By Saturday night we were, we confess, struggling to pick out an Irish player of the week, when up popped Tom Heaney's e-mail to bail us out. "We here at the Ipswich Town Supporters Club (Navan Branch) think that Matt Holland deserves to be the player of the week, especially having made his way back into the Irish squad and in light of his 5,000nth consecutive appearance for the East Anglicans."

Matt it is then, we said, not least because if the lad has made 5,000 consecutive appearances his engine must be quite extraordinary. The award is probably overdue, though, because it has been a particularly good season for the Ipswich captain who, despite having just signed a new contract with the club, is still being tipped for a move to the Premiership, with Spurs and Newcastle the current favourites. If he can make it to the Premiership WITH Ipswich this season they'll be dancing in the streets of Navan.