FORMER Newcastle and Liverpool manager Kenny Dalglish is being lined up as the figurehead of a planned takeover of Darlington Football Club.

The Northern Echo can reveal that Dalglish - a friend of Quakers boss David Hodgson - is seen as the man to add weight to the Sterling Consortium's proposal to take over the running of the club.

The consortium has spoken to a number of people who would fit the bill and one of them is Dalglish.

Dalglish, who was a European Cup winner as a player with Liverpool, has no intention of buying into the club.

But his presence as part of the new board would give the club real credibility in the eyes of the Football League.

It is anticipated that he could then also play a key role in helping to rebuild the club after administration by using his extensive contacts throughout the game.

Dalglish was one of the stars who turned out for a fundraising match, organised by former Liverpool colleague Hodgson at the Reynolds Arena earlier this year.

The match attracted 14,000 people and raised about £130,000 to help keep the club going.

In December, The Northern Echo revealed that Dalglish had been acting as Hodgson's advisor on a scheme aimed at developing Darlington's old Feetham's ground into a community sports centre.

Administrator David Field last night denied any knowledge of the planned Dalglish-Hodgson partnership.

He said: "To be honest my role is to keep the club going. What happens after it is sold isn't really anything to do with me."

However, other informed sources have confirmed that the link-up is a live possibility.

Mr Field said the administrators were trying to thrash out a deal to keep the club going until the end of the season, as a compromise because the Football League refused to sanction a deal with the Sterling Consortium until approval had been gained from creditors.

He said: "We are losing money every day, so we have to negotiate a way of keeping us going to the end of the season. Basically, we are living on credit until the club is bought.

"If we can keep going to the end of the season, that will give us all some breathing space to reach an agreement with all the creditors.

"This proposal is being investigated by the League, to ensure it meets with League approval. The administrators and the League are still in discussions regarding finding a solution to the current impasse.

"We intend continuing to trade for the foreseeable future to continue to explore all the possibilities open to the club."

Mr Field also confirmed that manager David Hodgson had laid claim to money owed from the club - believed to be up to £6m - which would make him the main creditor, as Mr Reynolds' proven debts only add up to £5.6m.

But he said: "We need 75 per cent of the creditors' votes to pass any deal. If more than 25 per cent of the votes are against the deal it can't go ahead. Even if David is the main creditor, Mr Reynolds has more than 25 per cent of the vote.

"I need to see if we will accept David's claim or dispute it once we have the final paperwork, but if he is the main creditor it gives us a little bit more bargaining power - but not an awful lot."

Last night, a Football League spokesman said it had not changed its position on the Sterling deal. "Our rules prevent a club being unilaterally liquidated against the wishes of its creditors and simply started up again as if nothing had happened," he said.

"Were such a situation to prevail it would allow liquidation to be used as a means for gaining a competitive advantage over rival clubs.

"The League acknowledges supporters' concerns that this may threaten the existence of the club, but without such a principle it would be impossible to maintain fair competition between all clubs.

"The League now urges the potential buyers and the club's creditors, including former chairman George Reynolds to come to an agreement to secure Darlington FC's future as a League club."

Darlington Supporters' Trust has sent a petition to the Football League protesting at its stance.

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