ANDY Drury has signed for League Two Crawley Town on a three-month loan deal.

The 27-year-old has struggled to make the step-up to Championship football after Paul Jewell signed him from non-league Luton Town in January – making just four starts and eight more appearances from the bench.

And having fallen well down the pecking order at Portman Road, Drury has now joined up with former Blues defender Tom Eastman.

Although Ipswich have yet to confirm the move, Crawley’s official website has claimed the deal is in place and could lead to a permanent deal in January.

Drury, who is said to have trained with Crawley this morning, told their official website: “I was desperate to get some first-team action and as that did not look as if it was going to happen at Ipswich Town in the short term this is a great move for me.

“I just want to get my head down and work hard. There are a number of talented players here and when everyone is fit there will not be many better than us in League 2. I am looking forward to training today and doing well enough for the manager to think about me for Saturday.”

Delighted Crawley boss Steve Evans added: “There is no secret that I am a big admirer of Andy Drury. We tried very hard back in January to sign him from Luton Town but it was not to be.

“I spoke to Andy at the start of the week and he showed a real desire to be with us. That was important to me as I only want players who want to work hard and contribute to what we are trying to achieve.

“He is a big strong lad with great ability and our supporters will take to him in a big way, he is a match-winner and a great signing.”