2010 sees the end of one era and the start of another for the Steve Walsh column. After enjoying a great association with the Leicester Mercury over the years, it’s time for the Walsh man to move on.

I’d like to pay tribute to Chris Goddard and everyone at the paper’s sports desk for their help and support over the years. I loved writing for the Merc and I wish everyone there all the best for the future.

Don’t worry, the column isn’t disappearing, it will still be issued weekly every Friday, in a new and exciting online blog format on the Soar Magazine website.

This Sunday sees Roy Keane’s Ipswich Town visit the Walkers Stadium. After a stuttering start Ipswich are turning things around. The board kept patient with Keane despite a long run without a win and they’re obviously confident he’s the right man for the job. Either that or they’re too frightened to give him the boot!

The Tractor Boys have started to slip through the gears in recent weeks and despite their lowly league position, they’ve only lost once in their last 13 fixtures. We’re on a decent run ourselves though, winning three on the bounce in all competitions, so I’m expecting a really tight contest.

As a player, Roy Keane was a combative character. I expect his players will be full of grit and determination, and battle and fight for every ball.

I was pleased to see Nigel Pearson extend Martyn Waghorn’s loan until the end of the season. He’s been a revelation so far and it’s a cracking bit of business to tie him up until May.

With the transfer window open, I’m sure Nigel and his staff will be looking at bringing in a few players, probably on loan. A few new faces at this stage of the season can provide a boost to the rest of the squad.

Milan Mandaric is the one holding the purse strings, so we’ll have to see. I interviewed Chris Powell in the Lineker suite at the Swansea game as part of my matchday hospitality. I asked him if any we’d be bringing in any new faces and he just laughed at me and joked: “Only you can get away with asking me that one. You’ll have to ask the chairman!”

Matty Fryatt has again been linked with a move away from the club, with Wigan rumoured to be interested. I think we should keep Fryatt at the club. I’ve always liked him, he’s proved he can score at Championship level and his goals could fire us to the play-offs.

I’m sure Nigel keeps the lads pretty grounded, and Matty is a sensible lad, which is refreshing with the way the game is now. When you see the likes of Jermaine Beckford slapping in a transfer request just days after scoring against Manchester United, it’s clear that there’s no sentiment in football anymore.

I have to congratulate my former city teammate Simon Grayson as his Leeds side dumped Man United out of the FA Cup. Larry’s doing a cracking job at Elland Road and to beat United at Old Trafford is a massive achievement.

I’m still in touch with Larry and sent him a text before the game to wish him all the best. He’s starting to get a bit big time now and doesn’t always reply! I think he needs to remember his roots a bit more!

After City knocked Swansea out, I was slightly disappointed with drawing Bristol City or Cardiff. You’d always prefer a home draw in the cup and a trip to either will be a bit of a trek for the fans.

It would’ve been nice to have drawn one of the big boys and have a proper day out, somewhere like Stamford Bridge or The Emirates. It’s another decent chance for us to progress though, and if a few more Premier League teams start crashing out, we could be on for a bit of an FA cup run, which is something I never had, sadly.

The club announced this week that they intend to move from the Belvoir Drive training ground to a brand new, ultra modern site. It can only be good news for the staff and the players, but that place holds so many memories for me and I’ll be sad to see it go.

I remember when I first joined the club and the changing rooms were just a small wooden hut in the corner. There used to be this hole at the back of the fence near the YMCA building and if any of the players got in trouble with the manager, we used to sneak out before the end of training!

My wager will carry on a usual, well, hopefully with me winning a bit more cash for charity! This week I’m backing Arsenal, Fulham and Sunderland to win. Fitzy from Turner & Kendrick will be donating a £25 bet for Wishes4Kids as always.

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