BURY are ready to listen to offers for star defender Chris Lucketti.

And that could spark a frantic race with Premiership Southampton and First Division play-off contenders Crystal Palace leading the way.

Bury fans will be devastated by the club's willingness to let their player of the season go.

But manager Stan Ternent will accept the first bid close to the £500,000 Palace offered last summer as the Shakers build up their kitty for team rebuilding. Gigg Lane's 25-year-old prized asset turned down the chance of a big move 12 months ago, deciding instead to accept Bury's lucrative new contract which made him the highest paid player in the club's history.

But Lucketti, who celebrated the birth of his first child 24 hours after the Shakers' promotion-clinching victory over Cardiff last Saturday, would not turn down the chance of hitting the big time.

And Bury would not stand in his way and have already earmarked his replacement for the central defensive berth for next season.

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