Ipswich Town boss bemoans Sheffield Wednesday ‘time wasting’ – said Owls moment worthy of world stage

First half goals from Michael Smith and George Byers seemed to set Wednesday on their way to a invaluable three points in what was a huge clash between the two promotion-chasing sides.

But a second half rally inspired by an outstanding 43rd-minute free-kick by Nathan Broadhead earned a deserved point for the Tractor Boys, who failed in their mission to make ground in the battle for automatic promotion.

Asked whether he felt Wednesday walked away happy from the clash, McKenna threw shade on what he perceived to be deliberate time wasting.

“The position they're in in the league there's no doubt they'll see it as a good point before the game started,” he said.

“The time wasting goes on from 65 minutes or whenever it was when we had big momentum in the game. Someone sits down for two minutes in the penalty area, someone takes another two minutes to walk off the pitch and comes back on.

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“That's what teams at this level do and it's not easy to find a solution to it for the authorities but I think it damages the spectacle and the product and the level of the football.

“But Sheffield certainly aren't the only team that do it so it's not to say it personally against them. It's just something that the league need to keep working on.

McKenna was largely magnanimous in what he felt was a point that better suited the visitors and praised Smith’s opener.

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The Northern Irishman continued: “Look, the first goal from them is incredible individual quality, it's why they're at the top of the league.

“It's a ball down the side on a quick free kick but [Josh] Windass is on his wrong foot and whips a beauty of a ball in and Smith runs across and heads in. And if any striker in world football scored that goal we'd all be purring about it so I think you have to give credit to their individual quality for the first goal.”