GARY Bailey says new signing Sam Buckler will have as much time as he needs to recover from a double leg break, which he suffered back in January.

The former Bridport defender broke both his right tibia and fiibula in a game against Odd Down at the start of the year after going in for a tackle.

Now, as he continues to work on his rehabilitation, he has signed for the Blues with the  ambition of taking part in pre-season at Grove Corner.

Bailey told Echosport: "He comes highly reccomended, everyone I have spoken with has said he's a good player.

"He has suffered that double break and he's on the road to recovery.

"He's out of his cast and out of his protective gear and he's been given the go-ahead to start training.

"We're not going to rush him and put any pressure on him to be fit.

"There's no time frame on it and when he's ready to play, he will be ready to play."

"He will be joining up with the players in pre-season but on a different time scale."

Portland will use the help of Chris Wilson to put a programme to aid his recovery and he willl be consulting specialists to get Buckler back as soon as possible.

Bailey added: "We've got to do what is right for Sam.

"Until we see where he is at and he gets the kit on, it's impossible to know when he will be back.

"Chris Wilson is getting as much information together as he can to help him along the way.

"Our strength and conditiong coach will also be working with him."

Buckler becomes the second player to join the Blues from Bridport this week after winger Jamie Beasley signed on Tuesday.