Quakers have today completed the signing of former Middlesbrough full back Tony McMahon.

34 year old Tony, who is from Bishop Auckland, made his debut for Middlesbrough against Manchester United in the Premiership in 2004, and totalled 137 appearances for them in the Premiership and Championship – as well as games in the UEFA Cup against Egaleo, Lazio, Sporting Lisbon and Villareal -- until he moved on to Sheffield United eight years later.  

He went on to play for Blackpool and Bradford City, for whom he played in the League One play off final in 2017.

After leaving Bradford, he moved to Oxford United for a season, and also had a loan spell at Scunthorpe United. In total, Tony has made 428 appearances in his career, scoring 24 goals. He has also played for England at Under 16, 17 and 19 levels.

The signing is subject to FA and league approval.

He has also qualified as a UEFA A coach, and last season was helping out at the Middlesbrough Academy. He will be taking over as Head of Academy at Darlington FC on Tuesday.

“I’m really excited about signing, and can’t wait to start playing again, “ he said. “Alun has put a good squad together that can do really well this season. I've also been doing my coaching badges in recent seasons, and I'm looking forward to working in the Academy alongside Jarrett Rivers, whom I know from my Blackpool days."

Darlington manager Alun Armstrong said; “This is a massive coup for us. As a player, Tony has appeared in Europe, the Premier League, Championship and League One, so he has got vast experience.  He's another leader who will help us massively as we were naive a lot of times last season.

“He’s also been taking his coaching badges in the last year, and has been coaching at Middlesbrough’s Academy.”

We would like to welcome Tony to the club, and wish him every success in his time with us.

Tony is Alun's fourth signing of the summer, following former Newcastle striker Luke Charman, former Bolton defender Nicky Hunt and former Blyth striker Dan Maguire.