Trio of ex-Hatters secure transfer deadline day moves
Gray, Lee and Hashioka snapped up on Monday
Luton could go up against two of their former players during the run-in to the League One campaign after three ex-Hatters secured moves on transfer deadline day yesterday.
Striker Andre Gray, who scored 52 goals in 111 appearances for Town during 2012-14 when helping spearhead the club’s promotion back to the Football League, forming a prolific partnership with Paul Benson, has moved to Port Vale on a free transfer. After leaving Luton to move to Brentford for a fee of around £500,000, he then had further big money moves to Burnley (£9m) and Watford (£11.5m), making 115 Premier League appearances and scoring 23 times in the top flight, before a loan spell at QPR.
Gray headed to Greek Super League 1 side Aris Salonika and Saudi Arabian outfit Al-Riyadh, almost having a temporary stint at Plymouth Argyle in October 2024, before a spell in Turkey with Süper Lig side Fatih Karagümrük, who he left recently. Having netted 205 goals in his career, also winning 13 caps for Jamaica, with three goals, Gray has now headed to Vale Park to join up with Luton’s Ethon Archer, who is also on loan, as the Hatters head to the Valiants later this month.
Speaking about the deal, Vale boss Jon Brady, who saw top scorer Devante Cole move to Kenilworth Road on Saturday, said: "We’re delighted to welcome someone of Andre’s pedigree here to Port Vale. He’s got a wealth of experience and his goalscoring record speaks for itself. It’s fantastic to have him on board and I know he’s raring to go.”
Another former Town attacker, Elliot Lee, has joined third tier strugglers Doncaster Rovers on loan from Championship side Wrexham. The 31-year-old moved to Luton on loan from West Ham for three months in the 2014-15 campaign, scoring three goals in 11 matches and made a permanent move in July 2017, spending five years with Town as Luton won promotion from League Two up to the Championship.
Lee, who played with brother Olly during his time in Bedfordshire, had loan spells at Oxford and Charlton, leaving Town after playing 124 times over his two stints, on target 27 times. He moved to Wrexham on a free transfer in July 2022, helping the Red Dragons reach the second tier from the National League, with 41 goals from 151 outings.
Doncaster boss Grant McCann, who will welcome Luton to the Keepmoat Stadium on February 24, said: “Elliot is a top player at this level. He's been instrumental in Wrexham's rise up the divisions and the triple promotions, playing a huge part, scoring important goals. It's an excellent signing for the football club and he'll bring plenty to us."
Finally, ex-Luton defender Daiki Hashioka has left Czech First League side Slavia Prague to move to Belgian Pro League outfit KAA Gent on a loan deal until the end of the campaign. The Japanese international has played in Belgium before, impressing at Sint-Truiden before heading to Town when they were in the Premier League, going on to play 10 times in the top flight. He made 28 appearances in total for Town, as he moved to Slavia Prague in the summer, playing 14 times, also featuring four times in the Champions League.