Pic: Chris Booth
DARLINGTON will be dropping the 1883 suffix from their title after the Football Association approved the switch back to the club's historic name.
The Quakers were forced to add the numbers, the year the original club was founded, after it went into administration in 2012.
They began the 2012-13 season as Darlington 1883 in the Northern League Division One, four divisions below where Darlington FC had last competed.
Martin Gray's side have earned three promotions in four years to climb back up to the National League North and they are currently fighting for a play-off spot at Step 2.
The club can already celebrate one win ahead of next season with the FA confirming they will be allowed to go back to using the Darlington FC name.
A poll by the Darlington Supporters Group found 98 per cent of voters wanted to return to being called Darlington FC and their wish has been granted.
Director Jonathan Jowett, who has been liaising on a regular basis with the FA in recent months, told the club's website: “This is fantastic news for our fans and formally re-establishes our historic connection.
“I would like to thank the FA for accepting our application and the arguments we made in favour of reverting to our traditional playing name of Darlington FC.”
