Bristol Rovers sign Torquay United's Chris Zebroski

Zebroski was signed by new Rovers boss Paul Buckle at Torquay

Bristol Rovers have signed Torquay United striker Chris Zebroski for an undisclosed fee.

The 24-year-old still had a year left to run on his deal at Plainmoor but handed in a transfer request last week.

Zebroski was signed by new Rovers boss Paul Buckle whilst he was in charge at Torquay and finshed top scorer last season with 15 goals.

"I have a good relationship with Chris and I feel I can get the best out of him," Buckle told BBC Radio Bristol.

"He was very keen to join Bristol Rovers. He knows I wouldn't have left [Torquay] unless I knew something good was going to happen.

"He's a pleasure to work with, he's very talented and I'm sure the fans will love him."

Swindon-based Zebroski started his career at Plymouth Argyle before moving to Millwall in 2006.

During his stay at the New Den, he spent time on loan at Oxford and entered his first spell with the Gulls.

Wycombe paid £20,000 for the forward in the summer of 2008 and he went on to play 48 games for the Chairboys, scoring nine times.

After another successful loan spell under Buckle, Zebroski completed a permanent move to Torquay in January 2010 and has since netted 17 goals in 76 appearances.

Gulls boss Martin Ling said: "It is something that needed to be settled and when I learned Chris was travelling from Swindon every day, it was clearly an unsustainable situation.

"We tried to offer him a new contract and relocation package, but Chris was adamant that the time was right to move on.

"We have had a few enquiries but Bristol Rovers met our valuation. I am obviously aware of the Paul Buckle factor and his admiration for the player, but we also have our own targets.

"Chris was a very high earner at our club and we now have space in the wage structure and the receipt of a transfer fee to allow us to fill the slots in my squad."