BURY skipper Chris Lucketti is top of Bradford City's Christmas shopping list, writes NEIL BONNAR. The Yorkshire club, who had a £1.25m bid for Wanderers' on-loan ace Jon Newsome rejected a fortnight ago, are intent on prising 27-year-old Lucketti away from Gigg Lane.

And if a deal can be struck this week, Lucketti would be in line to make his debut against Bolton Wanderers at the Reebok Stadium on Saturday.

They sparked preliminary talks with Bury officials within hours of being scared off by Sheffield Wednesday's £2m valuation of Newsome and are understood to have tabled an offer over the weekend.

Bury would want in the region of £1.5m for Lucketti while Bradford are understood to have offered half that.

A deal could be on if the offer is increased to the £1m Bury received from Sunderland for Lucketti's former central defensive partner Paul Butler in the summer.

That Shakers are in no hurry to sell after extending Lucketti's contract until the summer after next and Bradford boss Paul Jewell has the spending power to secure the deal as he still has £1.3m left over in his transfer kitty.

Lucketti fits the bill perfectly for Bradford who are desperate for a solid and powerful centre half in the old fashioned mould while the Yorkshire club have decided on a British-only transfer policy after having their fingers burned with a string of foreign imports.

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