Luton Town hit the jackpot with six-figure Norwich City deal | OneFootball

Luton Town struck gold with their decision to sign the forward

Luton Town have achieved unbelievable success in recent times, culminating in promotion to the Premier League in 2023.

Some of English football’s elite clubs, like Arsenal, Liverpool and Manchester United all ran out at Kenilworth Road, providing the Hatters’ faithful with memories to last a lifetime.

However, Luton Town weren’t always operating at such a high level. In the not-too-distant past, they didn’t even belong to the Football League.

After pushing for promotion from the National League for multiple years, the 2013/14 campaign finally looked like a realistic chance for Luton to finally achieve that task.

In January 2014, John Still decided that it was time to inject some fresh blood into his squad, desperate to find any extra edge he could use over Luton’s competitors during the run-in.

Pelly Ruddock Mpanzu was a notable signing made by the Hatters during this time, a player who went on to represent the club from the National League all the way up to the top-flight.

Another addition Luton made was Cameron McGeehan, who joined on loan from then-Premier League side Norwich City.

Cameron McGeehan shone for Luton Town during their EFL rise

McGeehan spent the majority of his youth career with Fulham and Chelsea, before joining Norwich City in 2011.

He captained the Canaries to the FA Youth Cup in 2013, giving him brilliant preparation for a loan stint at Luton Town the following year.

The forward scored three goals in 18 appearances for the Hatters throughout the rest of the 2013/14 campaign, with his creative influence a massive factor that helped them clinch the National League title.

Norwich loaned McGeehan to Cambridge United the following term, but he failed to replicate his Luton Town form at the Abbey Stadium.

His loan deal was subsequently cancelled, and he made another temporary switch to join the Hatters, where his performances picked up once again.

In the summer of 2015, he signed for the Kenilworth Road outfit on a permanent basis for a six-figure fee and instantly became a crucial part of their attacking force for a third time.

The Northern Irishman featured prevalently under Still and new boss Nathan Jones during the 2015/16 campaign, scoring 14 goals and providing two assists in all competitions as Luton finished 11th in League Two.

McGeehan was going from strength to strength as a footballer during this time, improving his levels the following term to net 10 times and assist twice in the Hatters first 24 League Two outings.

However, a cruel twist of fate saw the forward break his leg in January 2017, which ruled him out for the rest of the season.

Luton managed to finish sixth in the fourth-tier standings, but were unsuccessful in their play-off bid, something McGeehan was forced to watch from the sidelines.

His spectacular displays had caught the attention of teams further up the EFL and the 2016/17 campaign ended up being the Northern Irishman’s last as a Luton Town player.

Cameron McGeehan never matched his Luton Town heights elsewhere

Barnsley decided to buy McGeehan from Luton Town in the summer of 2017, despite the forward not featuring since January and that showed during his first season at Oakwell.

Just nine league appearances proved that he was still feeling the effect of his leg break and would need more time to get back to his best.

The 2018/19 League One campaign saw McGeehan operating at full fitness again, featuring 39 times for the Tykes as they achieved promotion to the Championship.

McGeehan featured 13 times in the second-tier for Barnsley but was loaned to Portsmouth in January, before making a permanent exit in 2020 to join Belgian outfit Oostende.

Although the forward did eventually reach a much higher level than when he was playing for Luton Town, he never managed to replicate that same connection with a club throughout the rest of his career.

The Hatters will always remember McGeehan fondly for his performances on the pitch and their decision to sign him for a six-figure fee turned out to be an extremely wise one.