Here is the latest of the behind the scenes updates of events at Darlington FC.

The Boards of Darlington FC and DFCSG continue to meet regularly via video conference call, to discuss various ongoing relevant matters. They met on Thursday 4^th June 2020 – this was the first meeting since 21^st May 2020

The Current league season:

The club received an update from the National League this week, of the current situation with the EFL regarding promotion and relegation, but the National League is still waiting for certain decisions by the EFL before deciding on their next step regarding play offs, promotions and relegations.

Like many other clubs in the National League and also at other levels of the football pyramid, Darlington Football Club is exploring and researching the potential for the live streaming of games through the official club website. This work is in the very early stages and much of it will depend on the restrictions placed on staging matches in the future. We will keep you updated on this in due course.

Club finances:

The Boost the Budget campaign finished with a magnificent sum of over £131,000 raised. The club would like to thank everyone who contributed to Boost the Budget, it makes a fantastic difference. We hope you enjoyed watching the Zoom interview with Alun Armstrong last week, and seeing his gratitude and delight at the fans for providing him with every opportunity to further strengthen the playing squad next season.

Community engagement:

The club has continued to be very active again in the last fortnight, and we intend to maintain this level of involvement through this period.

• A successful Netcafe was held with manager Alun Armstrong on the official website
• A popular series of announcements about members of our current squad re-signing for the new season were made
• The Zoom facility was used for a four-part interview with former Darlington skipper Kevan Smith
• The Buddy Mentoring Scheme has now been in operation for nine weeks and we have reached hundreds of fans. The DFC Board, DFCSG Board, Operations Management Group and several other volunteers have all been making phone calls during this time. With the relaxation of some of the lockdown restrictions, the Club are now in the process of reviewing the scheme. We’ll inform you of the outcome of this review and any changes we intend to make in our next weekly update.

In the coming week, we will:

• Keep all our existing and current main sponsors up to date on Club developments.
• Continue the ongoing work on the review of the 2020-21 Commercial brochure.
• Run more feature articles on our sponsors and partners from the official website. The Club remains in continuous contact with our sponsors and partners and we are maintaining our excellent relationships with them during these difficult times.
• Host a Netcafe with Chief Executive Officer David Johnston on the official website on Friday at 7pm. Send your questions in advance to: media@darlingtonfc.org
• Continue the work in progress of existing and new and exciting features for the official website. Preparations are being made for an 80s week between 28^th June to 4^th July, more details on this soon.

Throughout these very difficult and unprecedented times, we have maintained a very high profile for the club on our official website and social media channels, and we will continue to do so for the benefit of our much-valued volunteers and loyal supporters. In the coming weeks and months, we will be exploring several new ideas to help provide our supporters with their ‘football fix’.

Thank you for your continued support, it is very much appreciated.

Remember, follow the guidelines and stay safe.