WITH two of their promotion rivals temporarily out of the picture, this was Ipswich's golden opportunity to move back into the top three in the Nationwide First Division.

That they failed was due to a mixture of solid defending by fast-improving Sheffield United and an inability to take their chances, especially in the first half.

Ipswich manager George Burley's search for striker back-up over the past week has taken him to Belgium and Norway after a bid for Huddersfield's Marcus Stewart was turned down.

In David Johnson, Burley has the First Division's leading marksman who reached 14 goals this season when he scored a smartly dispatched penalty in the last minute of the first half yesterday. But he badly needs someone to share the responsibility.

Ipswich completely controlled the opening half and managed to play their smooth passing game despite the blustery conditions.

With the division's longest unbeaten record, they should have gone in at half-time with a greater advantage than Johnson's penalty, awarded when a cross from the right struck Michael Brown's arm.

Sheffield United manager Neil Warnock admitted as much afterwards. But Warnock's team, the club he has supported since boyhood and always yearned to manage, have lost only once since his arrival at Bramall Lane on Dec 1 and they made Ipswich pay.

Warnock pushed Paul Devlin forward after the break and it was from his flick-on that Marcus Bent scored his eighth goal in as many games after 53 minutes.

"I had to point out some truths at half-time," said Warnock. "We could not have played any worse. But in the second half we deserved the draw and could even have nicked it."

Burley could only rue his team's failure to take advantage of the League inactivity of rivals Charlton and Manchester City.

"We got caught with a sucker punch for their goal," he said. "We've set some high standards this season but after half-time we let those standards drop."

Daily Telegraph