Former MK Dons defender Harry Darling has signed for Norwich City, where he reunites with his former Dons boss Liam Manning.
The 25-year-old has opted to reunite with Manning at Carrow Road, having joined the Canaries from Swansea City on a free transfer after the expiry of his contract in South Wales.
The defender was linked with a number of other clubs, including a Rangers side managed by another former Dons’ boss in Russell Martin, plus Birmingham, Sheffield United and Wrexham, while he had also received a contract extension offer from the Welsh club, before instead making the move to East Anglia.
Darling leaves after three years with Swansea. He had joined the Welsh club from MK Dons for an undisclosed fee rumoured to be in excess of £1million in 2022, and made 112 appearances in all competitions.
Before his move to Wales, Darling had spent 18 months with MK Dons. He had joined from Cambridge in January 2021, and scored 10 goals in 72 appearances with the club. He had been a mainstay in the Dons’ side that came close to winning promotion to the Championship in the 2021/22 season.
Darling told the official Norwich website that he was pleased with his decision to move to Carrow Road and to link up again with his ex-boss Manning, who took over at Norwich City earlier this month.
He said, “I’m delighted, it’s been a long time coming after a lot of conversations. I’m happy to finally get it sorted and I’m looking forward to getting started.
“Liam being in charge, I worked with him before at MK Dons so I didn’t need convincing too much about the style of play. I really enjoyed it last time working with him.”
Luton Town have announced a pre-season friendly against Tottenham Hotspur at Kenilworth Road.
The friendly at Kenilworth Road will take place on Saturday 26th July, with the match being Luton’s final contest before the start of the 2025/26 season.
The home match against the Europa League winners is Luton’s latest announcement of games they will play ahead of next season.
Luton previously confirmed that they will face away games at National League side Boreham Wood on 5th July and League Two outfit Gillingham on 19th July. A further away fixture is due to be played on 22nd July against a side that is yet to be confirmed, while the Hatters will also head to Slovenia in July for a training camp.
Tickets for Luton’s game against Spurs will go on sale on 1st July, with tickets available through the club’s website.
The match will see the Hatters test themselves against the Premier League giants. Despite a lacklustre 17th place finish in last season’s Premier League, the North London club won the Europa League, meaning they will take part in the Champions League next season. The trip to Kenilworth Road will be one of Spurs’ first games under new boss Thomas Frank, who moved from Brentford to Spurs earlier this week.
Luton boss Matt Bloomfield told the club’s official website that he was excited to take on Spurs in this tie.
He said, “This game is the perfect way for us to end our preparations before we embark on the season; the calibre of the opposition and the fact that it is at Kenilworth Road is really exciting.
“I hope our fans can come out in their numbers to watch a quality game of football and witness what we are building towards before we get down to business.”
MK Dons have signed defender Gethin Jones, who will join the club from Bolton Wanderers.
The 29-year-old will move from Bolton to Milton Keynes at the start of July upon the expiry of his contract in the North West, with Jones signing a contract of undisclosed length at Stadium MK.
The deal makes Jones’ MK Dons’ third new signing ahead of the 2025/26 season, following the previously confirmed arrivals of Nathaniel Mendez-Laing and Rushian Hepburn-Murphy.
Jones moves after five years playing for Bolton, with the defender having joined Wanderers from Carlisle in 2020. He achieved promotion from League Two to League One in his first season with the club.
In all, he made over 185 appearances for Bolton, scoring 8 times in the process. One of these came as Bolton won the EFL Trophy in 2023.
Jones has also received 6 caps for the Australian national team, having made his debut for the Socceroos last year.
The defender told the official MK Dons website
He said, “I look forward to playing for the Dons fans, it’s a great stadium and I look forward to seeing them here. I want to get MK Dons back to where it should be, it’s a brilliant club and to get that promotion would be perfect.
“I’m predominantly a right-back, but I can play right centre-half across the back five, and as a wing-back. I’m the type of player who likes to get up and down the pitch, I like to get crosses in, I like to defend; I’m an all-round full-back who enjoys running so I’ll be up and down the pitch quite a bit.”
His new boss Paul Warne said he was very happy to bring Jones to Stadium MK.
He said, “I’ve admired Gethin for many seasons, and I’ve faced him on numerous occasions. He knows what it takes to win, and he’s been successful in a promotion campaign and an EFL Trophy lift with Bolton.
“He can play in multiple positions across the backline, although as an attacking full-back, he provides great delivery into the box, but his flexibility enables us to play different systems.
“When we met, I really liked how he was as a man and his enthusiasm for the game. I find that usually, the players who love the sport give everything, and that’s what we want at this football club.”
MK Dons have announced they will be ending their kit supply deal with Castore.
The deal ends a three year association with the English sportswear brand, which the Dons had signed a kit deal with in 2022.
Castore had replaced Errea as MK Dons’ kit manufacturer when the deal was made, with the deal seeing the company provide the club with match and training wear as well as operating the club shop and web store as the club’s Retail Partner.
MK Dons did not confirm who will be replacing Castore as the club’s new kit manufacturer next season, with the club saying they will provide an update in due course.
The move continues flux at Castore, who have recently picked up Middlesbrough and Huddersfield Town as clients, as well as the England national rugby union team. They have also been dropped by clients including Newcastle, Aston Villa, Wolves, Sevilla, Bayer Leverkusen, Charlton and Salford in the last 18 months.
MK Dons CEO Neil Hart said in a statement on the official MK Dons website that he was grateful for the kit suppliers’ work.
He said, “We’d like to sincerely thank Castore for all their efforts over the last three years.
“We’re very appreciative of their support, not only with providing kits and training wear but also assisting with retail operations.
“Following a transitional year, we now enter a new era as a football club and are all looking forward to what’s ahead. We thank Castore for their co-operation during this period.”
Police are appealing for witnesses to the theft of a vehicle in Milton Keynes.
The appeal relates to an incident that happened sometime between Thursday 29 May and last Friday (6/6), when a white Citroen flatbed lorry was taken from Granby Court.
Investigating officer Sergeant Steven Kelly lead the appeals on behalf of Thames Valley Police. They said, “I am appealing to anybody who may have witnessed the theft of the lorry, or who has any information on its whereabouts, to please contact Thames Valley Police.
“I also ask that if anyone has noticed any suspicious activity in the area between the times mentioned, or has any dash-cam, CCTV or doorbell footage that may assist our enquiries to please get in touch.
“You can contact us online or by calling 101, quoting reference 43250274558.
“Alternatively, for anonymity, you can call the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.”
