Town have announced that Mike Cooper will start work as the club's first ever Director of Finance from January 1st. Cooper is a local man and a Town fan and had been working as a director at KPMG for 17 years, five spent on in London and twelve in Ipswich. At KPMG he managed companies of varying size, some with turnovers as large as £60 million. One of the companies he was involved with was Ipswich Town.

Of the new appointment chairman David Sheepshanks said: "I am delighted that Mike Cooper is joining us and he brings with him strong all round skills in the financial world. We are growing rapidly as a business with our turnover increasing from £10 million last season to a projected figure in excess of £22 million this season. Strict financial control has been the cornerstone of our growth in recent years and with the ever increasing demands on us it is crucial that this remains the case."

Cooper himself said of his new job: "Having worked with the club I am pleased and excited about this new position. The need for this appointment reflects the club's growing financial stature. I am looking forward to the challenges which lie ahead and to working with such a great team of staff, many of whom I already know through my working relationship with the club."

Town skipper Matt Holland has spoken about summer interest from last Saturday's opponents Middlesbrough. Holland's boyhood hero is Boro manager Bryan Robson and he says that the interest was very flattering: "As far as I'm concerned Bryan Robson was the ultimate midfielder and apparently he rates me as a player. That's a massive compliment - but Ipswich are my club and this is where I'm staying."

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