SOUTHWOLD-based Adnams has secured a five-year exclusive deal to supply beer at the Portman Road home of Ipswich Town Football Club.The agreement will see Adnams replace Bury St Edmunds-based Greene King as holder of the 'pouring rights' at the ground - but the new deal is viewed by both club and brewer as much more than a supply arrangement.

SOUTHWOLD-based Adnams has secured a five-year exclusive deal to supply beer at the Portman Road home of Ipswich Town Football Club.

The agreement will see Adnams replace Bury St Edmunds-based Greene King as holder of the 'pouring rights' at the ground - but the new deal is viewed by both club and brewer as much more than a supply arrangement.

Adnams and Town - which have a shared commitment to involvement with local communities - now aim to work closely together in a variety of ways, although plans are by no means yet complete.

Simon Clegg, chief executive of Ipswich Town, said: 'This is very much a partnership. We see a lot of synergies between Adnams' values and our own and we look forward to working with them over the next five years.

'Our respective teams will be spending time in the next few weeks brainstorming options for how the partnership can work. I could not be more excited for us to be working with such an established local name as Adnams.'

Mr Clegg continued: 'This is a very exciting time in the club's history, with the arrival of Roy Keane and the fans' expectations for the coming season, and this is also the most significant pouring rights deal in the history of the club.

'With the Greene King deal coming to an end, we went to the market and looked at a number of potential partners. Out of that process came Adnams, and it is a natural partnership for two iconic Suffolk brands to work together for their mutual benefit, and to the benefit of the community.'

The pouring rights deal means that Adnams beers will be available throughout the Portman Road ground, including kiosks, bars and corporate hospitality areas.

Besides branding at pump, Adnams will have perimeter board advertising around the pitch and will also have a brand presence in the concourse areas within the ground, to which the club plans to give a brighter appearance generally.

Andy Wood, managing director of Adnams, said: 'The Adnams name will be appearing at the ground but the partnership is about so much more than that. We do not just see this as a supply opportunity but as an opportunity for two innovative businesses to move forward together. We want this to be something very special in the football world.'

He added: 'We are highly delighted to be working with another Suffolk icon; our challenge now is how to make this the most innovative partnership in football. We look forward to working with the new team at Ipswich Town, and to the new season, with great anticipation.

'Adnams remains committed to working with local communities and this is a natural relationship for us, working with Ipswich Town to develop the two brands together.'

As a result in the change of pouring rights, the Greene King stand will become known as the South Stand.

The club's relationship with Greene King goes back to the mid 1990s when the Bury St Edmunds brewer replaced Fisons as main sponsor. Although energy company TXU - later to become part of E.ON - subsequently took over as shirt sponsor, the arrangement for Greene King to supply beer was renewed.