Robbie Cowling has revealed Freddie Sears “seriously considered” staying at Colchester United before leaving to join Ipswich Town.

The U’s chairman insists they offered Sears the best deal they possibly could, to remain at the Weston Homes Community Stadium.

Sears, whose contract was due to expire at the end of the season, has joined Ipswich on a two-and-a-half year deal after rejecting the chance to stay at the U’s.

The 25-year-old has moved to Portman Road for an undisclosed fee, although reports suggest Town paid in the region of £100,000 for the striker’s services.

Cowling said: “We did our absolute best to keep Freddie and we offered him the best contract the club could afford bearing in mind rules around player budgets.

“He seriously considered it – he enjoyed his time at the club and I got a really nice text from him saying how much he enjoyed his time here.

“But it was the right deal all-round, when I took everything into consideration.

“The fee’s undisclosed - you’d always like to get a bit more but I did what I believed was the best for the club.

“I had to be fair to the club but I also had to be fair to Freddie, who had done extremely well for us.”

For more on this story and five pages of U's coverage, see Monday's Daily Gazette.