OUT of favour Blackburn Rovers full back Gary Croft is set to sign for table-topping Ipswich.

A deal worth around £800,000 depending on appearances has been agreed and Croft is set to complete his medicals on Monday.

The arrival of Simon Grayson and Steve Harkness at Ewood Park has further reduced the first team chances of Croft, who has agreed a four-year deal at Portman Road.

He said: "My time at Ewood has been disappointing really, in as much as I have never really fulfilled my potential because of a lack of opportunities.

"For different reasons my opportunities have come to an end.

"I was signed by Ray Harford, then he got the sack and Graeme Le Saux got fit again.

"Under Roy Hodgson I was injured just before Christmas last year and since then my chances have been pretty sporadic.

"I would like to think that Ipswich has as much potential as Blackburn. It is a good move to a top club.

"It has got a great history and a lot of stability.

"Their manager George Burley has looked at me before and was very straight-talking but at the same time laid back."

Meanwhile, Fit-again Christian Dailly is ready to prove his worth at Ewood Park - but not in terms of pounds and pence.

Dailly endured an injury-plagued first season at Ewood Park following his £5.3 million move from Derby County.

Dogged by a thigh injury, he was only able to make 17 appearances as Rovers were relegated.

But Dailly has put those problems behind him and figured in Rovers' three-match winning streak ahead of this afternoon's game at West Bromwich Albion.

"I always knew when I could get fit then I could do my job. It was just a matter of getting myself fit.

"I was able to get right through pre-season and get some games under my belt and now I'm in the team so I'm happy with the way things are going just now," he said.

And Dailly stressed that playing games rather than justifying the figure Roy Hodgson paid for him last August has always been his motivation at Rovers.

"I'm not interested in any fees," he added.

"That was up to Blackburn how much they wanted to pay for me. I was not trying to live up to any kind of fee and I'm still not trying to do it now."

Meanwhile, a Norwich City supporters' group claim they are seeking legal advice over possible compensation for the injury suffered by Phil Mulryne in a challenge with Dailly during Rovers' visit to Carrow Road last month. The shock move comes despite the fact that Mulryne has cleared Dailly of any blame for the tackle which left him with a broken leg.

Mulryne faces a lengthy absence because of the injury and the Norwich City Independent Supporters' Association claim the incident has "serious implications" about value for money for Carrow Road season-ticket holders.

They are seeking legal advice as they say they will now be robbed of the chance to watch one of their best players in action.

Roy Blower, chairman of the independent supporters' group said: "If people are reckless in other fields, action can be taken against them.

"Many fans paid a lot of cash up front to see our strongest team throughout the season."

Yet Mulryne himself completely cleared Dailly of any malice in the challenge which would seem to render threats of claims for compensation useless - especially on behalf of a third party. I have seen it on the video and I was the victim of an unfortunate accident," said Mulryne.

"Christian phoned me up to apologise and people have vouched for his character. That's good enough for me."

Rovers have not heard anything about the claims and Norwich refused to comment.

Kidd stressed that Garry Flitcroft's own career prospects are more important than Rovers' current midfield problems after Flitcroft was forced to undergo a further bout of knee surgery. Flitcroft's long-standing knee problem is not career threatening.

But even so, Kidd's thoughts are with the player who has been sidelined for almost a year, rather than the hole his absence continues to leave in the Rovers ranks.

"It's a massive blow because that's been the one thing since joining Rovers last December that I was looking forward to, working with Flitty because he's a quality player and he's a quality person," said Kidd.

"But the important thing is we get him back fit and healthy and playing again.

"It's more important for him than the club as far as I'm concerned now.

"It's going to be a long one but it doesn't come down to selfish reasons now from a club point of view, it's all about the lad.

"I just feel for the player. He's worked so hard. It's a setback but not a major one, that's the pleasing thing. At least we know what the problem is now and thank God there was nothing sinister there which I'm pleased about for the lad."

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.