It is a fitting tribute to one of the finest Cumbrian footballers there has ever been.

Carlisle's Kevin Beattie, rising powerfully for a header - now captured for all time at the club he graced.

A statue of the Botcherby boy was unveiled outside Ipswich Town's Portman Road stadium on Saturday.

It is a permanent tribute to a man regularly voted the Suffolk club's greatest ever player.

The statue, created by sculptor Sean Hedges-Quinn, is the result of a crowdfunding campaign by Ipswich supporters.

It was finally revealed in a ceremony at the ground on Saturday morning on what would have been Beattie's 68th birthday, with the football legend's daughter Emma unveiling it.

The ceremony was attended by fans - who sang Beattie's name - and some Ipswich Town legends, including some of Beattie's former team-mates such as Mick Mills and Allan Hunter with whom the powerful Cumbrian won the FA Cup in 1978 under Bobby Robson.

Robson had described Beattie as one of the finest players he had ever worked with.

Emma said: "It feels very special and I was super excited to unveil it so everyone can see it.

"Mum has seen it and she is very pleased that it captures him in his early days when he was so strong and fast."

The statue campaign was led by the East Anglian Daily Times and Ipswich Star, alongside BBC Radio Suffolk and the TWTD website, and was supported by Ipswich Borough Council.

More than £110,000 was raised for the project.

Beattie, who made 296 appearances for Ipswich, died in 2018 aged 64.

*Thanks to Ipswich Town Football Club for allowing us to use their footage of the unveiling.