Both Darlington and Salford came through tough looking fixtures on Saturday to make it a two horse race for the one automatic promotion spot.

The Quakers were near their best as they comfortably beat Droylsden 5-2 at Heritage Park. Meanwhile Salford were able to beat our local rivals Spennymoor Town, 2-0. With five games left Darlington know they may need to win all five to guarantee the title.

David Dowson was withdrawn from the squad against Droylsden having felt a twinge in the warm-up. However, he should be fine to return to the side at Scarborough.

The fixture takes place in Bridlington, where Scarborough are currently ground sharing. They are hoping to return to Scarborough in the near future.

They have been in the playoff mix all season, however, they look likely to miss out on the top five. Currently they are six points behind fifth placed Spennymoor Town.

Our meeting earlier in the season led to a 3-0 victory on Boxing Day for Darlington. We have already won at Bridlington this season as well, winning 4-0 in the FA Trophy back in November.

Ahead of the fixture manager Martin Gray said “We know that we have to win all five of our remaining games to beat Salford for the title, and we’re quite capable of doing it with performances like that.

“We must prepare properly and as professionally as possible for games, and that’s why I wouldn’t allow the players to drink alcohol after Saturday’s game.”

Elsewhere in the league Salford travel to Radcliffe Borough.