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McKenna Reflects on West Ham Defeat and Ipswich’s Premier League Journey
Ipswich Town manager Kieran McKenna believes his side displayed many of the qualities that defined their season during their 3-1 loss to West Ham on the final day of the Premier League campaign.
Despite competing well throughout the match, McKenna admitted West Ham were more clinical in both penalty areas.
The loss marked Town’s ninth consecutive home defeat and 14th overall in the league this season—both club records—as they finished 19th in their first top-flight season in over two decades, 16 points adrift of safety.
James Ward-Prowse opened the scoring just before halftime, and although Nathan Broadhead equalised early in the second half, Jarrod Bowen swiftly restored West Ham’s lead before Mohammed Kudus sealed the win in the 87th minute.
“I thought it was a balanced game—we did a lot of things well and, at times, were the better team,” McKenna said. “We created more chances, but it’s about execution, and they were sharper in both boxes.”
He pointed to the decisive quality of West Ham’s attacking players, especially Bowen, whose involvement in the first two goals demonstrated the fine margins that separate success and failure at the Premier League level.
“Even when we made a mistake for the first goal, we still had players back, but Bowen found a perfect pass to Ward-Prowse.
Then, just after we levelled, he created something out of nothing with a brilliant finish,” McKenna added. “That’s the quality you face weekly in this league.”
He also stressed the physical demands of the division, noting that losing key individual duels often leads to chances against you.
Despite the result, McKenna praised his team’s attitude: “The spirit, organisation, and work rate were there.
We got into dangerous areas and played well in spells, but West Ham were just more effective where it mattered.”
After the match, Town players and staff were applauded by fans, a reflection of their appreciation despite a tough campaign that yielded just one home win—a 2-0 victory over Chelsea in December.
“We have fantastic supporters,” McKenna said. “They understand the journey—how quickly this group climbed through the leagues and tried to compete in the toughest environment in football. They’ve stuck with us and stayed united, which is something special and vital moving forward.”
He acknowledged the gap between the Premier League and the Championship, with the last six promoted sides all being relegated immediately, but felt Town’s performances showed they were closer to survival than the table might suggest.
“The margins didn’t go our way, but we weren’t outclassed week in, week out. We’ll be much stronger if we get back to this level again,” McKenna noted. “It’s a massive leap—financially and in terms of quality—but not an impossible one. If we thought it was, we wouldn’t keep fighting to return.”
Asked whether he’d study other relegated teams as he plans for next season, McKenna confirmed he would.
“You always look to learn,” he said. “Whether it’s from teams who’ve come up or gone down, we’ll analyse what worked, what didn’t.
We’ll speak to people at those clubs, gather insights, and apply the lessons to chart our own course.”
While each club’s journey is unique, McKenna believes in sharing experiences among managers.
“If you’re not in the same division, most are happy to talk. We all know what this job demands.”
