IT has taken less than a year for football fanatic Terry Soley to wear out six sets of tyres on his wheelchair.

The 42-year-old has burnt so much rubber through his tireless devotion to Darlington Football Club.

For months, Terry has made a daily pilgrimage to the site of the Quakers' new multi-million pound stadium in the town's Neasham Road - three miles there and three miles back.

Terry pledged from the first day of construction that he would visit his own theatre of dreams come rain, hail or shine - and he has stuck unwaveringly to his resolution.

So far the stalwart supporter, who suffers from cerebral palsy, has notched up a staggering 1,200 miles on his daily round trips to the club's new ground - the equivalent of going to Helsinki, Warsaw, Rome or Majorca.

"I have supported Darlington for 25 years. This new stadium is a dream come true for me and I was determined not to miss a minute of its construction."

As he arrived on his six-mile round-trip visit yesterday Terry was also full of praise for the club's chairman George Reynolds, who is funding the stadium entirely from his own pocket.

"I have seen chairmen come and go and have listened to a string of broken promises from them but George has been true to his word.

"He promised us a new stadium and here it is. If I had my way I would stay here all the time and never go home.''

Being wheelchair-bound, however, meant one disappointment for Terry. Because of health and safety rules, he could not go on one of the conducted tours of the ground.

But thanks to the resolve of chairman's wife Susan Reynolds, the security hurdle was crossed when she had Terry carried into her Range Rover car before personally taking him on a tour of the inside of the stadium.

"I can honestly say it was the happiest moment of my life," said Terry, who has described the proposed facilities for disabled fans at the ground as "second to none.''

Terry's daily visits have been applauded by Mr Reynolds, who said: "He is an absolute star.

"We struck up a friendship with Terry from the moment we met him and as far as my wife and I are concerned he has become a dear family friend.''

Discounting the £200 he has spent on new sets of tyres Terry added: "I don't begrudge a penny of it and even after the building is complete I intend to come here every day. It's going to be my home from home.