Ross McCormack will take another step along the road to full recovery from his hamstring injury when he plays for Cardiff City's reserves against Bristol Rovers on Monday.

Striker McCormack, 23 goals for City last season, has not started a match since suffering the injury in the 1-1 draw at Blackpool on August 15.  He made a brief sub appearance in the 4-0 win at Watford on October 3, and played the first half for the reserves in Wednesday's 2-1 win at Hereford.

He will play against Rovers in a bid to claim a place alongside Michael Chopra and Jay Bothroyd in an attack which has claimed 10 goals in the last two matches. Bluebirds fans will be rubbing their hands at the prospect of Ross forming a three-man strike force alongside two forwards who are already on fire.

City are at home to Crystal Palace on Saturday, and boss Dave Jones said: "Ross is fit and raring to go - now it's a matter of building up his power and match fitness. In fact, Ross asked to go on the bench for the Derby match, but our medical team felt the injury wasn't completely repaired.

"He trained on the Friday after the Derby game and was banging balls all over the place. So we brought him back on the bench for Watford with the intention of giving him a few minutes late on if we were in a winning posiiton, and that's how it worked out. It was a big confidence boost for Ross, and I was pleased for him - he had a big smile on his face."

Full back Kevin McNaughton is also expected to figure against Rovers as he reaches the final stages of his recovery from the ankle injury he suffered in the friendly against Celtic in July. Dave said: "Kevin is a fit lad anyway - he doesn't carry a lot of weight. The Rovers match will give Kevin and Ross another game under their belts for match practice. Then they will train with us later in the week."

Striker Warren Feeney, who is recovering from a hip operation, is expected to play some part for Northern Ireland in their World Cup qualifier in the Czech Republic on Wednesday, which will give manager Jones an indication of his fitness levels.

Midfielder Joe Ledley, who was ruled out of Wales' World Cup matches in Finland and Liechtenstein because of a hip injury, will know later in the week whether he'll be fit to face Palace.

* A full report with pictures reaction and highlights of the Bristol Rovers match will appear here later on Monday.