IN September 2001, amid little fanfare, 50 followers of Darlington Football Club gathered in the town's Arts Centre to form an organisation intended to be the mouthpiece of the Quakers' fans.

It is fair to assume not one of them had an inkling of the extraordinary soap opera that was to unfold, or how crucial their part in the future of the club would be.

Today, Darlington Supporters' Trust has nearly 1,200 members, and stands on the brink of securing part-ownership of the club and the 25,000-capacity Reynolds Arena.

As one-fifth of a consortium said to be the only serious contender to launch a takeover bid, the trust could be about to give supporters a bigger say in the running of Darlington FC.

If successful, Darlington would become the latest in a long list of clubs to strongly involve their fans.

The trust is one of 104 that have been set up under the Supporters' Direct scheme, a Government-backed initiative to increase fans' representation and share-owning at football clubs.

In an age when financial disasters crippling clubs are common, handing some control to supporters with a passion for their team has produced a string of successes.

Thirty-one trusts have supporter-representation on club boards, 13 have been involved in rescuing their clubs from extinction and three own league clubs.

At Darlington -where a question mark hangs over the club's existence -the supporters' trust has been burning the midnight oil to form a rescue package.

Accountants, lawyers, business people and media professionals, as well as a dedicated band of fundraisers, the members have been pooling their skills to good effect.

In the event of the consortium's bid being accepted, the trust has clearly defined aims:

* To elect a supporter representative to become one of five equal partners on the club board;

* To take the lead in developing strong links with other aspects of the Darlington community;

* To become a "community club", widening access for people in the town and fostering good relations with local schools and other groups;

* To continue raising funds.

It is a tall order, but one the trust believes it can achieve. Firstly, though, the club, which is in administration with £20m debts, must be saved.

Board member Tony Taylor said: "We have costed the club as a complete entity and looked at what can be generated from the non-footballing side, and we are coming up with a realistic proposal."

That proposal will be submitted to administrators by the Friday, February 13, deadline, although finance will not be discussed publicly for fear of sparking a bidding war.

Within the next fortnight, the identities of the consortium members, all local businessmen, are expected to be revealed.

But further interest is likely to emerge before the deadline and, if the consortium bid were to be unsuccessful, the trust says it wants to work closely with the new owners.

But for now, members hold a belief that they can acquire the club and the stadium. After that, they will set about meeting their targets.

Officials are keen to dispel the idea that a fan on the board would discuss the club's confidential matters in their local pub.

Mr Taylor said: "Election procedures are in place and we have confidentiality agreements ready to be signed.

"It is not at all unusual in industry for one of a company's principal customers to have a seat on its board.

"Whoever is elected will have maturity and clarity of judgement, which will really bring something to the club."

A key element will be enhancing youth development, a side of the club largely overlooked in recent times.

Mr Taylor said: "There is some great talent here. But there are kids from Darlington going down to the South-East, and that is certainly something on our agenda to address.

"It is far better getting youngsters at the club from your own doorstep than going through the transfer process."

If the trust can replicate the success of its counterparts at York City and Notts County, the club could find itself in safe hands.

"The situation is quite clear. The administrators have said that the club will fold on April 22 if a solution is not found," said Mr Taylor.

"What we are saying to people is that we are not some fly-by-night organisation. We are not talking about something that is untried and untested, we are talking about a realistic future for the club."

Read more about the Quakers here.