It’s a monochromatic day with sepia tones and we hurtle into the horizon. Tarmacadam ends and sky begins with barely a change of colour.
Autumnal trees a myriad of hues reduced to fifty shades of grey, truncated heightened shapes appear and disappear whilst the nothingness measured in hundreds of metres only is pushed away at a constant seventy miles an hour courtesy of cruise control.
At any one time our vehicular vision never exceeds the number of fingers on both hands, nothing else exists.
Welcome to life on the road as a travelling football fan.
Portman Road, illuminated, luscious lux levels with a metallic bluish Kelvin light you cannot fail to fall in love with, in the same way that those of us old enough fell in love with the Baseball Ground, it has a life, an entity not a soulless plastic Lego kit.
Picture painted, the Rams kick off. Four, five, one, Will Hughes, Paul Coutts and Craig Bryson in the centre of midfield, Theo Robinson wide right and Michael Jacobs wide left.
We lose possession as soon as we gain it. We concede their half of the pitch. We sit back and… Ipswich run at us, they slice and dice. Still we stand off as shots rain in from all angles and distances of over thirty yards.
We aren’t at the races as Blue Shirts find Blue Shirts; we dash around like a puppy dog searching for a ball skilfully hidden by its owner.
Adam Legzdins keeps brilliantly before DJ Campbell blatantly offside takes advantage and the Tractor Boys a one goal lead. And whilst the goal was clearly coming, to be behind due to an error by the official who was right in line with where we were sitting and the player who received the ball from a flick on was annoying to say the least.
Twenty three gone and we continue with 4-5-1, Jay Emmanuel-Thomas waltzes past James O’Connor, Jake Buxton, Richard Keogh and all before Legzdins deals with his powerful shot from six yards out. On this performance and if justice is done, then Adam should keep his place come Saturday, no matter what.
We can’t continue like this, we are being slaughtered, we realise and switch Robinson upfront with Coutts to the right hand side.
Conor Sammon who had been floundering now has a partner and we have a strike force with emphasis on the word “force”.
We take the game to the home side, caution is thrown to one side, Sammon sets up Bryson who shoots and Henderson in the Ipswich goal parries the ball. Robinson reacts quickest and levels the scores with his second goal in two matches.
Second half and it’s kamikaze football, do or die, we trade blows and look the stronger. On our left, drifting in to the centre, Jacobs is a revelation, he drives, he takes on the opposition and wins. He exhibits close control and excellent first touch, he needs encouragement and a free role. Shots, crosses, skill and work rate just what we have been missing.
We press, we win corners and if we played in “skins” then Nigel Reo Coker’s game would be dramatically lessened as time after time he clings to Theo’s shirt to stop him jumping.
At the other end Emmanuel- Thomas wins everything in the air, O’Connor tries his best but the Ipswich number nine is on fire, Legzdins again coming to the Rams rescue pushing away a blazing strike from the ex-Luton man.
Meanwhile Michal Chopra and Jason Scotland enter the fray and Chopra is cautioned rightly so for following through on Keogh.
Ben Davies and Nathan Tyson are added at the expense of Jacobs and Robinson as the game looks to be heading for a draw.
With less than a minute to go a low hard cross is slammed in on the six yard line by Sammon. Tysons’s outstretched foot meets and greets it and the ball slides home to give the Rams an unexpected victory.
In the stands the 329 diehard Derby fans less the few that left early go absolutely mental.
Tyson celebrates in front of us and milks the applause which no one begrudges him at all.
Harsh perhaps on the home side who had done enough to warrant a share of the points but that’s football.
A grey day suddenly becomes full of colour.