KENNY Jackett is happy with the progress Millwall have made in their debut season back in the Championship.

The Lions sit ninth in the table and just two points off the play-offs after 13 games ahead of Saturday's trip to Ipswich Town.

Jackett has always said he would give his side at least a dozen games to prove they can cope at this level and so far he believes they have risen to the challenge.

The manager said: “Generally we’ve been very pleased with what we’ve done so far.

“There is room for improvement and I think there always is.

“We’ve had some good days and some bad days but so far the good days have exceeded the bad ones and we have to carry on with that.

“It is also important we learn where we can get better and make every effort to do that.

“The Championship is a terrific league and very competitive one.

“We’ve learnt that mobility and ability on the ball are big in your team and you need to have good athleticism in your side because I’ve found it is a very athletic league.”

He added: “The step up from League One to the Championship is the biggest one in that respect and as a team your side need to be athletic and good on the ball to compete at this level.

“The players have to always improve and work hard in training to improve their game to make sure they can adapt to the division.

“We are always looking to see if we can improve and add to our team, which isn’t something we’ve closed the door on in the future if we think there is someone who can come in and improve us.”

Despite Millwall’s current position in the table, Jackett is taking nothing for granted in what remains a very tight division.

He explained: “A win or two and you can look near the top, a loss or two and you can be looking at the bottom. That is the way this division is.

“The gap between sixth spot and the relegation places isn’t a very big one in terms of points.

“When you see the likes of Middlesbrough in the bottom three, you do see how hard and how tough it is.

“We have to make sure we get the maximum amount out of everybody in the club and if we do that we can continue to look upwards rather than down.”