[Ska'dForLife-WBA]

A fortnight ago it wasn't to be, despite Albion giving as good as we got in the second half at Southampton. So we move on, but not to easier prospects: 2nd placed Ipswich are Saturday evening's visitors the Hawthorns, hell-bent on promotion under ambitious American owners and well-placed to achieve it as their current tally of 39 points is, together with Leicester, the most any club has notched from the opening sixteen matches of a Championship campaign. A ding-dong defeat to Leeds in August is their sole setback of the campaign so far, though 2-2 draws against Birmingham and Rotherham at the beginning of the month also took a little wind out of the sails; nevertheless, they're unbeaten on the road, with Nathan Broadhead and Conor Chaplin the usual scorers of their avalanche of goals and left-back Leif Davis the prolific supplier. Albion have lost only one of the last eleven in the league against the Tractor Boys, and the last Ipswich win at the Hawthorns was back in March 1999, but the current points gap between the sides suggests that history may not be the best guide to Saturday's tough encounter.

A trip to Cardiff on Tuesday night follows, where 2021's 4-0 win remains Albion's only triumph since 1974. A home defeat against Norwich took them into the break, so we travel to Wales knowing it's not Mission Impossible, but nonetheless it's a tough nut to crack. With Leicester on the horizon the following weekend, we could do with taking something from these games, but realistically anything we get will be a bonus in a difficult fortnight.