICH: Gunn 7; Stacey 7, Duffy 7, Mclean 6, Mccallum 6 (Batth (88) 5); Sara 6, Nunez 6; Rowe 8 (Hernandez (70) 6), Barnes 6, Sainz 6 (Placheta (88) 5); Idah 6 (Springett (87) 5) STAR MAN: Jon Rowe – England Under-21s star made sure Ipswich did not get the derby win they craved. REF: Josh Smith 7