Ipswich Moves into Second Place with Controversial Late Penalty

Ipswich's hopes of automatic promotion were boosted after a contentious late penalty earned them a 2-2 draw against Middlesbrough, leapfrogging them back into the top two in the Championship. The visitors had taken the lead through David Strelec, but Kasey McAteer equalized before Tommy Conway restored Boro's advantage. However, a penalty awarded after George Hirst went down under minimal contact from Adilson Malanda allowed Jack Clarke to level the score with just three minutes remaining. The result moves Ipswich back into the automatic promotion places on goal difference, while Boro's chances of finishing in the top two appear to be slipping away. Boro boss Kim Hellberg admitted that securing second place would be a difficult task, while Ipswich manager Kieran McKenna praised his team's dominant first-half performance.