Welcome back to Portman Road for this afternoon's game against Coventry, who come to us in a good run of form with four wins in their last five Championship games. They went through a difficult spell earlier in the season but they have turned things around and are certainly looking up the table now rather than down.

They beat us on the first day and that result and performance has been indicative of our season so far. We gave away two bad goals, created chances, played some good football in patches but for all our huffing and puffing, we didn't do enough to get the three points.

We didn't put the ball in the net and it cost us and it's still costing us.
I've been pleased with the recovery we have shown over the last couple of months but we've not been able to win the close games. That's why we have ended up with so many draws and draws don't get you up the table very quickly.

Last week was another example. Getting a draw away at Leicester, who are in the Play-Offs and having a good season, could be seen as a good point but we could have had three. It was probably a fair result but after scoring in the first minute, we had chances to make it two.

Apparently that was the fourth time we have scored in the first five minutes in our last five games. I'd love to offer words of wisdom on why that's happened but I can't! Just as I can't explain why we conceded goals early on at the start of the season. It's not as though we said 'let's go a goal down lads!' It's a welcome habit though, scoring first. The stats are there to show in the Premier League and Championship, that if you go one up, you very rarely get beat.

I was glad to see the Football League gave our goal at Leicester to David Norris. We have missed the boy, no doubt about that. We have missed his energy, his enthusiasm. He's a big player for us and if he hadn't been injured for the first half of the season, we wouldn't be in the position we are in the table.

That's a compliment to the lad. It's not an insult to the other players but I don't think it's a coincidence that since he's been back with the group, the results and the performances have improved.

David is one of the players that brings something to the dressing-room. Stern John is another. Some people might say, 'he's not scored for us yet' but they don't see what Stern brings to the group, what he brings when we are on away trips. He has a presence about him and he will be with us for a second month on loan and we'll see how things develop from there.

I made three changes at Leicester to the team that beat Blackpool in the FA Cup and while I appreciate the advantage of a settled side, I follow my gut feeling when I'm putting my team together.
I take the opinions from my staff on board, that's what they are paid for, but I follow my instincts and what I see during the week in training. For me, the previous game is forgotten. I look at the body language of the players, the atmosphere during the build up to the next game. I'll look at the opposition, who they might not like playing against. It's Coventry today and Stern used to play for them. Some players love scoring against their old clubs so does that come into it?

I'll go with my gut feeling though. That doesn't mean I will always make the right decisions. I won't but I trust my instincts.

We have let Liam Trotter and Tommy Smith go out on loan for a month and Colin Healy has joined Falkirk on loan until the end of the season. He'll be a good signing for them and I'm glad he's going to Scotland because I think he'll benefit from the buzz of playing against Celtic and Rangers.

Brian Murphy misses today's game after his injury at Leicester last week but we hope to have him back in a week or two. It means we are in the same situation as before Brian arrived with young Ian McLoughlin as back up to Arran [Lee-Barrett] but we coped for six or seven weeks before, so we will sit tight until Brian has recovered.

Enjoy the game.