Updated: YORK City’s long pursuit of prolific Blue Square Bet Premier marksman Jason Walker is finally over.

Manager Gary Mills finally got his man last night when the Luton Town striker put pen to paper on a two-year deal.

The Minstermen made repeated offers to last season’s beaten play-off finalists and an undisclosed fee has finally been agreed.

About securing Walker’s signature, a “delighted” Mills said: “It’s no secret that one of the first conversations I had with the chairman when I came here in October was ‘Can we go and sign Jason Walker?’ “I rate him very highly and we were the first to make inquiries about him but it triggered something off that resulted in him joining Luton.

“That was frustrating because I would have loved to have had him here last season but a lot of time and effort and superb support from the chairman means we have got him here now and I am delighted to have him in my squad.

“Sometimes when you want somebody like him, it’s not easy.”

Walker, 27, scored 17 goals last season despite being used sparingly by the Hatters following his autumn switch from Barrow.

In the previous campaign, he netted 21 times for the struggling Bluebirds and Mills is confident that Walker will boost the firepower of his side, who had the sixth- lowest goals for column in last season’s Blue Square Bet Premier.

The City chief said: “He will give us goals, which is something we needed to address after last season. He also has a great work ethic and a desire for the game.

“He’s a team player and somebody I have admired ever since I first saw him play for Barrow. Anybody who has played against him knows they are always in for a tough game.”

About the protracted transfer negotiations, Mills added: “We have had to pay a good fee for him, which shows the ambition of the club and the chairman. Good strikers don’t come cheaply and we have had to up our offers to eventually get him here.”

Mills would not comment on whether the capture of Walker will also weaken a potential promotion rival in Luton, but confessed: “They have signed another striker in Rushden’s Aaron O’Connor but, if I was them, I wouldn’t have wanted to lose Jason.

“I don’t sign players to weaken other teams though. I bring people in to make us stronger and more positive in terms of our attacking play than last season.”