DARLINGTON return for pre-season training at the end of this month, by which time their goalkeepers will be a step ahead of their outfield team-mates after putting in an extra week of work.

Quakers’ keepers commence training at East Durham College in Peterlee on Monday, eight days before the remainder of the club’s outfield players report for duty.

Ed Wilczynski will not be involved, however, as he asked to leave Quakers in order to find first-team football, but Peter Jameson remains with the club.

He finished last season on loan to South Shields after losing his place in the first XI, with former Hartlepool keeper Adam Bartlett finishing the campaign as the team’s No. 1.

Manager Martin Gray said: “Ed’s gone. We’ve released him because he wanted first-team football but with Bartlett coming in we couldn’t really give him it, so he asked to leave and it’s no problem.

“Jameson is still with us and the goalkeepers are back in on Monday. They’re doing a pre pre-season, they’re in a week before everyone else.

“They’ll be in Monday to Friday before the outfield players start the week after and they’ll be working very hard under Tony Norman and Mark Bell.

“There will be six or seven goalkeepers involved: first-team, reserve and youth team keepers all together - you know what goalkeepers are like.”

Darlington currently have five friendlies lined up, though more may be added before the season starts on August 5.

Their first friendly is a trip to Shildon on Saturday, July 8, while a match with Newcastle United’s Under-23s has been arranged to take place at The Northern Echo Arena on Monday, July 17 (7pm).

Quakers played twice at the Arena last summer, against youth teams from Newcastle and Sunderland.

A youth team will travel to Newton Aycliffe on Wednesday, July 12.