Striker Luke Varney is joining Burton Albion with his short-term Town contract not being renewed. The veteran frontman has signed an 18-month deal with the Brewers, having trained with them for the last couple of days.

Varney, 34, rejoined the Blues for a third spell in August as cover for the injured David McGoldrick and has made four starts and 11 sub appearances this season, scoring three goals. His contract was due to end on January 12th.

Overall, having initially joined Town on loan from Blackburn Rovers for the final three months of 2014/15, the much-travelled frontman made 14 starts and 32 sub appearances for the Blues, scoring five times.

Burton boss Nigel Clough told their official site: “He’s a good, experienced Championship player who we hope will help us out in the second half of the season.

"He plays a few different positions, wide midfield or up front and we know Luke from our time at Derby.

“He’s featured for Ipswich this season and got a couple of goals as well but wanted to come back to the area and he will be a good addition to our squad.

“He gives us something different to what we have got and is a good signing for us at this stage. He only signed a six-month deal at Ipswich which is why he is available in January.”

Varney, known as Reg during his time with the Blues, says he'll look back fondly on his time at Town.

“I have finished on a good note at all my clubs but Ipswich will always stay close to my heart," he told the club site.

"They looked after me after a serious injury, the fans have been great with me and there's a great group of lads there as well. It was difficult to leave but a new challenge will keep me hungry going forward.

“Once I made it aware that I wasn’t going to be staying at Ipswich it was a bit of a risk me playing in the cup for them this weekend, with my contract ending a couple of days later, so I’m thankful to the club and the manager, Mick McCarthy, in letting me come out of it a bit early so I could get this move sorted.

"It's a deal that allows me to move back home closer to my family, although I do so with a heavy heart.

“I have nothing but good things to say about the club and all the people at Ipswich. I loved my time there and I wish them all the best for the future."

Photo: TWTD

acefromspace added 14:21 - Jan 4 Old Mick will be in a state losing one of his favorites. Never mind he still has Douglas .
2

iaintaylorx added 14:21 - Jan 4 Doesn't set the word alight, but always gave 101%, and if only our whole squad gave that much passion, then we'd be flying. Good luck Luke and will always get a good reception if/when he returns to PR. Good news is, this frees up some wage bill so there must be someone coming in!!
7

WhoisJimmyJuan added 14:22 - Jan 4 Is he manager material for the future?
3

Lightningboy added 14:25 - Jan 4 Hard worker but just not good enough sadly - just like a lot of our squad. We are in no man's land under the current set up.
5

martin587 added 14:26 - Jan 4 Scored a few vital goals and when he did play gave 110%.suffered with a very bad injury but kept going.I wish you all the very best Luke.
7

Seasider added 14:37 - Jan 4 Bluebell-re your last para,I hope so too;but will probably be the bloke that Fulham don't want. Good luck to Reg, who despite only being a little younger,is much more mobile than Douglas,and I feel has well earned a stay in the Championship;hope they are not our rivals in a relegation battle though.
6

sgtlargent added 14:39 - Jan 4 Nothing against him but for those claiming he scored some 'great' goals, one against Derby was GK error and another which eludes me was pretty lucky. Good to luck to ya but I for one won't be losing any sleep, this club will never get anywhere signing 34 yo journeymen. This level of short sightedness has contributed to our stagnation in 'recent' years.
-7

algarvefan added 14:43 - Jan 4 You can never knock a player for giving his all, that's the best anyone can do, I liked Reg and thought he added something to our squad, he was a great example to younger pro's at the club and I'm sorry to see him leave. Good luck Reg and thank you for all your efforts. We should by now be building for the future, so lets hope this signals an incoming young striker.
17

BlueMachines added 14:44 - Jan 4 One of the best headers of the ball I have seen at this club. He rarely lost a header, even against some of the biggest defenders. Good luck Luke.
12

battyblue added 14:47 - Jan 4 Well done Reg top man all the best for the future always played with passion and gave 100%.
10

Len_Brennan added 14:47 - Jan 4 Sorry Brentwood, downvoted you through a combination of clumsy fingers & a small phone screen.
1

righty added 14:51 - Jan 4 1 out 1 in rumour has it super Mick is bringing in the fabulous Frank Nouble he raved about him once welcome super Frank
2

therein61 added 14:56 - Jan 4 Good luck to you Luke hope it goes well, thanks for your wholehearted displays in a town shirt.
6

Vizslaraner added 15:01 - Jan 4 Best wishes Luke, an honest wholehearted player who I wish we had earlier in his career. Nice words to the fans who appreciated your effort for the team. Not the most technically gifted but he always gave his best.
13

runningout added 15:18 - Jan 4 got a feeling we won't be adding to our squad this week..
5

shakytown added 15:20 - Jan 4 Will probably relish playing against our shoddy defense.
2

Cakeman added 15:32 - Jan 4 It's all been said really but very best of luck Reg you did us proud when called upon and always played with great heart.
8

12th_Man added 15:39 - Jan 4 Announcea new signing ffs town
2

EatonBlue added 15:40 - Jan 4 He travelled to Burton by bus presumably?
5

dukey44 added 15:48 - Jan 4 Surely we got a proper striker coming in.......???
2

joepublic added 15:54 - Jan 4 Finally a storey I enjoyed reading! A wholehearted player leaving on good terms and winning himself a good little contrat which hopefully leaves us free for a new 1st team striker. And a reminder that we supported a player during such a horrible injury.
7

BackTheBlues added 16:18 - Jan 4 May not have been the most talented, but was certainly one of the most committed on the pitch! gave 100% every game and you could tell when he was disappointed when we didn't win! PLeasure of meeting him once and had a good chat just after his injury. Top bloke and didn't have a bad word to say about Ipswich! Could only do with more like him!
8

WeWereZombies added 16:47 - Jan 4 You're either on the buses or you're off... Useful player, I wonder if he'll go on and on like Teddy Sherringham?
1

TractorRoyNo1 added 16:57 - Jan 4 Little birdy tells me BEST going back to Rotherham as part of deal.
3

Battyboy added 17:00 - Jan 4 Good luck Vaney, true professional. Hopefully Morris, Blanchfield, McDonnell will get an opportunity to progress into the first team squad.
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