Roy’s Ipswich ready for battle

ROY KEANE’S Ipswich Town have been gearing up for the Championship season by sampling a taste of army life.

The Tractor Boys have been at the Colchester Garrison over the last two days where they were put through their paces by members of the British army 7th Parachute Regiment Royal Horse Artillery.

The players and staff were broken up into four groups, with Keane and the coaching staff making up one group and after just about surviving the assault course, they underwent a series of physical and mental challenges, including transporting a barrel away from a target area using just a length of rope, with former Cork City defender Damien Delaney receiving top marks for ingenuity.

The groups were also shown how to build a camp shelter for sleeping overnight before heading for some shooting practice.

Those instructions on shelter building came in handy overnight as the players and staff were left to construct a place to sleep in order to keep out the heavy rain that was forecast.

Keane was pleased with the commitment shown by his squad and staff.

“We wanted to take the players out of the comfort zone and that was certainly achieved,’’ he said.

“You are pushing them mentally and physically, and showed the importance of teamwork, discipline and leadership. It was hard work and the players are tired but I think they enjoyed it and their attitude was spot on all the way through.

“We have a long hard season in front of us and there will be setbacks along the way but what we learned about the group in the two days will stand us in good stead for that.’’

Keane also thanked their British army trainers, all of whom had served in Afghanistan and Iraq, who put him and the players through their paces, saying: “The staff were great and really pushed us. It gave us an insight into their life. It was also a reminder of how lucky we are to get well paid for doing a job we love.’’