Town boss Mick McCarthy has told new signing Kieffer Moore to go out and try to emulate the success of previous non-league recruits Michael Kightly and Tyrone Mings, the 24-year-old striker having signed an 18-month deal from Forest Green Rovers earlier today. Art lunchtime, TWTD revealed that Moore was at Portman Road and was close to completing his move.
McCarthy signed Kightly from Grays Athletic in 2006 when Wolves manager with the winger going on to play in the Premier League with the Molineux club, Stoke and Burnley.
Mings joined the Blues for £10,000 - the fee Town are believed to have paid for Moore - from Chippenham in 2012 before moving on to Premier League AFC Bournemouth in the summer of 2015 for £8 million.
McCarthy says Moore is far from his only signing at Town that fans won’t have known much about when he joined.
"Tom Lawrence, you didn’t either, to be fair, and I seem to remember Ryan Fraser, you didn’t either,” he said.
"I just said to Kieffer, just be careful, don’t be going on social media because we’ve had million pound bids in for players and it’s not happened and now we’ve got one in from Forest Green.
"Don’t be looking at [social media] and getting, ‘If that’s the signing of Ipswich…’ because two of my very best signings have been Michael Kightly and Tyrone Mings, who cost diddly squat and because they’ve got that hunger in them, they want to do well, they want to progress up the ladder, they’ve done brilliantly.
"Take heart from them, not from multi-million pound ones or bigger signings. I’m happy having a hungry one, me.”
Absolutely over the moon to have joined @Official_ITFC Excited by this massive opportunity and I can't wait to get going!!! âš½ï¸ #itfc pic.twitter.com/w6nM94bE5b– Kieffer Moore (@KRFMoore) January 14, 2017
McCarthy says he first spotted Moore playing alongside Lawrence for Yeovil in the Championship in 2013/14.
"He hit the post in the 90th minute that night [at Huish Park when Town won 1-0] when Tom Lawrence played well and caught my eye.
"He caught my eye then, he’s since gone out to play for Viking [in Norway] and then he’s come back and he’s at Forest Green.
"That doesn’t bother me. I look at the big centre forward for Lincoln last week [Matt Rhead], how much trouble did he cause? Bloody hell fire. Would we have liked him in our team? On a lot of weeks this season, yes I would.
"There are players about that can be a real asset for us, and I think Kieffer will be one of them.”
What sort of player is Moore? "I think he’s 6ft 6in tall, but he’s mobile, he’s quick enough, he’s got a decent touch.
"What I like about him is that he just doesn’t use his height, his weight and his strength, he actually goes and attacks the ball and that’s something that we don’t have.
"And we’re failing to get that anywhere else in terms of making bids for others, and so I’m delighted, I’ve got a relatively young, hungry one coming in.”
He says there are other players currently being targeted: "We’ve got bids in, but I did say it would be a tough window because people don’t want to sell anybody and that’s the case.
"We’ll keep trying but if they’re too expensive, if you can’t afford the house you’re looking at, the favourite house, it’s unlucky, you can’t buy it.”
He added: "We’ve had three or four one million pound-plus bids in for players, but they’ve all been kiboshed.
"We’re still working on them and trying to do them, but if they’re too expensive I can’t do owt about it.
"And what you really have to do if you spend that money is get somebody in who is better than what we’ve got, who will make an impression.
"Hopefully that’s what we’ll do and if we can’t I don’t see any point in going anywhere else and getting somebody that’s going to be here for three years and not make an impression.”
Rotherham striker Danny Ward is believed to be one of the players the Blues have targeted, but with plenty of Championship clubs - now including QPR and Norwich City, we understand - also interested.
Millers boss Paul Warne confirmed this evening that the South Yorskshiremen have turned down two bids for Ward, who missed today's 2-1 victory over Norwich with a back injury.
The Blues are also reported to have had a £1.5 million offer for Preston’s Jordan Hugill rebuffed with both McCarthy and Lilywhites boss Simon Grayson having confirmed Town’s interest if not that a firm bid was made.