Darlington have today reluctantly accepted an offer for midfielder Will Hatfield from AFC Fylde.

Midfielder Will, whom we signed from Guiseley in the summer of 2019, has made 87 appearances for us, scoring 11 times. He has scored some memorable goals, particularly against Kidderminster, Guiseley and Weymouth, and has established himself as a fans’ favourite.

Darlington Chairman, David Johnston said; “Fylde contacted us in the proper manner last week and they have given Will the opportunity to go full time which at this stage in his career he found too good to turn down. Will was out of contract in the summer and could have left for nothing so reluctantly we agreed to the transfer after Fylde activated a clause that enabled them to talk to Will.  We did try to persuade Will with a very good offer to stay, probably one of our highest ever, but we couldn’t match the terms.

“We would like to thank him for everything that he has done for us and wish him all the best in the future, but we now move on and support Alun as we look to improve the squad. The transfer fee received, which is confidential, will be fully reinvested into the playing squad.”

Manager, Alun Armstrong said; “I love Will as a player, captain and person who has been a great pleasure to work with. We have a great relationship, so I’m absolutely gutted he’s leaving. I will never stand in the way of a player turning professional however, as that’s the dream job for every footballer and just shows that what we do here is help and improve players.

“I will make sure we invest the money wisely like we have done over the three years I’ve been here.”

Everyone at Darlington FC would like to wish Will all the best in the future.