Boss Joe Royle has challenged Ricardo Fuller to do enough during his proposed loan spell to win himself a permanent deal at Portman Road. Royle and club secretary Sally Webb travel to Sheffield on Thursday to lobby Work Permits UK in order to gain the Jamaican permission to play for Town.

Fuller's current work permit allows him to play for Southampton but no other club, a situation thought to be unique in football, although according to TWTD readers not unusual in ice hockey.

Playing-wise, Royle says that Fuller's position at Southampton is comparable to Shefki Kuqi's at Sheffield Wednesday prior to his switch to Portman Road: "I see Ricardo's situation as similar to that of Shefki Kuqi. Hopefully he will join us on loan and do so well that he sends out the message 'You've got to sign me'.

"Make no mistake, if we can find a way through the red tape and get him here on loan, I will be throwing down the gauntlet and challenging him to earn a permanent deal with us."

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