AS a former Newcastle United supporter, Martin Taylor is a fully paid-up member of the Les Ferdinand fan-club following his goalscoring exploits for the Geordies under Kevin Keegan in the 1990s.

So it's hardly surprising to hear the towering centre-back identify the Tottenham striker as the biggest threat to Rovers' Worthington Cup hopes on Sunday as he prepares to go head-to-head with one of his former heroes.

"When I was a lad I used to go along with my dad and watch Newcastle quite a bit, but as I grew up I wasn't a really big supporter, unlike a lot of people up there," said Taylor.

"I was still aware of how good Les Ferdinand was, though, because he was sensational when he played up front with Alan Shearer.

"He's a player I've always liked watching wherever he has been, whether it be Newcastle, QPR or Tottenham. He's strong and good in the air but he's also a great finisher as well and his partnership with Teddy Sheringham is a major weapon for Spurs. Everyone knows what Sheringham's about, he'll come off you, he's got great awareness and an excellent football brain so we've got to make sure we deal with both of them on the day if we want to win."

Taylor always dreamed of appearing in a major Cup final as he grew up in the 'football mad' North East.

And those dreams are now close to becoming reality as manager Graeme Souness looks set to turn to the 21-year-old as the man to replace the suspended Craig Short on Sunday.

"If I get selected then this will easily be the biggest game of my career so far so I'm just looking forward to the occasion itself," said Taylor.

"It's unfortunate that Craig will be missing but, from a personal point of view, I just hope I get the chance to play.

"Obviously, it's not at Wembley but the Millennium Stadium itself is still a brilliant place to play and it's matches like this you always dreamed of playing in as a kid.

"Everyone will be watching, there's a trophy at stake so this is what it's all about."

And Taylor isn't the only one getting excited about the prospective of appearing at the Millennium.

Ever since Rovers booked their place in the final, the big defender has been inundated with requests for tickets from family and friends.

So if he does get the nod, he will have his own special supporters club to witness his big day.

"We've had a couple of weeks to get things organised but, as often happens with all these things, it still comes down to the last minute," said Taylor.

"A lot of family and friends want to come down because it's such a big game.

"I, personally, have got about 26 or 27 tickets so there was quite a lot of demand and I've got people coming from all over the place."