TWTD understands that Scott Loach will sign for the Blues tomorrow. The 24-year-old Watford keeper has been at Portman Road this evening to undergo a medical and will complete a £150,000 switch from the Hornets on Thursday.
A deal is all but agreed and the former England U21 international appears certain to become Town's new number one, despite reported interest from Blackburn.
Loach is unlikely to join up with the Blues squad in Holland for tomorrow’s match against Den Bosch but will be a Town player well in time for their UK-based friendlies.
The Nottingham-born keeper, who we reported was the subject of a Town enquiry in late June, was previously with the Blues’ academy between 1997 and 2000 before his family relocated back to his home town. Town's other senior keeper Arran Lee-Barrett would also have been at the academy at the same time.
Loach had previously been linked with Town on a number of occasions during the close season, having said it would be "a dream to play” for his boyhood club one day last summer.
The 6ft 4in tall keeper established himself as Watford’s number one during 2008/09 but after a drop in form fell out of favour at Vicarage Road last season with Manchester United’s Tomasz Kuszczak — Town’s number one keeper target until he joined Brighton - coming in on loan.
In addition to his spells as a youngster with the Blues — where he will have worked with current keeper-coach Malcolm Webster and returning academy director Bryan Klug - and Nottingham Forest, Loach was also with Southwell United and Lincoln City's youth set-ups, spending time on loan with the likes of Bourne Town, Radcliffe Olympic, Boston Town, Spalding United, Stamford, Lincoln United, Gedling Miners Welfare and Grantham Town while with the Imps, who will receive 15% of the fee the Blues are paying the Hornets.
In April 2006, Loach moved on to Watford, Lincoln receiving £50,000 in compensation. Prior to breaking into the first team at Vicarage Road he went on further loan spells at Stafford Rangers, Morecambe and Bradford City.
Loach can be seen in action for Town’s academy in this short film.