RADCLIFFE have launched their summer recruitment drive with two new

signings.

Striker Danny Mitchley and full-back Lanre Olapade have signed to play next season for Jon Macken’s upwardly mobile Boro.

And adding to the good news, the club has also confirmed that three of last season’s key men in the promotion campaign, Ben Wharton, Scott Metcalfe and Rick Smith, have also extended their stay at the Neuven Stadium.

Chairman Paul Hilton said the signing of Mitchley, who scored 81 goals in 170 appearances for Marine, shows the standard of player the club is looking to recruit this summer.

“We’ve been looking to bring in someone of Danny’s calibre,” he told the Radcliffe Times. “He’s 29, which is a good age, and is the kind of player who can bring some experience at this level of football.

“He was captain of Marine and was at the club for four years, so he will bring the leadership we have been looking for.

“It’s a great deal for us and it’s a great deal for him.”

Ex-Manchester City trainee Olapade is a right-sided defender who Hilton hopes will prove a popular arrival among supporters.

“He spent time with Ashton United and is a really dynamic full-back,” he said. “He’s young, still learning his game, so we’ve brought in players from both sides of the spectrum there to keep a nice balance within the squad.”

Wharton, Metcalfe and Smith weighed in with 114 appearances between them last season as Boro claimed a spot in the Evo-Stik Premier League via the

play-offs.

Striker Wharton scored 18 times, six from the penalty spot, including one against Leek Town in the play-off final.

Midfield pairing Metcalfe (six) and Smith (four) also weighed in with goals for Macken’s side, who are not yet done in the transfer market, claims Hilton.

“We’ll go about our business calmly,” he said. “We won’t be doing fancy videos or reveals, just getting the job done.”