PROMOTION would probably mean more to Kelvin Davis than the rest of the Ipswich Town squad.A place in the Premiership would surely put the in-form goalkeeper in serious contention for a place in the England senior squad.

PROMOTION would probably mean more to Kelvin Davis than the rest of the Ipswich Town squad.

A place in the Premiership would surely put the in-form goalkeeper in serious contention for a place in the England senior squad.

And the 28-year-old today admitted: “If Sven Goran Eriksson came calling I would bite his hand - possibly his arm - right off.

“But it is not something that I think about. My aim is to play well for Ipswich Town and to try to bring them success.

“If a spin-off from that is a place in the thoughts of the England coach then that would be a big bonus.”

Norwich City keeper Robert Green has been a regular when Eriksson has named his squads this season having become a serious contender for international honours since the Canaries' elevation to the top flight.

And there is no reason why Davis should not follow the same path having been a consistent Town performer since his transfer from Wimbledon in the summer of 2003.

The dearth of quality English keepers is there for all to see with not one of the six Premiership teams in action in Europe this week having a home-grown player between the posts.

Paul Robinson from Tottenham is currently Eriksson's number one choice with the error prone David James and Green pushing him closest.

If Davis can maintain his current standards in the top flight then surely he would be in line for an international call.

“There are good English keepers around, but the managers of the top clubs in the Premiership have a choice, and they have opted to put their faith in foreigners,” added Davis.

“I was opposite to Ian Walker when Leicester played at Portman Road the other week. And he has reached the peaks - he has played for England and you cannot take that off his CV.”

Davis was the Town hero with a number of magnificent saves in the win at Sheffield United on February 5 and he has carried on his good work since.

His only big mistake this season was against West Ham on New Year's Day when he lost possession to allow Marlon Harewood a first minute tap-in.

“I strive to keep error free and hopefully I will keep the mistakes to a minimum between now and the end of the season,” added Davis. “Every match will be like a cup final for us between now and May.

“It was frustrating to lose against Watford on Tuesday, but we created chances and as long as this continues I am sure we will get enough points to go up automatically.

“Our fans were brilliant and tried to pick us up. Our squad is all together and all wanting the same goal.”