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

Swailsey added 13:00 - Jan 4 Best of luck Luke - thanks for all of your efforts and vital goals this year.
69

Mr_Evans added 13:03 - Jan 4 Must've be a striker on his way in then 🙏
15

Mr_Evans added 13:03 - Jan 4 Must*
1

TractorCam added 13:04 - Jan 4 I'm actually gutted, really liked Reg. Good luck Varney, fingers crossed this means someone is coming in
27

Mark added 13:04 - Jan 4 Well done to Luke for getting an 18 month contract with a Championship club at the age of 34, and my thanks to him for his effort and enthusiasm during his time at Ipswich. He often made an impact when coming on as sub and definitely had the right attitude, especially after the horrific injury. Hopefully this is also a sign Ipswich are about to sign a new striker. We're all waiting patiently. Someone 10 to 15 years younger than Varney on a permanent contract would be nice.

67

Suffolk_n_Good added 13:06 - Jan 4 Good luck Reg, always struck me as a 100%'er, wish you well for your future.
43

Cloddyseedbed added 13:08 - Jan 4 Good luck Reg as a supporter I for one appreciated your effort and commitment for the club. You did really well in getting back from that bad achilles injury that you picked up later in your career. Wish you well you deserve it.
50

Radlett_blue added 13:11 - Jan 4 Another one of the umpteen journeymen to have had a brief & unspectacular Town career over the last 10 or so years. Nothing against Varney, who certainly seemed to give his all, just a sign of Town's endless malaise.
-10

RYITFC added 13:12 - Jan 4 Glad Mick has done this, not that i had anything against Reg but because he's often been accused of keeping/playing players because he likes them even if they're not really good enough. Hopefully we'll have a new striker by the end of the week.
9

BlueySwede added 13:14 - Jan 4 Can´t say anything else than that he gave his all for the club. Good luck Luke!
24

runaround added 13:14 - Jan 4 Good luck Reg & thanks for all your efforts
22

BrettenhamBlue added 13:15 - Jan 4 Well done to Varney on getting a contract with another Championship Club. Hopefully he won't be scoring against us anytime soon! Good bit of business by Burton.
17

Pencilpete added 13:18 - Jan 4 Whilst I fully understand the negativity Varney was a fully committed player who always gave his all for us and scored one or 2 important goals as well so I think we should just thank him for those efforts and wish him well at Burton. It's a good move for us as we can (Hopefully) get someone younger and better but good for him as well as he has got himself 18 months with a Championship club.

17

Bluebell added 13:19 - Jan 4 That's a shame. A passionate player who was good off the bench. Some great goals this season too. Good luck to him. Hopefully it means a striker is on his way. I won't hold my breath though as with Pitman, Didzy, Sears (yes he is a striker!) and Best we might just settle with them. Mick says he is looking for a replacement for Murphy so maybe he will bring in someone we are all excited to see here.

14

Michael11 added 13:25 - Jan 4 Good luck to him. Although he's not the most gifted player, he never gave any less than 100% for us. Burton will be a good move for him. Hopefully we'll have someone to announce soon.
11

DebsyAngel added 13:30 - Jan 4 Best of luck Luke. Always rated you even though you didn't play as often as I hoped. Always looked enthusiastic to play and always tried, and was happy to be part of the club.
11

goat_man added 13:34 - Jan 4 Poor quality player with no stand out abilities. Certainly tried his heart out though and for that I wish him luck.
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hampstead_blue added 13:38 - Jan 4 In some ways it's a relief. Nothing bad about Reg, but if he's not here then MM can't be tempted to play him! Can we repeat the exercise with Best now.
6

PJH added 13:46 - Jan 4 Good luck Luke. Thanks for all your efforts for ITFC.
10

RedWhiteAndBLUE added 13:50 - Jan 4 Good luck Reg and thanks- you always gave 100% whenever I saw you play.
12

sidtheswan added 13:51 - Jan 4 Nice to make a comment and not moan . Thank you for your all your efforts and in my opinion you always have given us 100% and good luck at Burton.
10

carsey added 13:54 - Jan 4 Nothing but praise for Varney Always worked hard Scored a couple of cracking goals and I haven't seen anyone who could jump like him since Kevin Beattie (which shows how old I am) Hopefully it means McCarthy has something sorted for a striker coming in and Varney doesn't score against us later this season.
15

TractorBeezer added 13:56 - Jan 4 Thanks for your contributions to the Tractor Boys. Best wishes with your new club Reg!
11

mickeyjb added 14:06 - Jan 4 Glad for him, always did his best and that's all we could ask for
10

BrentwoodBlue78 added 14:12 - Jan 4 The signs were there when MM started calling him 'Varns' instead of 'Reg' !
3

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