Ipswich Town recall Danny Cullum from Bury Town loan with Cole Skuse moving to sign Charlie Beckwith from lower-league Lakenheath

There will be a new man between the posts for Bury Town going forward after Charlie Beckwith was snapped up from Lakenheath this week in light of Ipswich Town recalling Danny Cullum.

The latter 17-year-old joined the Ram Meadow club on a season-long loan in the summer but the Sky Bet Championship club have exercised their right to bring him back early.

Bury manager Cole Skuse said: "The club have recalled Danny as he is needed to play within their under-18s.

"He's been brilliant for us and we hugely appreciate his time at the club.

“Ipswich themselves have been brilliant to us as a club in the sense that if we ever need an emergency loan they're happy to help.”

But the Blues boss is more than happy with who will now replace him in their number one shirt with Beckwith, set to turn 24 in January, having helped Lakenheath up to Step 5 of the non-league pyramid since joining the summer of 2020.

“Charlie is a great keeper,” he said.

“He's one that especially Muzzy (Paul Musgrove, assistant), Mark (Jolland, first-team coach) and Ben Mayhew (goalkeeper coach) have spoke extremely highly of.

"So we're delighted to get him in and I think he'll be a great addition to the group."

Beckwith, who came through the ranks at Leiston, made more than 100 appearances for Thurlow Nunn League side Lakenheath.

One of the most memorable of those appearances came last May when he saved four penalties during a shootout – and another in normal time – to help Lakenheath lift the Thurlow Nunn League Challenge Cup for the first time in their history.

Beckwith wrote on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter: “All good things come to an end, over 100 games, two cups, a promotion and a few penalty saves along the way. Can’t speak highly enough of the club and the people there who have supported me so much over the last three seasons. Once a Heath’n, always a Heath’n.”

Their new goalkeeper will hope to make his debut for Bury, weather-permitting, against his former Leiston manager Glenn Driver’s Ipswich Wanderers side in the Pitching In Isthmian League North Division on Saturday (3pm).

It comes with Bury looking to bounce back from Saturday’s 5-0 Isuzu FA Trophy first round proper exit at higher-league Billericay Town – which saw the hosts score four goals in the last 10 minutes of the first half.

However, Skuse was pleased with his side’s second-half response.

“We’ve had the luxury of being able to watch the game back and for the first 30-35 minutes I thought we stuck to task and were extremely good.

“But for that 10 minute spell towards the tail-end of the first half, against a decent team who are doing ever so well this season, the slightest deviation – you're even talking two or three yards off your position – can have an affect, and we just came unravelled.

“I was extremely proud of the boys second half, albeit we conceded another goal, with the way they stuck to it and didn’t wilt and go under.

“I said to them after the game, look, it’s humbling but it’s a lesson in many ways that we’re not quite at a stage yet where we can come off script and start doing things away from what we’re asking them to do as it will hurt us, and it did at the weekend. But they’re a good team and we always knew it was going to be a tough task.”

Skuse’s side have conceded 13 goals across their last three games in all competitions, with a 6-1 league loss at Heybridge Swifts followed by a 2-1 reverse at home to Brightlingsea Regent leaving them down in 15th place.

Wanderers are two places and one point better off having picked up after Driver’s appointment to succeed Mark Goldfinch and James Buckle, going into the Suffolk derby unbeaten in their last four with three victories.

But Skuse and his coaching team are hellbent on getting some momentum going at Humber Doucy Lane to get them motoring back up the table now there are no cup distractions propping up in their fixture list.

“Any game in this league is tough and the longer I’ve been in this position the more I’m getting to know and wising up to that,” said Skuse.

“They started the season relatively slow, they’ve made a slight adjustment in terms of managerial positions, they’ve brought in Glenn who is doing a great job.

“They’ve got some results and a real good group of players.

“We had a free weekend (recently) so we went across to watch them, Muzzy, Mark and myself and come away from it thinking they’re a good team.

“They've got some threats, they’ve got some good players so it’s going to be a tough task.

“But our sole focus and concentration is now on the league. Cup runs are brilliant, they’re always nice when you’re involved but they can have an impact on a group, especially one as small as ours.

“If you pick up one or two injuries in a cup fixture going back into a league fixture is tough.

“The fact that we’ve now got a sole focus on the league I think is a blessing for us.

“There is always a huge emphasis from Muzzy, Mark and myself when we first came in that the league is of most importance to us and it’d be a great way to bounce back, beating a fellow Suffolk side on the weekend.”

He explained that despite Josh Curry (hamstring) and Ryan Jolland (abductor) both being on the bench last Saturday, neither were ready to make a return to the pitch but were included to do the warm-ups with a view to being more involved this weekend.

He described others such as striker Darren Mills (achilles) as not being ‘too far away’ from a return.