NEWCASTLE are ready to revive their bid for Ipswich strike star Darren Bent.The Geordie giants' interest has never waned following their failure to pull off a £3million double deal for Bent and best pal Darren Ambrose.

By Mel Henderson

NEWCASTLE are ready to revive their bid for Ipswich strike star Darren Bent.

The Geordie giants' interest has never waned following their failure to pull off a £3million double deal for Bent and best pal Darren Ambrose.

That move, made within days of debt-ridden Town plunging into administration in February, was flatly rejected.

It angered chairman David Sheepshanks that his Newcastle counterpart, Freddy Shepherd, bypassed him and boss Joe Royle to make his offer direct to the administrators.

Royle said today: "Darren is an important member of the side. He is one of our leading goalscorers and I sincerely hope he is still with us at the start of the new season."

But Royle knows he can take nothing for granted, with hard-up Ipswich in a vulnerable position.

He admitted: "Until we get out of administration there is nothing we can do except sell players, but no one is buying at the moment."

Town were eventually powerless to stop Ambrose moving to Tyneside in March, in a

bargain £1million deal, the club confessing they needed the cash to pay their way through to the end of the season.

But even if Newcastle succeed with a bid in the region of £2m for Bent, it does not

necessarily mean he will be reunited with his fellow 19-year-old.

Because, in a bizarre twist, ex-Town boss George Burley has targeted Ambrose as his first signing should he succeed in being installed by temporary employers Derby County on a full-time basis.

Burley wants to take his former protégé to Pride Park on a season-long loan, which Newcastle feel could aid the player's

development.

Having brought in ex-Leeds star Lee Bowyer to boost an already strong midfield contingent, St James' Park boss Sir Bobby Robson may believe Ambrose would benefit more from being a first team regular at Derby.

Ipswich, meanwhile, will find their resistance tested to the full when Newcastle decide the time is right to make their move.

Bent is one of England's rising stars and claimed 18 goals from 43 appearances last

season, 15 of them as a substitute.

He has already represented his country at Under-21 level and was recently invited to Italy for a training get-together with the same age group.

Ipswich's commitment to slashing their wage bill means they would rather part company with one of their high-earning stars.

While skipper Matt Holland has three years of a £20,000-a-week deal still to run, Bent's contract is worth only a fraction of that amount.

Foreign imports Finidi George and Matteo Sereni are both pocketing similar amounts to Holland – and their contracts do not expire until 2005.

But Town's problem is that while clubs may be reluctant to move in for senior players on such good money, there would be no shortage of takers for a player of Bent's vast potential.