U's new boy Easter set for a Posh debut

Carl Marston

JERMAINE Easter is in line to make his Colchester United debut at Peterborough tomorrow after the U's wrapped up the signing of the Welsh international striker last night, on loan from Plymouth Argyle.

U's boss Paul Lambert is a big fan of Easter, because the two linked up effectively while Lambert was the manager of Wycombe Wanderers.

Cardiff-born Easter shot to prominence at Wycombe from 2006, after previous spells at Wolves (trainee), Hartlepool, Cambridge, Boston and Stockport. Lambert was the Chairboys boss for two seasons between 2006 and this year.

The 26-year-old has the distinction of scoring the fastest ever league hat-trick by a Wycombe player - it took him just 22 minutes to net three goals against Bury in August, 2006.

He was also a key figure in Wycombe's successful run in the Carling Cup, scoring in each round as the Buckinghamshire club made it all the way to the semi-finals in 2006-07. He even scored against Chelsea in the home leg of the semi-final, which ended in a draw.

During his time at Adams Park, he broke into the Welsh squad and also attracted interest from Premier League clubs Manchester City and Blackburn Rovers.

But he ended up signing for Plymouth instead, for a fee of £210,000. His chances at Home Park have dried up this term, and he actually played against Colchester last month while on loan at Millwall, appearing as a substitute on the hour mark as the Lions secured a 2-1 win at the Community Stadium.

Millwall had extended that loan deal to two months, but without the guarantee of regular football at the Den, Plymouth were able to recall him via a 24-hour clause and so pave the way for Lambert to step in and snap up his old striker on loan.

Easter will be on loan at the Community Stadium until the start of January. He is the third loan player to be signed by Lambert since his appointment six weeks ago, following in the footsteps of fellow striker Sam Williams (Aston Villa) and left-back Lee Hills (Crystal Palace).