Ipswich boss' claims about Portsmouth's Championship experience fact-checked

‘If you want to count the Championship appearances between the two teams you would find an interesting match-up.’

Those three sentences formed part of the Tractor Boys manager’s response to a narrative, he believes, is being created about his side to suit the agendas of League One rivals.

And according to McKenna, Pompey’s Danny Cowley falls into this category, with the Blues head coach among those who flatter his side with ‘false kindness’.

It’s clearly something the Ipswich man wanted to get off his chest following his side’s 3-2 win, with the Portman Road side often referred to the division’s big-spenders following their takeover by an American consortium in 2021.

But was he right in his claim that Pompey have just as much Championship experience within their ranks and, therefore, should not be among the masses pointing a holier-than-thou finger?Well, the answer to that particular questions is…. erm, yes!

Having looked at both side’s squads for the 2022-23 League One season, there is, in fact, very little to chose between the Blues and Ipswich when it comes to Championship game time.

Twenty-one appearances, if truth be told – or if flashscore.com is to be believed in this instance.

The Tractor Boys do have the edge, with 1,363 second-tier outings amassed between its squad.

But Pompey aren’t too far behind as they can boast 1,342 Championship run-outs among their number.

Nearly a third of the Ipswich total is made up of defender Richard Keogh’s game time at other clubs (466 Championship games), leaving the rest of McKenna’s assembled squad picking up the pieces that remain.

That includes Sone Aluko (169), Sam Morsy (146), Lee Evans (120) and Dominic Ball (103) – all with 100-plus div two appearances to their names.

Yet Pompey aren’t exactly short of that expertise, either, as McKenna rightly points out.

Their most experienced player is former Reading and Birmingham defender Michael Morrison, who has 380 Championship matches under this belt to date.

However, Marlon Pack (270) and Ryan Tunnicliffe (255) are in the 200-plus club – something that only Keogh can boast in the Ipswich camp – while Michael Jacobs has 155 second-tier appearances behind him.

Pompey’s number includes important Championship game time for Josh Koroma (64), Joe Rafferty (62), Kieran Freeman (55) and Clark Roberston (44).

But in terms of the number of players with that level of games in the bag, Ipswich’s tally is somewhat superior.

In total, 18 members of McKenna's current squad have experience of that type of football – including Christian Walton (83) and Conor Chaplin (78).

And that’s five more than the Blues, with Owen Dale (15), Joe Pigott (12), Joe Morrell (11), Sean Raggett (10) and Louis Thompson (nine) making up their tally.

The Tractor Boys therefore have more experience spread across the board and in different areas of the pitch.

Yet, it’s worth noting there was more Championship experience in Pompey’s starting XI at Portman Road than their hosts.

The team that started the League One encounter for Cowley had 794 second division games between them, while the hosts had just 511 – with Keogh an unused substitute.

That gives more credence to McKenna’s observation.

But, like all good arguments, there are counter-claims when details are investigated.

For instance, Ipswich’s starting line-up on Saturday have all played Championship football at some point in their careers. Only seven of the Blues team picked by Cowley that day have, with Josh Griffiths, Connor Ogilvie, Colby Bishop and Dane Scarlett yet to play in the second tier.

Meanwhile, the Tractor Boys manager failed to mention that his squad has more Premier League experience than Pompey – and a lot more at that.

Indeed, there’s no comparison between 50 top-flight games and seven, which the Blues can boast.

Ipswich forward Aluko has the most game time in England’s top tier with 42 appearances for Hull, while Pompey’s top highest-level performer has just three – Ryan Tunnicliffe (all for Fulham).

In addition, throw the Scottish Premiership into the equation and Ipswich once again come out on top – 272 as opposed to the Blues’ 54.

Of course, the levels your players have played at is no real indicator of how good a team is here and now.

But this is football after all and any psychological advantage you can get over an opponent is seen as a win.

McKenna will feel he achieved that with his comments following his side’s 3-2 victory.

But while he did speak the truth to an extent, if you delve deeper it can also be viewed as a shallow argument.