Ipswich 0-1 Stoke

Liam Lawrence's strike settled the points at Ipswich and kept Stoke firmly in the Championship promotion picture.

On-loan Sunderland midfielder Lawrence latched on to Lee Hendrie's cross and fired in the winner from 12 yards.

It made amends for his earlier glaring miss from six yards as Stoke made the running and created the best chances.

Ipswich only flickered in front of goal, with Jonathan Macken heading their best opportunity straight into Stoke keeper Steve Simonsen's hands.

Ipswich manager Jim Magilton:

"I don't think this was a game we should have lost. We looked solid up to a point and handled their big strikers very well.

"I don't think we had real conviction and belief we could win the game. We could have hurt them more than we did.

"Now we must not wallow in the disappointment and must pick ourselves up for Tuesday's match at Coventry."

Stoke manager Tony Pulis:

"Liam Lawrence produced an exceptional finishs. We are looking to our wide players to join in and try to score.

"Liam's formed a smashing relationship with the rest of the group and always gives 110%.

"Before the start I was concerned about missing Michael Duberry in defence but youngsters Lewis Baxter and Carl Dickinson have done well for us.

"It was very important to bounce back after losing at Colchester and we certainly showed a bit of character. We need 13 points to be safe from going down."

BBC Sport