Ipswich Town’s promotion heroes were soon drenched in Champagne as they celebrated promotion back to the Premier League.
The Tractor Boys are back in the top flight after a 22-year absence thanks to a dominant 2-0 over Huddersfield, with Wes Burns and Omari Hutchinson scoring in each half. It heralded back-to-back promotions for Ipswich and confirmed the visitors’ relegation to League One.
Ipswich boss Kieran McKenna has overseen a remarkable turnaround in the club’s fortunes – and promotion this season saw them become the first team since Southampton in 2011 and 2012 to win successive promotions to the Premier League from League One.
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Therefore, you couldn’t blame the players for celebrating wildly when they got back to the dressing room and the bubbly flowed as they chanted, “We are going up!” Meanwhile, outside, jubilant fans belted out, “Super Kieran McKenna” as an entire town partied.
McKenna’s achievement in guiding Ipswich from League One to the Premier League has been 15 years in the making. Forced to retire from playing through injury aged 22 while on Tottenham ’s books, McKenna embarked on a coaching career alongside studying for a sports science degree.
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Once he had graduated, the Northern Irishman was handed a permanent role in the Spurs youth set-up, before moving on to Manchester United’s academy in 2016.
It was at Old Trafford where McKenna was promoted to the first-team coaching staff, along with now-Middlesbrough boss Michael Carrick, by none other than Jose Mourinho.
Even though Mourinho moved on after his spell at United turned sour, McKenna kept his role under both Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and then Ralf Rangnick. Meanwhile, Ipswich were floundering in 11th place in League One, and in December 2021 had just been held to a goalless FA Cup draw by League Two Barrow.
The Portman Road board sacked Paul Cook, former manager of Portsmouth and Wigan, and raised eyebrows two weeks later when they handed the relatively unknown McKenna – then 35 – his first managerial role.