ANGRY Darlington defender Ian Miller last night blasted the handling of the club’s administration, saying players and other members of staff have been “treated like battery hens”.

He also branded Brackenbury Clark & Co, Quakers’ administrators, as ‘cowards’.

Just three days after a fundraising game at The Northern Echo Darlington Arena, the administrators mothballed the club, axing ten members of staff, including assistant manager Martin Gray, goalkeeping coach Andy Collett and long-serving kitman Andrew Thompson.

They then released a statement on Thursday stating that all players have been released, but that has since proved inaccurate.

“We’ve been treated like battery hens,” blasted Miller.

“I don’t think people who work in factories doing packaging are treated as badly as we have been.

“People like Tommo the kitman, he’s Darlo through and through.

“He’s worked for the club for over 20 years and even the administrators didn’t tell him he was sacked, he was just treated as any other member of staff.

“That to me is not how a business, whether you’re in administration or not, should be run, it’s cowardice.

“We’re finding out information third or fourth hand at the moment.

“I don’t think even Dave Penney spoke to the administrators that much.

“I spoke to the club secretary earlier today, she is at the stadium all week and she rarely gets to speak to them.

“We’re having to get a lot of our information from the PFA, but even the PFA have said they can’t help us.”

Miller also raises the issue of the financial cost Quakers face from employing Brackenbury Clark & Co as administrators.

They say between £20,000 and £25,000 was raised by Sunday’s fundraising match at The Northern Echo Darlington Arena which attracted a crowd of 3,400.

The 25-year-old centre-half said: “The other frustrating thing is they put this charity game on saying it would fund us during the summer, but they turn around and say we’re going to mothball the club because there isn’t enough money.

“What did they make from that match?

“If you look at the sums and work out what we’re roughly paying them a month, it’s not too dissimilar to what the players are on combined.

“We didn’t have to take a ten-point deduction. We could’ve taken a wage decrease until the end of the season, knowing that we’d get our back pay as we’d have been in the play-offs, when there would have been a financial incentive for going up at Wembley.

“I’ve haven’t spoken to him (the administrator) directly but I think when they’re earning the sort of money they’re supposed to be earning they will have no incentive to sell the club.

“I know there have been bids on the table; how can someone turn around and say they would prefer to mothball the club than to accept a bid?

“It’s mind-blowing.” Miller also expressed his disappointment for the fans who, in the space of three months, have gone from supporting a League Onebound club to one which may not exist next season. “I feel sorry for the fans,” said Miller, who says he is wanted by a handful of clubs.

“Next season the club will be run on a shoestring, there’ll be none of the current players there, they’ll be signing players from nonleague and so forth, and there won’t be any decent football for the fans to come and watch.

“We had a good team together and now it looks like being pulled apart.

“I know certain players have clubs lined up. Personally, I know of a few that are interested in me but it’s a case of working out what’s best for myself regarding travelling etc.

“I think most people are going to take wage cuts, all that’s got to be taken into account.

“But I don’t think any of the fans or anyone who knows anything about Darlington Football Club will hold it against us because we need to find another job as we’ve got bills to pay.”