TOMMY Miller has joined Preston North End on loan until the end of the season after failing to secure a move to Ipswich Town.The Blues' Championship rivals swooped for the Sunderland midfielder as Jim Magilton hesitated while he was waiting on the fitness of Owen Garvan and Gavin Williams.

By Derek Davis

TOMMY Miller has joined Preston North End on loan until the end of the season after failing to secure a move to Ipswich Town.

The Blues' Championship rivals swooped for the Sunderland midfielder as Jim Magilton hesitated while he was waiting on the fitness of Owen Garvan and Gavin Williams.

The Blues boss told the EADT last week that although he would have liked to take Miller on loan until the end of the year, as Preston now have, he didn't want to bring him in unless it was really necessary.

Garvan is pencilled in to play against Northampton Reserves tonight, along with young defender James Krause who is to spend a couple of days on trial at Carlisle with the view to a loan move.

Although Town can bring in up to 10 loanees at any one time, the Blues boss is restricted to using only five at any one time and with the arrival of Matthew Bates in place of Mark Noble, who has gone back to West Ham, he was nearing his full quota.

Magilton was looking to bring in a new player yesterday, not Miller, but didn't get the answer he was waiting for.

With the emergency loan window closing on Thursday, November 23, Town still have time to use although Magilton was hoping to give Bates and one more new boy, a debut in the East Anglian derby against Norwich on Sunday.