By Joe Richards

Cardiff boss Russell Slade was pleased his side were able to grind out a 1-0 win over play-off rivals Ipswich Town.

Bruno Manga’s first half header was enough to see the Bluebirds over the line and keep them within one point of sixth placed Sheffield Wednesday.

And it opened up a three point gap over the Tractor Boys as City recovered from Tuesday’s disappointing defeat by Leeds.

Slade, 55, said: “It was a big win. The three points are huge at this moment.

“I’ve said it’s about the results at this time.

“We’ve had a fantastic game on Tuesday, I thought we played really well and yet we’ve collected nothing for our efforts.

“Today was a different type of game, against a direct team and we’ve had to defend really well.

“You can only control what you’re doing. We’ve got nine games to go and we are still chasing as many points as possible to secure a place in the top-six.

“It was important to get the result. The fans were fully behind us, it was great to see that again. I’m delighted that they’re behind me.

“We’ve ground out a result today and I’m proud of the players. We’ve had to be ugly in terms of defending.

“It wasn’t pretty at times but it was important we protected our goal. We need to dust ourselves down and get ready for Reading next Saturday.

Next week’s trip to Berkshire will be important to gather momentum before tough games against promotion chasing Derby County and Burnley.