Hartlepool boss Chris Turner has confirmed that his club have missed out on signing Cork City midfielder Colin Healy due to Town's late interest. News of the Blues' move for the 29-year-old broke yesterday afternoon with Healy understood to have made the trip to Suffolk last night.
Turner says his club were very near to landing the former Celtic man in a joint deal variously reported to be worth €50,000-€110,000 with fellow Cork player Denis Behan: "We were very, very close to signing Colin Healy, who in our midfield would make a massive difference.
"He was a leader, he would have been captain material. But unfortunately, Ipswich have come in for him at a late stage and look like pipping us. It's a little bit annoying after we've tracked him for quite a while.
"Ipswich have lost a game at Cork and decided they need a midfield player. That's the sort of quality of player that we lack in the midfield area.
"Those players don't come along very often. We worked hard to get Colin Healy and we've tried for the last two months."
Healy missed Sunday's friendly between the Blues and Cork City as he was talking personal terms with Hartlepool, where Turner was considering making his captain.