It's been a funny old week for Darlington Football Club.

If last Saturday's failure to beat fellow relegation candidates Exeter wasn't hard enough to take in then Wednesday's gloomy defeat at another team struggling to beat the drop, Boston, had many discussing how to get to Margate next season.

However, the pre-match feeling with a pre-match pint would have led many to believe that Quakers have nothing to worry about this season. Taking full advantage of a glorious March afternoon, fans mingled at pubs nearby Glanford Park appearing not to have a care in the world. Maybe they knew something we didn't?

Or perhaps they'd just accepted Quakers' current plight and were quite happy to take whatever came their way.

Even the most optimistic of supporters couldn't have given Mick Tait's beleaguered troops much hope against a Scunthorpe side who had suffered just two home defeats all season prior and were in pole position for the third automatic promotion place.

After a first half in which Quakers defended as if their lives depended on it - or maybe more fittingly their futures - Clark Keltie's spectacular late winner was enough to hand his side a priceless win that takes them six points clear of the relegation zone. "It will give us a lot of confidence because we've came and competed with a top three side again," said Tait.

"It's the lower sides we've been struggling against. We have a bit more breathing space but I would like to have seen one or two of the teams below us lose.

"But just like us everyone is scrapping for their lives."

Midfielder Neil Maddison once again served a reminder to caretaker boss Tait that he still has a huge part to play in Quakers' run-in this season after he was recalled.

The 33-year-old has played in six of Darlington's nine league victories this season and even with his days at Feethams looking increasingly numbered he is just the sort of player Tait needs at the moment - as he proved with a typically rugged display.

Middlesbrough-born winger Peter Beagrie was The Iron's major threat especially in the first half when he had fellow Teessider Simon Betts chasing shadows. Even at the tender of 37 Beagrie still has a few tricks up his sleeve including a clever knack of earning free-kicks in dangerous places too, much to the annoyance of Betts.

With just four minutes on the clock Beagrie went down under the challenge of Betts but the resulting free-kick failed to trouble Andy Collett.

Moments later Collett came to the rescue when he parried away Paul Hayes' effort after good work by Matt Sparrow.

Beagrie twice struck the woodwork although the first effort was more of a cross as the ball bounced across the cross-bar.

His second attempt though was fully intentional when he rattled the post with a zipping left-foot drive which had Collett beaten. "He's had a couple of great strikes although I thought Bettsy did a great job for us," said Tait. "It took him a bit of time to settle but I was very pleased with him in the end.

"I told him to keep close to him otherwise he'll cause a few problems.

"He did that and Beagrie hardly got a sniff in the second half."

Betts almost gifted Scunthorpe a goal with his own entry into the Guiness Book of Records in the 'Lowest Header' category.

The ball was barely off the ground when the defender attempted to head back to Collett only to get it horribly wrong and almost let in Beagrie.

"He's done that a couple of times this season but he was almost on the floor this time," joked Tait. Betts might have preferred to have stayed in the dressing room during and after the interval. However, it soon became a different story as Quakers continued to frustrate Scunthorpe, and in particular Beagrie, with some solid defending. Betts was growing in confidence and stature. All of a sudden the tables were turned.

There was an almost cocky swagger from Betts in a fascinating second 45 minutes which continued to see the defender get the better of Beagrie, who had all of a sudden ran out of ideas.

The home side's failure to break down a resolute Quakers defence brought jeers from the home crowd, clearly not impressed by a game they had been expected to get three points from.

And it was to get a whole lot worse for Brian Laws' side when Quakers' first shot on target brought a goal.

Only a Gary Pearson free-kick which was charged down by the wall was the nearest the visitors had come to scoring prior to Keltie's second goal of the season which came nine minutes from time.

Maddison whipped in a free-kick from the right which was cleared only as far as Keltie, who waited for the ball to drop on the edge of the area before sending a half-volley crashing past Tom Evans in the Scunthorpe goal.

Keltie's strike was certainly out of the blue and in some respects a little harsh on Scunthorpe who had done everything but find the net.

Or maybe justice is beginning to prevail for a Quakers side who should never have been involved in a relegation fight in the first place

Read more about the Quakers here.