DARLINGTON have swooped for Buxton striker Liam Hardy, the division’s 19-goal leading scorer.

Less than 48 hours after allowing David Dowson to join Spennymoor Town, manager Martin Gray has signed Hardy and he goes straight into the squad for tomorrow's game at Salford City.

Having scored 57 goals in 85 appearances for Buxton, he signed a two-and-a-half-year contract with Quakers.

A statement released by Buxton read: "Buxton FC have today transferred striker Liam Hardy to Darlington for an undisclosed fee. An offer from Darlington had been received and the player, whose current contract was to expire at the end of the season, expressed a wish to first talk to and then sign for Darlington. If that had not been the case, club officials were hoping Liam would sign a new contract for the 2016/17 season."

Hardy will hope to make an immediate impression having left mid-table Buxton, for whom his final goal was against Darlington at Heritage Park on February 2.

He put Buxton ahead with a long-range drive over goalkeeper Peter Jameson, adding to the goal he netted against Darlington on the first day of the season.

“I’ve tried two or three times to get him, and I’ve followed him all season and made a few enquiries,” said Gray.

“His pace is something that is going to make us better, he is great off the shoulder.

“His finishing is very good. He’s scored 19 league goals in about 23 games - he was out for a bit with a broken hand - so that statistic tells you a lot.”

Thirteen months ago Gray pulled off a similar coup by bringing in Nathan Cartman, who was then the division’s leading scorer for Harrogate RA, and he went on to play a key part in Quakers’ promotion.

The manager hopes his latest recruit can make a similar impact as Cartman, who Hardy played alongside for Railway earlier in his career.

Gray said: “I did the same this time last year at the exact same stage. It was an injection of just what we needed and hopefully Liam will come in and do exactly the same as Nathan has done for us over the last year.

“He’s scored two goals against us and another one was offside. He’ll be a great addition to our squad.

“One thing I do know is that he’s a real top lad, and he will fit into my changing room very well. I’ve done a lot of homework on him, on his personality, and he fits the bill, which is really important to me.”

Six of Hardy’s 19 goals this campaign came with back-to-back hat-tricks during December, against Barwell and Mickleover Sports, with the first one coming within the space of three minutes.

Bringing in Hardy successfully concludes Gray’s chase for the striker with a transfer that brought him into contact with a former Darlington defender.

“Eventually we’ve got the player I wanted, but I’ve chased him umpteen times and had conversations with their manager,” added Gray.

“I must say that Buxton have been absolutely great to work with. Tim Ryan is there, ex-Darlo, as assistant, I spoke with their manager and I spoke with their chairman over the weekend trying to do a deal myself.

“They wanted what was best for their player and they could see the ambition of our club.”

Hardy has also played for Armthorpe Welfare, where he once scored 46 goals in one season, Harrogate Town and Harrogate RA.

He first joined Buxton in February 2014, scoring seven goals in nine starts to help ease the Bucks’ relegation worries.

After being released by Harrogate Town, Hardy made a permanent move to Buxton in the summer of 2014 and enjoyed a terrific campaign which culminated in being nominated for the league team of the year after scoring 26 goals in 49 matches.

As a consequence of being a regular on the scoresheet, Hardy signed a new contract last summer.