We are today delighted to announce the signing of striker Tom Hopper from Southend United.
The 26-year-old striker, who is from Lincolnshire, joins The Imps for an undisclosed fee after 18 months at Roots Hall and has put pen to paper on a deal at LNER Stadium until the summer of 2023.
Tom, joined his hometown club, Boston United as a teenager and made his bow for The Pilgrims as a substitute at the age of just 15 years old replacing former Imp, Spencer Weir-Daley. His introduction at such a young age still stands as a record at The Jakemans Stadium.
His form for Boston attracted the attention of Leicester City in 2011 and within a couple of months of heading to the King Power Stadium Tom was to make his debut for The Foxes in the Emirates FA Cup against Swindon Town. Tom joined Bury on loan in September 2012 and made 22 appearances for The Shakers, scoring three times then returned to his parent club before making appearances in the Carabao Cup and being an unused substitute in the Foxes opening two games of the 2014 Premier League season.
January 2015 brought a move back to his native Lincolnshire, as Tom joined Scunthorpe United on loan and made an immediate impact, netting on his debut against Walsall. In 12 appearances as a loanee at The Sands Venue Stadium he scored four goals which led to a permanent move to The Iron in the summer of 2015.
During a three-year stint as a member of Scunthorpe United’s squad, Tom gained a reputation as a goal scorer netting 23 goals in all competitions before leaving for Essex to join Southend United, scoring 10 times in 30 appearances (including substitute appearances) with three of those goals coming this season.
Tom has been allocated squad number 11. Welcome to LNER Stadium, Tom.
#ProudToBeImps