Mick McCarthy described Ipswich's performance as his side's best this season after they cemented second place in the Championship with an emphatic win over a woeful Leeds.

For a few brief minutes, a shock looked on the cards after the visitors took a fourth-minute lead, Mirko Antenucci tapping into the empty net after Stephen Warnock's cross. But the lead lasted only eight minutes and by half-time Ipswich were 3-1 up.

They equalised through a powerful header by the in-form Daryl Murphy before his strike partner David McGoldrick stroked in a penalty after Warnock bundled over Paul Anderson.

Just before half-time, Murphy burst clear to fire low under Marco Silvestri before a fourth followed three minutes after the restart, Tommy Smith credited with the goal despite Christophe Berra possibly getting the final touch to the goalbound header.

McCarthy beamed: 'That was as good as we have played all season for a number of reasons. We went 1-0 down and had to recover against a team who are playing well. We scored four goals and our all-round performance was very good.

'The goal just after half-time [Ipswich's fourth] was the crucial one. You are always on red alert as you don't want to concede, but I actually got a bit cold in the last five minutes. It was nice not to be biting my nails at the end for a change.'

A dismal week for Leeds, which saw their owner, Massimo Cellino, asked to step down by the Football League after breaching its owners' and directors' test, got worse on the pitch.

They were hit by goals either side of half-time and offered little in a dismal second-half performance. The Leeds manager, Neil Redfearn, refused to use the turmoil off the pitch as a reason for his side's poor showing.

When asked about Cellino, Redfearn said: 'That would be an excuse. We have had all week to prepare and whatever happens [with Cellino] is for the powers that be at Leeds United.

'After such a great performance against Derby last week [winning 2-0], it is disappointing to come back down to earth with a bump. Our performances were gradually picking up week on week, but today was an off day.

'Ipswich are a good side, they are second in the table for a reason. We started brightly with a well-taken goal but we took our foot off the pedal for whatever reason.

'You can't come to places like Ipswich Town and give sides a leg-up - but that's what we did.'

The Observer