Last-gasp swoop!
Reporter: TONY BUGBY
Date published: 02 September 2009
Latics beat the clock to sign winger Colbeck
ATHLETIC clinched a deal to sign Bradford City’s Joe Colbeck only three minutes before yesterday’s 5pm transfer deadline.
The 22-year-old winger, one of two deadline-day captures by Athletic, agreed a two-year contract for an undisclosed fee.
Colbeck had a brief spell on loan with Athletic manager Dave Penney at Darlington.
Athletic have also moved to bring in left-back and former Eire under-21 international Alan Sheehan from Leeds United on a one-month loan deal.
The 22-year-old began his career at Leicester City, but has spent the last two seasons at Elland Road.
Penney is delighted with his fresh faces.
He said: “With Deane Smalley likely to be out for two or three months with a bad back, we needed somebody with natural width and Joe provides that. He is an old-fashioned winger who has pace and he will go past opponents.
“We have been unable to open up teams, and hopefully Joe will be able to do that.
“Alan is a good left-back. We need balance and we have him for a month which gives us time until we get over the injuries to Joe Jacobson, Paul Black and Rob Purdie, who can all play in that position.”
It was a busy day at Boundary Park as Athletic released left-back Peter Gilbert and Polish goalkeeper Przemyslaw Kazimierczak.
The pair, who had been on week-to-week contracts, wanted longer-term deals which Penney was unable to provide.
Penney will be looking to bring in an experienced ’keeper as back up to Dean Brill when the window opens next Tuesday for emergency loans.
Athletic’s woes continued last night when, apart from losing to Accrington Stanley in the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy (report on Page 34), their casualty list lengthened further.
Andy Holdsworth came off after an hour feeling unwell. There are fears that he has the virus which has swept through the youth team and which this week struck down Keigan Parker, who was an absentee last night.
ATHLETIC’S totesport.com League Cup tie at Middlesbrough today was postponed at the request of the Boundary Park outfit.
Athletic have a total of 15 players unavailable from their first team and development squads.
The list includes five of their Hungarian players, who have been called up into the national under-19s side.
