So, how many of us think of Darlo as a new club ?

[theoriginalfatcat]

I ask because I'm starting to bump into people who think of D.F.C. as being a born again club. These tend to be ex fans or people with a casual interest in local football, while the media don't help with this misconception by constantly using the 1883 tag and making out that we are a new outfit.

To me - we are the same club we always have been. We have the same kit, same fans, same heritage and same identity. So to describe us in any other way, is annoying.

[BlackandwhiteBOB]

I ask because I'm starting to bump into people who think of D.F.C. as being a born again club. These tend to be ex fans or people with a casual interest in local football, while the media don't help with this misconception by constantly using the 1883 tag and making out that we are a new outfit.

To me - we are the same club we always have been. We have the same kit, same fans, same heritage and same identity. So to describe us in any other way, is annoying.

Same club! End of!

[Quakerz]

Same club.

[Bogratsteve]

Never enters my head we are new or reborn, we are The main football club from Darlington with the same crest, nickname and team colours so we are exactly the same club that won the FA Trophy.

All the other stuff is immaterial technical clap trap that matters not.

[Quakerz]

I'd just like to add, all these out of touch "ex fans" that think we are a new club, if they are pondering coming back either now or when we're back at Darlo, and are wanting to jump on the bandwagon, then let them think we are a new club. If being part of the rise of the "new club" up the leagues floats their boat, then let them get on with it.

[theoriginalfatcat]

Never enters my head we are new or reborn

It didn't enter mine until I started to notice that not everyone shares my/our view.

I think it's the 1883 thing. It's been discussed on here before, but in my view it's a problem and needs to be dropped. If The F.A. don't like it, then bollocks to them.

[Quakerz]

Unfortunately it's our problem not the FA's problem. We can't drop the "1883" from our playing name unless they agree to it, because they make the rules.

Yes we can call ourselves Darlington FC all day long on websites, forums, and in programmes, and in newspapers etc etc, because that is what we are and we own that name, however there is nothing we can do about what we are called on the official fixture list and official league tables.

Given time though, we should be eventually be allowed to drop it and revert to Darlington....Newport County and Maidstone United are just two examples of clubs that actually went bust, started with different names, yet eventually managed to revert to their old name.

There was even a debate in Spennymoor last season about whether they should stick to "Town" or revert back to "United", so clearly they had been given the go ahead if they wanted to.

Maybe there is a certain number of years that once passed (say 6) you can call yourselves what you like. Anyway, the board do need to be looking into this and using the above examples to question the FA.

[princes town]

It gives the lapsed fans a philosophical reason not to come which is very dangerous as it creates a moral high ground. If we were a new club we wouldn't be paying TUPE debt. But yes, there are many people who have the new club view. The problem with supporting a new club is that the depth of association is fragile and I do wonder if this partly explains the smaller crowds this season.

[Quakerz]

No, being out of town and playing more generally obscure names wholly explains the smaller crowds this season.

Next season if we get promoted and are back in town, could see a boom in crowds - providing we have the capacity to handle them...two reasons...

1 Home in Darlington, will bring people out of the woodwork that haven't been for a few years and thought the club was no longer worth following in another town

2 Looking at potential relegation and promotion, if we go up we could be in a league with many recognisable names, potentially...

Whitby Town
Blyth Spartans
Scarborough Athletic
Workington
Barrow
Frickley
FCUM of Manchester
Chorley
Witton Albion

And one or two others with decent crowds of 500, 600 like Ilkeston, and Kings Lynn.

Could all come together next season - a home in Darlo suitable for our needs, and back playing at a level and against clubs that suggest significant progress has been made.

[super_les_mcjannet]

Same club. Technically the FA wasn't really sure what to do or even call us, hence why they stipulated we would be treated as a new club but would have all the history. I don't think they ever confirmed that we are or are not a new club just that we would be treat as such, also under the rules we could not be named Darlington FC at that point.

As we know and stated above the 1883 part needs to be dropped asap, I am guessing it's a bit of a waiting game until it is deemed we have paid our penance.

From a pure personal point of view I have never felt like I was watching a different team from the one I started watching in 1987.

[JE93]

To me we are a new club, Hence the league we are playing in, and the fact we cannot be called Darlington FC. This to many people is a bad thing, but if you think of it from another direction theres no reason this needs to be a negative. I found it sad in the end that when I would tell my friends of Darlington FC, I had to tell them we suffered 3 administrations in 10 years. The club was in danger of becoming a laughing stock by the end.

With a new club we have the chance to do this the right way, We took on a lot of debt from the old club (for not much gain in my view) but that is irrelevant. We have a chance to make right the failings of the old regime. To show that the fans are the most important part of the football club. If we can continue the positives with promotions and returning to the town then we will help grow the fan base and return the club to where the previous club sat.

Many will see this as a negative view to take, I want to make it clear I'm not trying to forget where we have come from. I was at wembley in 2000 and i was there again in 2011. I have watched the highs and lows this club has had. And now all i see is a chance to have a successful football club in the right way, to build something without the scars and the negativity of the old regime.

[Bogratsteve]

You will find for us older fans we have many more happy memories than the 3 admins etc like the 89/90 Brian little era, 1st time play off finals and even further back so we old long time farts will continue to think of us as the historic club we are regardless of league or name technicalities.

BUT if it means we get more fans back then we can be viewed however people feel comfortable with

[super_les_mcjannet]

You will find for us older fans we have many more happy memories than the 3 admins etc like the 89/90 Brian little era, 1st time play off finals and even further back so we old long time farts will continue to think of us as the historic club we are regardless of league or name technicalities.

BUT if it means we get more fans back then we can be viewed however people feel comfortable with

Agree with this, for me the devastation of going out of the league in 88/89 season and then coming back up were what set me up as a Darlo fan.

Same club and nothing would change my view.

[Robbie Painter]

I don't think of any of the new clubs like Chester, Wimbledon, Newport, Aldershot, etc as new clubs. Things like a few letters before or after the name, the club crest, even the ground are all irrelevant to me. Its the same fans, before & after, supporting their team.

No, being out of town and playing more generally obscure names wholly explains the smaller crowds this season..............

Could all come together next season - a home in Darlo suitable for our needs, and back playing at a level and against clubs that suggest significant progress has been made.

Its not looking like coming together at all to me currently given the complete apathy that the vast majority of fans seem to have towards the current fundraising launched by our club.

The response so far has been very poor and way below what I hoped or expected. Not just in terms of money pledged (remember the money is only taken once the target has been reached) but in terms of general fundraising ideas or initiatives.

One way or another we need additional funds in the next 2/3 months to remove this debt burden or there won't be a Darlington FC.

[spen666]

....

There was even a debate in Spennymoor last season about whether they should stick to "Town" or revert back to "United", so clearly they had been given the go ahead if they wanted to.

.....

The issue at Spennymoor was not a debate, but a question to the chairman at a fans forum.

The answer was the Chairman would not agree to the name reverting for reasons he explained. (Incidentally, reasons that in my view made sense from a business point of view, even though I (for sentimental reasons) would have preferred to be "united" again)

My understanding from the question and answer (& I was at the meeting) was that the FA had not been approached as a name change was not something the Chairman wanted.


I'm not sure using Spennymoor as an example is the best example to support a reversion for a club's name

[spen666]

Same club. Technically the FA wasn't really sure what to do or even call us, hence why they stipulated we would be treated as a new club but would have all the history. .....

I'm not sure what power the FA have to say whether the history of Darlington stayed with the club or not.

The FA despite what they may think, can't decide who has what history

[super_les_mcjannet]

Same club. Technically the FA wasn't really sure what to do or even call us, hence why they stipulated we would be treated as a new club but would have all the history. .....

I'm not sure what power the FA have to say whether the history of Darlington stayed with the club or not.

The FA despite what they may think, can't decide who has what history

My point exactly, they didn't really know what to do or say with Darlo. The only thing they did say is we would be treat as a new club and this doesn't affect the history etc.

In other words we are not saying you are a new club, in fact we don't really care as we are going to treat you as a new club in regards to league placings.

It all makes no odds to me now, we are Darlington and play in the Evostick 1st Div with debt that is holding us back. The future is what is important.

[princes town]

With a new club we have the chance to do this the right way, We took on a lot of debt from the old club (for not much gain in my view) but that is irrelevant. We have a chance to make right the failings of the old regime. To show that the fans are the most important part of the football club. If we can continue the positives with promotions and returning to the town then we will help grow the fan base and return the club to where the previous club sat.

The form of most organisations/nations is full of highs and low but that isn't a pretext for rewriting the history books. Much of the bad news about this club revolves around the Arena which serves to show what happens when you rebrand things. For those who think of us a new club there will those who think of us as the dodgy old club and no amount of rebranding will change that mindset. What I do agree with you is that a fan based strategy is more likely to reap respect than the johnny come lately types.

[theoriginalfatcat]

To me we are a new club, Hence the league we are playing in, and the fact we cannot be called Darlington FC. This to many people is a bad thing, but if you think of it from another direction theres no reason this needs to be a negative. I found it sad in the end that when I would tell my friends of Darlington FC, I had to tell them we suffered 3 administrations in 10 years. The club was in danger of becoming a laughing stock by the end.

JE93, your post is an interesting one. I disagree with most of your points however we all see things in different ways. If I read you right you seem to be saying that we needed a fresh start and a new identity gives us this. This point is relevant here .......

......

If being part of the rise of the "new club" up the leagues floats their boat, then let them get on with it.

[Quakerz]

The response so far has been very poor and way below what I hoped or expected. Not just in terms of money pledged (remember the money is only taken once the target has been reached) but in terms of general fundraising ideas or initiatives.

One way or another we need additional funds in the next 2/3 months to remove this debt burden or there won't be a Darlington FC.

Robbie, you said the other day that we ideally would like to raise 100k, but would be happy with 50k.

It's a bit useless being happy with 50k if you can't draw on it until it reaches 100k. Effectively, according to the bolded bit that I've just quoted you on, 50k is as good as 0k.

We surely would not enter into a crowdfunding agreement where we could not access any of the raised funds until the target was 100% reached would we?

[Robbie Painter]

The response so far has been very poor and way below what I hoped or expected. Not just in terms of money pledged (remember the money is only taken once the target has been reached) but in terms of general fundraising ideas or initiatives.

One way or another we need additional funds in the next 2/3 months to remove this debt burden or there won't be a Darlington FC.

Robbie, you said the other day that we ideally would like to raise 100k, but would be happy with 50k.

It's a bit useless being happy with 50k if you can't draw on it until it reaches 100k. Effectively, according to the bolded bit that I've just quoted you on, 50k is as good as 0k.

We surely would not enter into a crowdfunding agreement where we could not access any of the raised funds until the target was 100% reached would we?

No idea. Its all academic as we're miles off reaching any target right now.

Perhaps some sense of urgency will be generated after the forum on Jan 6th.

[Makka Pakka]

I think the FA only made us a "new" club because they couldn't be arsed to listen to our case. Who cares about some crappy no-mark northern club that their predominantly southern-based members hate travelling to anyway. Yes we broke the rules, but there were mitigating circumstances and the punishment was unnecessarily harsh, bordering on a piss-take. A higher profile club like say, Portsmouth or Coventry, would get a little more slack I'm sure.

It's the same as it always was for me, I don't think I would have backed a phoenix club. Players, managers, directors, crests, names, colours, stadia all change, it's only the fans that are constant.

[DarloFaithful]

I love Darlington FC as much as i ever have done but , in a sense, it does feel like a new club to me. The players, surroundings and matchday experience are just too far removed from our days in the football league, so it does feel somewhat new.

[Spyman]

Anyone who knows anything and has a grip on the facts surrounding what went on with the club in the last 18-24 months think of us as the same club we've been since 1883.

Only those with no more than a passing interest, or the terminally stupid, believe we're a new club.

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk

[ted_do]

I think the FA only made us a "new" club because they couldn't be arsed to listen to our case. Who cares about some crappy no-mark northern club that their predominantly southern-based members hate travelling to anyway. Yes we broke the rules, but there were mitigating circumstances and the punishment was unnecessarily harsh, bordering on a piss-take. A higher profile club like say, Portsmouth or Coventry, would get a little more slack I'm sure.

Agree with that although I think in a way the FA were telling us TO start a fresh debt free. We didn’t reform and looking back those " saviour days" were a blur and I`m still even now unsure if we did “Save Darlo” or were talked into buying magic beans by a very nice administrator.
Either way for the crippling debts we have taken on the tag of 1883 is a piss take. If we had gone down the new club route then I`m sure we would be at least five years forward on our journey back to senior football, if we were still at Feethams, even at the arena I would feel like Darlo are the same club, but without it, playing non league, out of town, dipping your hand in your pocket and the club is STILL in debt, plus a 1883 tag, I sometimes struggle to think of the old girl as my DFC.
Back to Darlo, playing in the conference, drop the 1883 and two thousand fans each week THEN it may feel like the old DFC.

[Gow9900]

I see us as the same club, but I understand why others don't.

The FA couldn't be arsed to deal with us, so they made it up as they went along, to our detriment. The FA does not give one iota about any club outside of it's precious Premier League, smaller clubs are an utter inconvenience for them. We all know that the money men run the game these days anyway, the likes of SKY and BT Sports put all the insane money in and ultimately control the decisions that are made, whether it be directly or not, the FA aren't going to bite the hand that feeds them. It's the same I suppose with the country/world, the bankers run things, governments are just the public face and fall guys...going slightly off track.

It has to be noted, whilst the majority of you know this but a lot are also ignorant too the fact, if we had folded in January 2012, like we nearly did, a fully fledged pheonix club would not have been able to start playing until the start of the this season 2014/15. If we had had no club for a full year that would have been more disastrous, as we would have started debt free as an official pheonix club, but what damage would a year of not playing any competitive games done to the already dwindling fanbase.

Plus we'd have had no smashing the Northern League last season as we would have probably been placed in the EvoStik North Division 1 league if we'd have started afresh. I thoroughly enjoyed last season,(and I know you all did) and will remember last season as one of my favourite ever Darlo seasons, it was great from start to finish. The level we were playing at is irrelevant, to start from where we did to smash the hell out of that league was unbelievable.

The 1883 tag pisses me off every-time I see it, but it's there and won't be going away for a while. But, after all the time effort, money, support all of us have put in since January 2012, I fail to accept that we are a new club, but in the eyes of the FA (a corrupt, incompetent organisation it has to be said) we are, and that's where we are at.

Doesn't diminish how I feel about the club, or whether or not I follow the team and go to the games. In fact, after all that has happened, makes me feel more determined to make the club work and get back up the leagues. Unfortunately for some, it appears to have put the fire out, which is sad, but not a surprise after not just the last few years, but the last 10 years.

[Gow9900]

Sorry, that meant to say 'wouldn't have been able to start until the 2013/14 season'

[QuakerPete]

I think the FA only made us a "new" club because they couldn't be arsed to listen to our case. Who cares about some crappy no-mark northern club that their predominantly southern-based members hate travelling to anyway. Yes we broke the rules, but there were mitigating circumstances and the punishment was unnecessarily harsh, bordering on a piss-take. A higher profile club like say, Portsmouth or Coventry, would get a little more slack I'm sure.

Agree with that although I think in a way the FA were telling us TO start a fresh debt free. We didn’t reform and looking back those " saviour days" were a blur and I`m still even now unsure if we did “Save Darlo” or were talked into buying magic beans by a very nice administrator.
Either way for the crippling debts we have taken on the tag of 1883 is a piss take. If we had gone down the new club route then I`m sure we would be at least five years forward on our journey back to senior football, if we were still at Feethams, even at the arena I would feel like Darlo are the same club, but without it, playing non league, out of town, dipping your hand in your pocket and the club is STILL in debt, plus a 1883 tag, I sometimes struggle to think of the old girl as my DFC.
Back to Darlo, playing in the conference, drop the 1883 and two thousand fans each week THEN it may feel like the old DFC.

It's easy to think that "if only" we had started a new club, then all our financial issues wouldn't have happened. As already indicated, that new club would have been over a year away from playing and had no historical link to the old one other than a number of fans who followed both.
I can't see how it would have succeeded in any way shape or form. I think the success of last season was partly due to these fans saying we won't be put down by the FA and riding on the crest of that enthusiasm. I think many (including myself) would have seen a new club as a step too far.
After a number of potential new owners came and went before last season, it was down to all the fans to save as much as what we had and try to do "the right thing" by all who'd stood by us through those dark days.

[Maurice_Peddelty]

we would have probably been placed in the EvoStik North Division 1 league if we'd have started afresh.

I agree with everything in your post except for one detail. The days of phoenix/new clubs (eg Chester, Halifax, FCUM) being placed in the likes of the NPL are gone. The FA now have a policy limiting the highest level at where they can begin, which I believe may be the Wearside League (I'm sure others will be able to correct or confirm) in our neck of the woods. Which raises another anomaly - the FA treated us as a new club yet still allowed us to compete in Northern League Div 1. If we had properly commenced as a new club in 2013 in the Wearside League the best we could have hoped for would have been a groundshare with Darlington RA with a handful of fans and as QuakerPete says, with no connection with the old club.

[MKDarlo]

There is no debate - We are, always have been and always will be Darlington Football Club.