"Worth reading" Recommended among a dozen websites, listed for having "variety, depth, strong writing, original design and history" - When Saturday Comes

DAFTS DIARY Proudlock adds to quality vs quantity We brush away the tumbleweed from the "transfer rumours" section as Darlo announce four signings in as many days. First Clayton Fortune joined from Leyton Orient to bolster the defence. Now there are two midfielders from Stockport County. David Poole is a winger and will presumably fill the Neil Wainwright berth, while Adam Griffin can play on the left. Poole began his career at Manchester United before joining Yeovil Town in July 2005. He made almost 50 appearances for Stockport after joining in September 2006. Griffin was a trainee at Oldham Athletic, and spent time at Chester City and Oxford United before joining Stockport County, first on loan and then permanently in July 2006. Quakers boss Dave Penney said: "David and Adam are young, hungry players and will be valuable additions to the squad. They will add depth to our midfield and give us different attacking options." On Thursday, Penney secured a more familiar name - 27-year-old striker Adam Proudlock - again from Stockport. The former Wolves trainee, has previously played for Nottingham Forest, Sheffield Wednesday and Ipswich Town. He played 20 games for Stockport County last season, scoring nine goals. Penney said: "Adam will be a great addition to the squad. He is a goalscorer who has played at a higher level during his career. "A lot of hard work is going on behind the scenes to make sure that we have a good squad in place. We may not have the biggest squad in the League but I believe we have brought in quality players who can do a good job for this club." Into the valley There's another new ground to visit - as Rotherham are playing out of the Sheffield athletics stadium. Their new ground, the Don Valley Stadium , is not for agraphobics, with an estimated 50,000 capacity now reduced to 25,000 - with only the main stand apparently going to be open for games, holding 14,000. "It's just like watching Meadowbank Thistle". If not Brazil.

Trust fantasy league hits its fifth season Darlington Supporters' Trust has launched another season of its popular Come On Darlo Prediction League. More than 170 teams took part last year, predicting not only Darlington matches and the club's fortunes, but the tops and bottoms of various leagues and winners and losers in cup competitions. It again costs just £2 to join and the eventual winner picks up a prize of £100. To enter, download the attached PDF form, print it off and fill in your predictions. You can enter as many teams as you wish, send the completed form and a cheque payble to "Darlington Supporters Trust" (£2 for each team) to: Come On Darlo, 128 Lowther Drive, Darlington, DL1 4LZ by Friday, August 8, 2008. More details on the Trust website. Darlo game switched for Sky After our entertaining (for the neutral, armchair viewer) play-off semi-finals in May, Darlington have been picked by Sky for their "Monday Night Spoiler" slot in October. The home game with Bradford will now be played on October 20th (7.45pm kick off), the club has confirmed. Good news for long distance DAFTS; the only hassle now is persuading the pub landlord to switch over from the Setanta Premiership match, which just happens to be a Newcastle home match. Home start then Notts Darlington start their season at home to Exeter City on August 9th, before our first league trip to Notts County the following Saturday. Our next trip is to Macclesfield (Aug 30). There are two early chances of DAFTS weekenders- first for the home match with Accrington on September 20th, which coincides with the Darlington Rhythm and Booze beer festival. Then the following weekend is our trip to Bournemouth on September 27th. The awkward midweek games this season are Rotherham and Bradford. Don't forget, our first real away game is at Walsall in the Carling Cup on August 12th - ticket details to be announced. Our away guides are gradually being updated. Loyalty offer as supporters' coach clocks up the miles Darlington FC Supporters Club has offered an incentive scheme for those loyal members booking up for all of the first six away league games of the season. A free trip to the Rotherham midweek match in late October is offered for those going to the opening batch of matches. As this includes long trips to the likes of Bournemouth and Aldershot, as well as two other southern trips to Luton and Wycombe early on - all costing between £28 and £33 - the supporters' club is recognising the cost of travel at the start of the season. Because of the rising cost of fuel, it's also insisting on fans paying at least a 50% deposit in advance of matches when booking a place. Leeds and Boro pre-season The Ecbo's headline "Darlington line-up Premier friendly" turns out to be St Mirren. A good test. Then again, it could have been Ebbsfleet or Newcastle's third team. Sat 19th July Norton & Stockton, 1-1 A Tues 22nd Billingham Synth, 2-0 A Sat 26th July Billingham Town, 3pm A Tues 29th July Leeds Utd, 7.45pm H Sat 2nd August St Mirren, 3pm H Tues 5th August Middlesbrough, 7.45pm H New ticket prices unveiled   SEASON TICKET PRICES   PER-MATCH (on the day) (Advance) Adults £300 £18 £16 OAPs, students and juniors, £195 £12 £10 10-to-16-year-old £100 £7 £6 Family £630 £43 £40 On-day match day ticket prices have risen by £2 for adults, after being pegged last season. Season tickets prices have been pegged and are available from the ticket office, in person or on 0871 855 1883. The club has also negotiated a payment scheme to spread the cost of a season ticket, forms for which can be collected from the ticket office, fans also have the opportunity to pay by cash, cheque or credit card.

© www.dafts.co.uk 2008 Words and pictures used by permission. E-mail DAFTS

DAFTS ARE a social group of exiled and far-flung fans of Darlington FC, set up in 1994, who follow the fortunes of the League Two club at home and especially away.

As you'd expect, the contents of this website in no way express the views of the club or anyone at Darlington FC. For any queries about this site, the webmaster is Steve Duffy and about DAFTS generally, the DAFTS organiser is Neil Johnson. Thanks to Ted Blair for most of the (decent) photos. Why not use the DAFTS Travel messageboard to get in touch with other travelling fans, beg or offer lifts or discuss travel arrangements? It can also put fans in touch with others living in their area.

There have been at least visiting supporters since July 2001. Last updated July 19th 2008 StatCounter

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