Striker Rory Donnelly has signed for Gillingham.

Boss Justin Edinburgh feels the former Swansea man is a big signing for the club.

“He’s a young striker who I have had my eye on for a while,” said the Gillingham manager.

“His time on loan at Tranmere will have done him a lot of good and I believe we have pulled off a very strong signing.

“I have no doubt he will be a huge benefit to our squad and we now have four very different striking options, which I think is key, going into the new season.”

The 23-year-old joins on a two-year deal.

Northern Ireland striker Donnelly began his career with Cliftonville, scoring seven times in 33 appearances on his debut season.

His form for Cliftonville caught the eye of then-Liverpool boss Kenny Dalglish, but it was Swansea who snapped him up, shelling out a six-figure fee for his services in December 2011 after beating Everton to his signature.

It was Brendan Rodgers who signed Donnelly for Swansea, stating at the time he was “one of Northern Ireland’s biggest talents,” but the front-man never managed to make an impact for the Welsh side, featuring in only two games.

He was released by the Swans this summer on the expiry of his contract.

Belfast-born Donnelly has played once for Northern Ireland under-21s.

The 6ft 2inch striker spent the second half of last season on loan at Tranmere in League 2, making an immediate impact with five goals in his first eight games, but he failed to find the net again for the remainder of the campaign, making 20 appearances in total.

His early form did win him the Sky Bet League 2 player-of-the-month award for January, after scoring three goals from three starts.

He will be looking to reignite his once-promising career with the Gills.