Although much of the attention will be on the exciting collection of talent that the Tractor Boys currently have at their disposal, it is also interesting to delve into the past and analyze some of their players from the past who you simply won’t believe are still playing in 2023. Their playing squad has significantly changed over the years.
Carlos Edwards, a stalwart of Ipswich’s relatively recent history, gets things going for us.
Edwards, who is equally skilled playing on the right flank or at right back, was acquired in 2009 after leaving Sunderland. He made 191 appearances over a five-year span before moving on to Millwall two years later.
Spells back in Trinidad and Tobago, where he is from, did come after, but intriguingly, he has now spent the last six years playing in Suffolk—if you will—what you would call a second home.
These stints were held with Woodbridge Town, Bury Town, and most recently Hadleigh United, where he signed a contract in the summer.
Amazingly, Edwards will celebrate his 45th birthday – yes, you read that right – next month, so you simply have to stand back and appreciate how dedicated he is to remaining in the game irrespective of the level.
Hadleigh currently ply their trade in the Eastern Counties League and they are placed in the Premier Division (step 5).
Kevin Bru
34-year-old midfielder Kevin Bru is strutting his stuff a bit further away from Portman Road than Edwards is, but the fact that he is still playing arrives as a surprise nonetheless, and so too does the league in which he is turning out in.
The French-born Mauritius international made just north of 100 appearances for Ipswich between 2014 and 2018 and has continued to transpire as something of a journeyman after his departure, too.
Stints in Cyprus, Romania and in the lower leagues back in the homeland have followed, but Bru is now playing in Iceland with IBV Vestmannaeyjar, having also signed during the summer.
He has made three appearances for them to date, with two of those being starts.
Michael Chopra
We did tell you to brace yourself for some surprises, and did you expect to read that Michael Chopra is still playing in 2023?
Chopra has seen it all, having previously graced both the Champions League and the Premier League before emerging among the second tier’s most feared goalscorers in the late 2000s, which he maintained during his first season with Ipswich in the 2011/12 campaign after signing from Cardiff City.
The goals dried up the following year and he ended his two-year Portman Road stay with 18 strikes to his name before leaving for Blackpool and embarking upon a more nomadic career.
And, as of 2022, the latest destination is West Allotment Celtic, which sees Chopra back in the familiar territory of the North East.
Due to the extremely low level in which the striker is playing at, official statistics are not available to access, but with nothing stating that Chopra has since departed the club or announced his retirement, it is safe to assume that he is still there.
Sito Castro A lesser-known name both on English shores and among younger Town fans perhaps, Sito Castro may well have evaded the memory and you will be shocked to find out that, at the ripe old age of 43, he is still playing football.
Castro spent three years at Ipswich between 2005 and 2008, with the rest of his career both before and after being played out in his native Spain, and nothing has changed on that front either.
It is now believed that he is playing in the fifth tier of Spanish football with the reserve side of CD Calahorra.
Brett Pitman Brett Pitman is also still kicking about at a lower level.
One of the great goalscorers of Bournemouth’s history, Pitman was never quite able to truly find his feet at Ipswich after making the move in 2015 and returned to the south coast two years later with Portsmouth, having scored 15 times from 70 matches in Town colours.
Initially a big hit at Fratton Park, the goals eventually dried up there and he moved on to Swindon Town and Bristol Rovers before once again returning to the south coast with non-league side AFC Portchester.
Unsurprisingly, Pitman recaptured his goalscoring form there and scored 44 times in the 2022/23 season.
The 35-year-old is now with Shaftesbury in the Wessex League Premier Division.
David Norris
ou can be forgiven for completely forgetting that David Norris still plays football at the age of 42, but he is yet another former Ipswich player who has decided to keep playing against all the odds that accompany that sort of age.
The attacking midfielder made 118 appearances for Ipswich across a three-year period and after spending time with Portsmouth and Leeds United, he has descended the footballing pyramid.
From Yeovil Town to Leatherhead and from Salford City some time before League Two to Shaw Lane and Boston United, Norris has now spent the last five years with Lancaster City in the seventh-tier.
Again, you simply have to respect it.
Conor Sammon The 9-cap former Republic of Ireland international was just never quite able to cut it in English football, and the ill-fated 20 matches he featured in for Ipswich during the 2014/15 campaign while on loan from Derby County were absolutely no exception to that either.
Formerly prolific in Scotland, Sammon returned north of the border in 2016 to sign for Hearts and is still going to this day with third-tier Alloa Athletic.
Ben Pringle
The fact that he is still playing and the team he is now playing for make finishing off a big surprise.
Currently at Fleetwood is Ben Pringle.
No, Fleetwood United from Dubai plays in the United Arab Emirates’ third tier of football, not Fleetwood Town from League One.
They are a Seasiders sister club, and Pringle was hired by them after leaving Altrincham in June to serve as a player/coach.
The 34-year-old midfielder made 10 games while on loan with Ipswich from Fulham in 2016 and scored twice.
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