SAY the name Ted Harper to fans on the terraces at Ewood Park and you will probably be met with a blank expression.

But the burly striker is a legend in these parts and his stats prove it.

An incredible 264 goals in 327 professional games speaks for itself, but it was for Rovers that the Kent-born striker shone.

Harper, born Edward Cashfield Harper, was snapped up by Rovers manager Jack Carr, who was invited to watch him play in the Easter 1923 Kent League clash between Sheppey United and Gillingham Reserves.

He scored twice in Sheppey's 5-1 win and that was good enough for Carr.

And he was an instant hit. He bagged 18 goals in his first season at Ewood but it was in the 1925-26 season that Harper showed his true goal-scoring prowess.

He smashed the Division One goal-scoring record with an incredible 43 goals, which included four goals in a single game against Manchester United and five against Newcastle.

His one and only England cap came in that season too, in a 1-0 defeat against Scotland.

A move to Sheffield Wednesday in 1927 commanded a whopping £4,700 but his stay at Hillsbrough was a brief one.

He scored a hat-trick against Derby on his debut but injury and the form of other players saw him play just 22 times in 15 months.

He made the move to Spurs in 1929, where he again broke the club's record for goals scored in a single season, a record which was later eclipsed by Jimmy Greaves.

But his time at White Hart Lane was again dogged by injury and in 1931 he moved north again, signing for Preston North End.

He scored five goals in his first six games and managed three hat-tricks in the second half of the season, ending the campaign with 37 goals -- a club record -- and the player of the year trophy.

He helped North End into the top flight and then moved back to Rovers for £1,300 where he remained until he called time on his career in 1935. He stayed on the ground staff at Ewood until 1948.

Harper died on July 22, 1959, just three weeks short of his 57th, in Blackburn, leaving behind him a legacy of goals.

Although Dixie Dean beat his season-scoring record in 1927/28, Harper remains a footballing legend and truly one of the game's unsung heroes.