ONE door closes, another opens. So as Darlington teeter on the brink, two of its top stars – Liam Hatch and Jamie Chandler – have joined Gateshead. Ian Bogie is delighted.
The Tynesiders had already seen an initial bid for Hatch rejected by the Quakers’ administrators, but a second – plus an offer for Chandler, both nominal – proved successful.
Both have signed contracts until the end of the season, with views to longer deals thereafter, and Bogie said: “They’re two good signings for the club, I’m delighted.
“It’s important that we build on the success we’ve had of late, we’re in a good position so it’s a good time to bring new players to the club.
“They’re not kids, they’re proven, quality players with lots of experience, so they’re great acquisitions for us.
“As a manager, it’s hard to focus on opposition players during games but those two have caught the eye in the games we’ve played against Darlington over the last couple of seasons.
“Jamie Chandler has a big heart and is a good distributor of the ball. In difficult times at Darlington he’s come through with flying colours.
“He’s a player going back to his time at Sunderland, who I’ve admired for some time, and he’s a local lad, which always helps. Liam Hatch is also someone who we’ve been impressed by over the last year or so.
“He got a couple of goals against us in last year’s FA Trophy semi-final, he’s a real handful and he’ll take a bit of the pressure off Jon Shaw up front, especially the physical side of things. He’s going to be a big player for us.” Not today, however. Though Chandler is available for selection, a hamstring injury prevents Hatch from taking on Braintree Town in this afternoon’s FA Trophy second round tie at the International Stadium.
But Bogie said: “Confidence is high after the last three wins but we won’t be complacent.
“We want to get through to the last 16, the fans want a day out at Wembley. We were very close last year and aim to go one better this time. “We’re at home and looking forward to it but it’ll be a difficult game. Alan Devonshire’s an experienced manager with good players, they made it difficult for us in the league game earlier in the season. It’ll be a tough encounter.”
STEVE BROWN
