Have Gifton's goals come too late?

The biggest of all will be if only Gifton Noel-Williams had arrived sooner.

The difference Noel-Williams has made was plain for all to see again at Portman Road.

It is not just the two goals he has scored in four games. He is the focal point of the attack, a target to hit, a target missing ever since Adam Virgo's irresistible summer sale to Celtic.

Albion hunted high and low for a replacement. It certainly wasn't for the want of trying that they had to wait until last month's loan transfer deadline to land Noel-Williams.

A whole variety of reasons - not least of which was sheer bad luck - prevented the Seagulls from signing a striker earlier.

Manager Mark McGhee, reflecting on a gallant second away win on the trot, said: "When I think how hard we've tried, where we have looked and the players we tried to get.

"There was just no one available. Gifton was the first one and it's not as if he was sitting up in Burnley and we didn't think to phone him.

"We asked about Gifton and others and when he became available we took him. Let's hope it's not too late.

"Gifton was the difference (on Saturday) between us being a football team and something else. All season we've missed that.

"The last six games it's no coincidence, three draws, two wins and a defeat. We've got a proper centre forward."

Noel-Williams was not around for the first two of those games, draws at home to Preston and away to QPR, but his opener in first-half stoppage time against Ipswich followed a debut header in the home draw against Luton and supplying the cross for Paul Reid's early effort in the victory at Millwall.

Two goals in four games and two wins is a pretty useful return.

It is, in all probability, too late after Worthing-born Marcus Tudgay struck, ironically, at exactly the same stage of Sheffield Wednesday's home win over Norwich.

Albion have, however, given themselves a glimmer of hope, which will burn much brighter if they beat the Owls today.

The Seagulls go to Molineux on Saturday, where there is considerable unrest at Glenn Hoddle's failure to guide McGhee's old club Wolves to at least a play-off place.

Sheffield, meanwhile, host rampant Reading. They have showed no signs of flagging since wrapping up the title and you can guarantee that Steve Coppell, so fond of Albion after his stint as manager, will have them fired up at Hillsborough.

It could then all come down to the last day again, when Albion entertain bogey side Stoke and Sheffield visit Derby.

Sheffield also have the advantage of an eight better goal difference, although that will be halved if the Seagulls can win by two today and could be further eroded by Reading even if the Seagulls only managed a draw at Wolves.

McGhee would, at this stage, surely settle for any sort of chance on the final day.

He admitted getting it wrong by persisting with three strikers to start with in the home defeat by Southampton but he got his team selection right against Ipswich.

Guy Butters returned for the injured Adam Hinshelwood and Kerry Mayo was recalled at the expense of Adam El-Abd, not at leftback but on the left side of midfield in preference to the fit-again Alex Frutos.

The most intriguing decision was reverting the versatile Gary Hart to rightback.

Hart played a leading role, initiating the move which led to Noel-Williams' breakthrough with a crunching tackle on Alan Lee and then defending as well as anyone during a brief period in the second half when Ipswich threatened an equaliser.

McGhee said: "It was a great performance which required concentration and a bit of discipline with our shape.

"I thought the shape was right. It was important we picked the right team after last week and I think we did.

"The temptation was to bring Alex Frutos back or Seb (Carole) back and even Adam Hinshelwood was talking about wanting to play after training on Friday but I felt he just wasn't quite right.

"We made the right decisions and then it was up to the boys to go out and play well and every single one of them did.

"Again we had a question do we play Reidy at rightback and Gary (Hart) in front of him? We decided to play Gary there because we feel at the moment Reidy has maybe got a goal in him and Gary is a tackler."

It was Hart's challenge on Lee midway inside the Albion half which enabled Dean Hammond to release Colin Kazim-Richards down the right.

Noel-Williams was given too much space by young substitute Chris Casement, on in place of a groggy Richard Naylor, to turn on the cross and drive home from ten yards.

Kazim-Richards also played a part in the clinching second goal, and first at senior level for Joel Lynch, with 18 minutes remaining.

He challenged keeper Shane Supple for a cross from Reid after a corner had not been properly cleared by the Ipswich defence and the ball broke for Lynch to stroke in.

It was easy to see why Ipswich had been thumped 4-1 at home by Stoke the week before. Enterprising going forward, they were wide open at the back to counter-attacks. Albion, and Reid in particular, ought to have punished them earlier. A header by lively sub Nicky Forster, after Lee headed a centre from former Seagull Darren Currie across the face of goal, came too late to save Ipswich. Has Noel-Williams come too late to save Albion?

ALBION (4-4-2): Henderson 8; Hart 9, McShane 8, Butters 7, Lynch 8; Reid 6, Carpenter 7, Hammond 7, Mayo 7; Kazim-Richards 8, Noel-Williams 8. Subs: El-Abd for Reid (withdrawn 74), Gatting for Noel-Williams (withdrawn 83), Carole for Kazim-Richards (injured 88), Martin, Frutos.

IPSWICH (4-4-2): Supple; Wilnis, Naylor, De Vos, Barron; Currie, Juan, Garvan, Richards; Lee, Haynes. Subs: Casement for Naylor (injured 37), Forster for Juan (withdrawn 59), Price, Bowditch, Brekke-Skard.