How magic McKenna pulled off the Ipswich revolution
Their swagger and style has the town buzzing — and today they can return to the top flight for the first time since 2002
Kieran McKenna began his coaching journey on crutches. He was aged just 22, and coming to terms with the premature end of his playing career after a second major hip operation when Tottenham academy bosses invited him to join them.
Just for a taste of it. To see if he liked the idea. Turned out he liked it a lot. Turned out he was pretty good at it, too, just as those who extended the invitation knew he would be, and McKenna set about plotting a route to the top.
The early steps involved a sports science degree at Loughborough University, coaching the students in non-League and nottingham Forest’s Under 9s in the evenings and spending summers coaching in north america.
now, 15 years on, McKenna is one point from back- to- back promotions with ipswich Town, on the brink of becoming a Premier League manager, taking his club back to the top flight after a 22-year exile.
Over the past two seasons, no team in the top four divisions of english football has accumulated more points (191) or scored more goals (191) than ipswich. Only Manchester City and arsenal have a better points per game ratio.
‘absolutely fantastic,’ says George Burley, the last ipswich boss to win promotion to the Premier League in 2000. ‘Kieran is already the eFL Manager of the Year for the Championship and must be in with a shout of winning the LMa award. He is a frontrunner in this new generation of modern coaches.’
The LMa present the Sir alex Ferguson Trophy to the best manager of the year, which would mean the world to McKenna, who was born and raised in northern ireland supporting Ferguson’s allconquering Manchester United.
He also worked at Old Trafford, where he was in charge of the Under 18s with Michael Carrick until summoned to assist Jose Mourinho and then integral to Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s backroom team.
‘as a young player he was always thoughtful,’ says Chris ramsey, who was on Tottenham’s coaching staff when McKenna’s playing career ended. ‘There’s nothing worse than having to stop playing. He was a youth international and had been injured for a long time.
‘it was difficult for him, but he was the type you would look at and think if he wasn’t going to play, he might coach, and that’s the next best thing.
‘The coaching fraternity at Spurs would embrace people and bring them through.’
John McDermott, now technical director of the Fa, and alex inglethorpe, academy director at Liverpool, were in charge of the Spurs youth set-up. They got McKenna out coaching before he had recovered from the hip operation. They also advised him to leave Spurs, study at Loughborough and find his own path.
‘That takes guts,’ says ramsey. ‘To leave the place where you’re comfortable. To go and learn the trade methodically.
‘He was very young but when i saw him earlier this season at QPr, i could see he had matured and developed into what he is. He has a good chance of becoming a stalwart in the game.’
Ipswich were 12th in League One when McKenna arrived in December 2021, but ambitious american owners were ready to back him in the transfer market from the outset, signing players such as Leif Davis and nathan Broadhead on seven-figure fees to get out of League One.
In January, in the grip of a run of one win in nine Championship games and an embarrassing Fa Cup exit to national League South side Maidstone United, they backed him again.
McKenna signed ali al-Hamadi from aFC Wimbledon and three loan signings, Kieffer Moore from Bournemouth, Jeremy Sarmiento from Brighton and Lewis Travis from Blackburn.
Omari Hutchinson, signed on loan from Chelsea last summer, has flourished in the latter stages of the season. in return, players he inherited have kicked on. experienced captain Sam Morsy has enjoyed a new lease of life.
all playing a stylish brand of expansive football which has seen Portman road packed out and rocking again, reviving memories of Sir Bobby robson’s team, Fa Cup winners in 1978, UeFa Cup winners in 1981 and twice runnersup in the old First Division.
‘at ipswich, we want to see a team pass the ball and Kieran certainly does that,’ says Burley, who was a full back under robson and became manager in 1994.
‘i was brought up playing under Sir Bobby when training was all
about passing the ball. The fans booed if we passed it back to the keeper, but football has changed. We can see everybody is building up from the back, and it’s great to see them playing with attacking full backs. Leif Davis works the entire left channel on his own, he’s left back, wing back, left midfield.
‘It’s been great to watch. Ninetythree points and only six defeats and a group of players who have worked for each other to get there.’
There will be a party atmosphere at Portman Road for the visit of Huddersfield Town today, when a draw would secure automatic promotion ahead of third-placed Leeds, who are at home against Southampton.
‘It will be massive for the town to go up,’ says Burley. ‘There have been some dark days. Not bringing players through the academy and doing away with the community projects, not looking after the ground and fans not enjoying the football.
‘This season, you can’t get a ticket and when I’m out walking my dog in the morning, everybody wants to talk football again. It’s all credit to Kieran. He has brought this team together and brought the town back together.’