Hughton wants job done

Chris Hughton is desperate to see Birmingham clinch the play-off place he feels they deserve.

Fourth-placed Blues, who have had to juggle the demands of the Europa League this season, moved to within one point of securing a top-six finish with Tuesday's 1-1 draw at Ipswich, Jay Emmanuel-Thomas cancelling out Chris Burke's opener. "We're close but we've still got to play two very tough games, and they don't come much tougher than Brighton away and Reading at home," Hughton said. "I'm desperate for this group of boys to cross the line because they've been excellent all season. They deserve it because of the amount of games they've had to play and the spirit they've shown. I hope we can take the required point we need." Speaking after the draw at Portman Road, Hughton added: "It was a fair result. Ipswich put us under a lot of pressure in the second half and they've got the players who can do that, especially in wide areas. "At times they were excellent. They played with a certain freedom and we had to soak up a lot of pressure, but we're a resilient group and hard to beat. Ipswich missed chances, as did we, and in the context of the overall game I thought it was a fair result."