Lawrence signs on

Lawrence: A handsome bank balance at least...

Millwall defender Matt Lawrence has bucked the trend of departing players and signed a new three-year deal that will see the player who captained The Lions in the FA Cup Final at The Den until the summer of 2008.

And the player is hoping that his signing will bring some stability to a club that has been rocked by a number of departure over the summer, including one manager and two chairman!

"It's not been nice for all of us," Lawrence told the club's official site. "I've been on holiday for a fair bit of the summer and reading what's been going on in the newspapers has not been too nice.

"Seeing a different buddy of mine leaving each week has been tough to take. I'm sure it has been tough for the fans and everyone at Millwall Football Club. So hopefully with me signing and hopefully with a couple of new signings we can get stable and back on track."

'Shaggy', as he is fondly known, has made over 200 appearances for the club since signing from Wycombe Wanderers in 2000 and won Player of the Season during the 2000/01 Championship season.