STEVE Foster made a surprise appearance on the bench for Darlington on Saturday, but manager Steve Staunton says the former captain remains at an impasse with the club.

Under the terms of his current deal the experienced defender will receive a contract extension if he starts two more matches.

Foster has been asked to remove the clause, but relegation- threatened Quakers, whose chairman Raj Singh has revealed that Foster is “by far the highest earner at the club”, do not wish to hand out any contracts for next season while Football League status remains an issue.

Staunton has taken Foster out of the line-up for the last two matches, and the manager even implied that the 35- year-old was third choice to be on the bench against Bradford City on Saturday.

Ian Miller was sidelined on Saturday so Quakers’ centreback pairing was Danny Hall and Mark Bower.

Staunton said: “Ian Miller had a hamstring problem from the game on Tuesday and I wasn’t prepared to put Dan Burn on the bench because of the situation we’re in.

“Fozzie is available for selection on the bench. In his contract it only refers to games that he starts.

“The ball is firmly in Fozzie’s court, he knows where we stand and we know where he stands as well and unfortunately that’s the way it is.”

Following the 1-0 defeat to Bradford, during which some supporters chanted Foster’s name, the veteran defender was reluctant to speak to the media, saying only that all questions should be put to “them upstairs”.

Staunton has been keen to stress that there is no ill feeling between the club and Foster, saying he would like the matter to be resolved amicably.

He added: “It is not a case of us falling out, but a matter of putting plans in place for the future, and making the right decision to take the club forward.”

Miller took the captain’s armband from Foster at Notts County last Tuesday, but on Saturday had to pass it on to Mark Bower who made his first appearance for three months.

He has been sidelined with an ankle injury, sustained at Accrington in September, but returned as captain against his hometown club, where he spent 12 years as a player, and was even cheered by the travelling fans during Saturday’s match.

He said: “It was a nice experience to be captain. It’s a very difficult situation really.

“I feel for Steve and it’s a difficult one for the club.

“We would have been happier if we had won but it was a much improved performance from us.”