ROB Purdie is relishing his new-found role as Darlington’s regular right-midfielder, and now he wants to stay there.

The 26-year-old has been a regular in Dave Penney’s first XI ever since joining from Hereford United in the summer of 2007.

But Purdie’s versatility has regularly seen him moved around the pitch depending on the availability of others.

This campaign started in similar vein, playing in both full-back berths and at left midfield during the first two months.

However, his last ten starts have all been in the same position, on the right of midfield, and Purdie hopes to maintain his status quo.

“I was happy playing leftback and I’m happy playing right-midfield,” said Purdie who place may come under threat following the arrival of French winger Seb Carole.

“It’s a lot easier to settle and play more consistently when you’re in the same position week after week.

“That’s something I didn’t have last season, apart from towards the end, and for the bulk of last season I was inconsistent.

“It doesn’t help playing in one position one week and another the next. It can sometimes work to freshen me up when I get moved to a new position. But I don’t like being moved to a new position when I’ve been playing well, that’s the only problem.

“I moved to leftback during the Chester game last week and did alright.

But I’m 26 now and I really want to nail down a position.”

Having scored two penalties at the beginning of the season, Purdie finally scored from open play for Darlington during last week’s surprise 2- 1 defeat to Chester.

Purdie said: “The lads that I travel to training with have been giving me a ribbing for not scoring from open play so it was nice to finally score, but I’d have preferred not to have scored and for us to have won.

“We needed an early goal, which we got, but then we took our foot off the gas.

“I don’t why. We gave away five or six free-kicks in dangerous areas that broke played up which put us on the backfoot, and then we didn’t pass the ball as well as we can.

“Maybe, because we went 1- 0 up early on and were on top, we relaxed too much. After going 1-0 up at home, and after the form we have been in, you would expected us to go and win the game. Maybe we didn’t win because we just expected to.”

Carole is likely to be in the squad on Saturday, as will latest loan recruit Michael Flynn, when Quakers host Rochdale.

If top-of-the-table Wycombe win their game in hand at home to Macclesfield this evening the Chairboys would move eight points clear of third-placed Darlington.