Healy desperate to kickstart career as Doncaster bring in Sharp replacement

The Northern Ireland international has been frozen out by the Premier League club and has not even started a league game since his 8m transfer from Fulham two years ago.

Rovers have turned to Healy after losing star striker Billy Sharp with a torn hamstring and the 31-year-old is likely to go straight into the side for tomorrow's home game against Millwall.

During a three-year stay at Leeds, Healy scored 32 goals in 121 appearances and was a firm favourite at Elland Road. He was sold to Fulham for 1.5m in summer 2007 following the club's relegation to League One.

"Hopefully, this is a place where I will be happy," said Healy, whose deal expires after the home game with Barnsley on December 4. "It's been a long time since I felt part of anything at Sunderland. That's disappointing but that's football.

"I like playing for teams who play football and I know that Doncaster have been described as the 'Arsenal of the North'," he added. "I also know a few of the lads from my Leeds days – Neil O'Sullivan, John Oster, and Martin Woods – so that will help me settle in the dressing room."

Healy, who started his professional career at Manchester United, finished last season on loan at Ipswich – where he was reunited with his former Sunderland manager Roy Keane – but scored only one goal in 12 appearances.

He remains confident in his goalscoring ability, however, saying: "I am a goalscorer and no-one remembers how you play for 89 minutes if you pop up with the winner in the final minute. My record over the years proves that – although recently it's been disappointing because I have not played many games. Now I just want to get back to playing and want to feel part of a club again.

"This was on the horizon for a while but I have had an ankle injury for a couple of weeks since the last Northern Ireland game," he added. "Hopefully over the next three or four weeks, I can get some sharpness, some fitness and game time and get back to the player that I know I still am."

With Rovers only three points off the play-offs, Healy is hoping to help his new club mount a push for promotion to the Premier League.

"Blackpool set a benchmark last season and proved that you don't have to be a Newcastle, a West Brom, or a Sunderland to win promotion. There's a lot of young talent at his club along with players who have Premier League experience so that should capture everyone's imagination that we can go on to better things."

Healy has hit 35 goals in 84 appearances for Northern Ireland and is his country's all-time record goalscorer. He is also the only player to score two hat-tricks for the Irish.

Scottish international striker Garry O'Connor, meanwhile, is on the brink of a return to Barnsley from Premier League club Birmingham City.

Manager Mark Robins has confirmed that O'Connor will be back at Oakwell on loan as soon as he has recovered from an ankle injury.

"I got a phone call from his agent to say he wanted to come back to us and asking would we be keen?" he said. "The answer was 'yes' and after I got permission to do it from Patrick Cryne (the club's owner) we agreed things with Birmingham."

O'Connor spent a month on loan with Barnsley earlier this season and has made three appearances since returning to St Andrews.

David Healy

Factfile

Born August 5, 1979, in Killyleagh, Northern Ireland

Plays in Ulster before signing for Manchester United four days before 20th birthday. His one appearance comes in the League Cup against Aston Villa

Loan move to Preston becomes a permanent deal in 2001 and he scores 44 goals in 138 games at Deepdale

Leeds pay 625,000 for the striker in 2003/04 season. In three years he scores 29 goals for Leeds in 111 games

Leeds double their money when he is sold to Fulham in 2007 but a year later Healy moves on to Sunderland

He has scored only two club goals since, one for Sunderland and one for Ipswich during a loan spell

He has won 80 caps and scored 35 goals including a European Championship record of 13 in Northern Ireland's Euro 2008 qualifying campaign

Appointed MBE in 2008 Birthday Honours for services to football.