For the slop in the shifter it is likely worn shifter bushings. I have dealt with a few mid ninties Escorts and haven't had to change forks in any of them. The shift forks are what would be worn inside the tranny to cause a sloppy shifter. That and forks are made of hardened steel, the shifter bushings are made of rubber.
Changing the clutch in a FWD is not that hard in my mind, but I have done it many times (I have built a few FWD trannies as a matter of fact). If you decide to do it, take your time and read the manual first, understand each and every step before you start work. A Haynes or Chilton manual are fine for a clutch, if you don't have one of these get one and read up on the procedure. Also plan for the car to be out of commision for several days, it should only take you a few hours, but you will need to send the flywheel out to be ground, and will probably find a half dozen things while you are doing it.
Also I would highly recomend you change the rear main oil seal while you have the tranny off, even if it isn't leaking.