Darlington 3 Telford 0 - Report

Three years later, and another 3-0 reverse at Blackwell Meadows; however, the current mood at the club couldn’t be more different from those heady initial days of Cowan’s tenure.

Early FA Cup exits for both sides meant they were free to reschedule this fixture, originally slated as the season opener on 14th August. Much has happened at both clubs since then, and not much of it is positive. For the Bucks, a run of five league matches without a win and just four points on the board is a poor return from their opening six fixtures.

They arrived at Blackwell Meadows without a point on their travels, and with the hosts winless in three home fixtures; the feeling that something had to give was palpable – which side would hold their nerve better amongst growing pressure to break those undesired sequences?

Darlington were due to be without manager Alun Armstrong on the touchline, a legacy of his half-time dismissal during last weekend’s 2-1 home loss to York City. Fate took even more of a hand, however; Armstrong was rushed to hospital on Friday with a strangulated umbilical hernia that required swift surgery.

His assistant Darren Holloway took charge of the Quakers and they received a morale boost when Armstrong came through surgery successfully and declared that a victory would help his recovery. Given that incentive, his side started the game in a way that would have pleased their absent manager; Darlington were positive, showed few signs of any nerves given their own poor run, and took the game to the visitors.

Alas, the Bucks approach to the game betrayed their own lack of belief and cohesion, and Darlington didn’t hesitate to go about boosting their own self-confidence at the expense of Cowan’s side.

Goalkeeper Russ Griffiths was called upon early to punch away from a Darlington corner kick, but then the Bucks had a rare moment of promise when a Jason Oswell header came back off the post; Oswell scored an early goal at the same venue last season as the springboard for a 2-1 Bucks victory, but that close call for the home goal wasn’t any sort of Bucks launchpad this time around.

The Bucks, with debutant centre-back Kory Roberts, on loan from Bromley, featuring in a five-man defence, did create a crossing chance for stand-in right wing-back Jed Abbey, but his overhit delivery spoiled a decent counter-attacking opportunity. At the opposite end, Luke Charman, in good scoring form for Darlington, dug out a shot from the edge of the box that sailed wide. Soon after he struck again from distance and Griffiths had to save, low at his near post.

The flow of traffic had started to become rather one-sided, and eventually, Charman found the target. On 18 minutes, an intercepted through ball fell for winger Kevin Dos Santos; the lively Portuguese, who arrived in County Durham via Tadcaster, fired in a shot from the edge of the box that Griffiths did well to save, diving left to push the ball away. No Bucks defender reacted quickly enough and Charman pounced on the loose ball to drive hard and low past Griffiths as he tried to recover.

The Bucks tried to respond, but Oswell’s pull-back for Adam Walker was too high for the captain to take control of, and another brief counter-attacking chance faded away. You sensed that the hosts were starting to believe the game was theirs to seize, and Griffiths was soon busy again, a deflected shot looping over his bar for a corner that he had to punch away from the head of Ellis.

Kyle Bennett collected the game’s first yellow card, his sliding challenge taking out goalkeeper Taylor and suggesting Bennett was feeling frustrated. He wasn’t alone in that, as Elliott Durrell’s body language suggested similar feelings.

Dos Santos almost capitalised in the six-yard box as a ball played in which appeared to pose little threat became dangerous, simply because no Bucks player took responsibility for it. Jack Byrne’s outstretched boot turned a dangerous cross away from Charman, whilst Walker was thwarted on the counter by his rival captain Will Hatfield’s terrific sliding tackle.

The half ended with Darlo on top and the Bucks a little fortunate not to be further adrift. Jake Cassidy had an early headed chance as the second half began, but didn’t make contact despite a headlong dive at the near post. As had happened in the first half, Oswell was again unlucky in the early stages; his header struck the frame of the goal on 52 minutes from Durrell’s free-kick, the forward seeing the ball hit the top of the bar before going over.

A Darlo penalty appeal against Ross White for handball was sensibly turned down, and although Darlo remained on top the Bucks started to find a foothold in the match, mainly on the counter-attack. However, just as they seemed to be gathering a little momentum, Charman struck again. With 64 minutes on the clock, Cassidy laid the ball infield to his strike partner and from the edge of the box, he struck a fine effort beyond Griffiths’ dive and into the far corner.

Cowan responded with a double substitution, bringing on speedy duo Kai Williams and Tyrell Hamilton. Cowan has been reluctant to start both players together, but he had few options at his disposal. Williams almost won his side a penalty when he cut in off the right flank on 76 minutes and was brought down by Alex Storey on the edge of the box. Storey was booked, whilst the Bucks free-kick chance was wasted, Durrell disappointingly unable to beat the first man.

On 82 minutes, a third Darlo goal rubbed in the salt in a way that Salt Bae would be proud of. Byrne’s attempted ball downfield was charged down by Rivers, the Darlo man jumping with his arms raised and the ball clearly striking one, if not both. Neither referee Jonathan Urwin nor his assistant saw anything untoward and Darlo were suddenly on the attack with the Bucks outnumbered, having pushed more men upfield in anticipation of Byrne’s delivery. Dos Santos received the ball and cut inside from the left-wing before unleashing an unstoppable shot across and over Griffiths into the roof of the net.

Byrne and Theo Streete led muted protests, but the game had long since been over. A late Hamilton shot saved low down by Taylor denied the Bucks even the consolation of a goal to spoil Taylor’s clean sheet, and with two more tough road trips ahead of them, the Bucks have lots of questions to find answers to, and quickly.

Referee: Jonathan Urwin.

Assistants: Majid Ali, Garry Fletcher-Tindall.

Telford (5-3-2): Griffiths, Berkoe, White, Jed Abbey (Williams 67), Streete, Roberts, Walker, Oswell, Byrne, Bennett (Hamilton 67), Durrell.

Subs not used: Birch, Huffer, Jez Abbey.

Cautioned: Bennett.

Darlington: Taylor, Smith, Storey, Hedley, Ellis, Wheatley, Hatfield (c) (Purver 87), Rivers (Lanbert 90+2), Dos Santos (Mondal 89), Charman, Cassidy.

Subs not used: Taylor, Nelson.

Scorers: Charman (18, 64), Dos Santos (71).

Cautioned: Storey.

Attendance: 1,201.