MORE than 2,000 tickets had been sold last night for Sunday's two crucial fundraising matches in aid of troubled Darlington Football Club.

The encouraging figure was revealed as more stars pledged their backing for the fight to rescue the Quakers from the brink of extinction.

Former Darlington star Sean Gregan confirmed his support for the campaign to save the club which launched his career.

The captain of First Division high-flyers West Bromwich Albion made his Quakers debut in 1991 and was part of the team that reached a play-off final at Wembley in 1996.

Despite now being on the verge of the Premiership, Gregan said he had no hesitation in answering Darlington boss David Hodgson's call to help the Third Division's crisis club.

He will be at the Reynolds Arena on Sunday, as part of a team made up of players from the Quakers' Wembley squads of 1996 and 2000.

They will be taking on a celebrity team in one of two fund-raising matches on the day.

Gregan said: "Darlington gave me my chance in league football and I, like the rest of the lads, will do anything I can to help.

"It should be a great day, hopefully there'll be a decent crowd and we'll raise a few quid for the club."

Former Middlesbrough player Craig Hignett and ex-Newcastle defender John Beresford were the latest names signed up to play yesterday.

Hodgson also revealed that Kenny Dalglish would be partnered in attack by his son, former Newcastle and Norwich City player Paul.

"I've got Paul to play up front to do all his Dad's running." he said.

The Darlington team's shirts from the games will be auctioned at a later date.

All executive boxes - which were being offered at £235 each for the match - sold out yesterday, again boosting the coffers.

Meanwhile, Darlington Supporters' Trust said it was hoping that a wealth of new recruits from Tuesday night's public meeting would help its drive to raise £250,000 by the end of March.

About 170 new members were signed up, taking the total to 680, and the trust raised more than £2,000 on the night.

Officials will have a stand in the Cornmill Centre on Saturday, from about 9.30am, selling tickets for Sunday's event. Further information and trust merchandise will be available.

A fundraising dinner and auction is to be held at the Reynolds Arena on Friday, February 20.

The event has been organised by disabled Quakers fan Paul Hodgson, who has written two books about his experiences following the club.

The event will include an after-dinner speech by a former player and an auction.

Tickets for the event, which starts at 8pm, are £30 each or £300 for a table of ten.

All proceeds from the dinner will go towards the Supporters' Trust appeal.

Tickets can be ordered from Mr Hodgson by e-mailing him at paul.hodgson500ntlworld.com

Darlington's Marks and Spencer store has also offered a food hamper for a raffle being organised in conjunction with the Supporters' Trust.

Radio stations TFM and Magic 1170 are running a competition, giving listeners a chance to play a part in Sunday's matches. All profits from text message entries will go to the club.

Download the Support the Quakers poster online at www.thisisthenortheast.co.uk/sport

Feethams plan 'may hold key'

A BUSINESSMAN has unveiled a plan to save the Quakers - by returning the club to its former home at Feethams.

Building contractor Marcus Nimmo believes he can resurrect the disused ground using a team of volunteer workmen.

He would then raise £10,000 to pay the rent at Feethams for a year.

Mr Nimmo, a vocal opponent of the new stadium in the past, claims the scheme would ensure the club's survival for at least 12 months.

He said: "Until the full facts are known about the Reynolds Arena, nobody seems to be quite sure what they are doing.

"The fundraising thing is okay but I've never heard anybody consider Feethams again yet. Feethams is supposed to be derelict and sure enough it is deteriorating fast.

"But to fetch Feethams back to a state where it could be used and played in seems the logical way to go for me because of the finances involved."

Mr Nimmo said he had made calls to check whether Feethams could be used and was waiting to find out whether to forge ahead with his plan.

He hopes to recruit volunteers from the Quakers fanbase to help restore Feethams.

He said: "I think we've got a workforce second to none in the fanbase alone. I'm pretty sure from what I've read and what I've heard about the people of this town they would rally forward and bend over backwards to get Feethams back to how it should be."

Mr Nimmo, who outlined his plans to BBC Radio Cleveland, said returning to Feethams would be a temporary solution.

"I think it would be absolutely easy to raise the £10,000 a year rent.

"What we have is a pretty huge fan base in Darlington and they all have this great love of Feethams."