Board backs Keane to the tune of �4m

IPSWICH Town manager Roy Keane was unequivocally backed by his board yesterday when they pushed through the �4m double capture of Sunderland midfielders Grant Leadbitter and Carlos Edwards.

IPSWICH Town manager Roy Keane was unequivocally backed by his board yesterday when they pushed through the �4m double capture of Sunderland midfielders Grant Leadbitter and Carlos Edwards.

And it emerged late last night that the Suffolk club came agonisingly close to adding another defender to their ranks - understood to be Reading right-back Liam Rosenior on a season-long loan deal - just before the transfer window closed at 5pm.

Should that deal not be ratified by the Football League today, it is possible that Town could try to revive a deal next week when the emergency loan window opens.

The club are also believed to have worked hard to sign Sheffield Wednesday centre-back Richard Wood in a frantic day of negotiations at Portman Road.At one stage over the weekend it looked like the combined deal for Leadbitter and Edwards would collapse following a bad start to contract talks.

However, owner Marcus Evans and chief executive Simon Clegg came up with the goods and landed the new faces that Keane admitted he was so desperate for after a poor start to the season.

Meanwhile, despite Keane having invited bids for any of his players from rival managers, not one player was sold.