TAKE ten points from their remaining five games and Darlington win the title, it’s that simple.

Having not been at the summit since October, and been 13 points off the pace two months ago, they may have timed their run to perfection.

Saturday’s deserved 2-0 win at Grantham Town, coupled with Blyth’s shock home defeat, means Quakers are breathing down Spartans’ neck and ready to make their move.

They now have three winnable home games coming up and their position is healthy: a point behind with two games in hand.

As Blyth are not in action until Saturday, Darlington go top if they avoid defeat tomorrow evening at Heritage Park against Skelmersdale.

The same lower mid-table team stunned Blyth on Saturday, so they will be no pushovers, but few would back against Darlington, given their imperious form while ploughing through a glut of games.

Goals by Stephen Thompson and Liam Hardy during a thrilling second half made it 18 wins in 22 matches, the last four fixtures coming inside seven days as Quakers again demonstrated they have the resolve required amid the pressure of the promotion race.

“We knew we had to come down here and get maximum points, but I thought the performance was outstanding,” said manager Martin Gray.

“It’s another game chalked off and we’ve got five games to go. Winning today, and other results going for you, makes it a better day. That’s all very good, but it’s about what we do.

“It’s about staying focused and going again on Tuesday.

“The players’ mentality is great and that goes back to day one at the club, it started then.

“When we come to difficult places like this and you’ve had four games in eight days, and you take nine points out of 12, it proves the desire and the hunger the players have.

“They don’t get an easy ride with me. I expect a lot from them in every game and they know it. It’s quite simple.”

There were jubilant scenes at the final whistle, but cautious Gray added: “We’ve only won a game today, and I mean that.

“I’ve had to make that clear to the players. They weren’t jumping around, I wouldn’t allow that either, we’ve still got five games to go, five cup finals.”

It’s only six days since Darlington were seven points off the top after losing at Frickley, but they trimmed that deficit by beating Nantwich on Thursday.

Nonetheless, at the culmination of an exhausting week, three points were again required and Darlington delivered, albeit against a team struggling for numbers.

The Gingerbread men could name only four substitutes, and then saw Ben Harris stretchered off after colliding with Leon Scott, but Darlington then lost Phil Turnbull to injury.

The midfield metronome, arguably player of the year, limped off with a muscle strain and will be assessed before tomorrow’s game.

“I think it was down to fatigue,” said Gray. “We’ve played four games in eight days, players will pick up muscle strains in that situation, so we’ll see how he is.”

Tom Portas replaced Turnbull at the end of a first half which ended level despite Darlington having much more of the ball, almost all of the scoring chances and strong penalty claims.

Lewis Carr used a hand when intercepting a Lee Gaskell pass, and Gray said: “It was definitely handball.

“The referee admitted it hit the player’s hand, but said it wasn’t deliberate. But the ball had travelled around 20 yards, it’s not as though it bounced up at him quickly.”

Gaskell was withdrawn early in the second half, Gray sharing out the load during the glut of games, and substitute Graeme Armstrong had a hand in Thompson’s goal on 65 minutes.

He flicked the ball on and Hardy played in Thompson to score a goal similar to his effort on Thursday.

The barrel-chested dynamo barged his way through, knocking a defender out of the way before applying a calm finish.

“It was fantastic,” said Gray. “He broke from midfield well and showed great composure, slotting it under the keeper under pressure on a bobbly pitch. He had a lot to do. It was a great performance from him today.”

There was a nervy moment when Grantham right-back Danny Meadows hit the bar with a thunderous effort, but Darlington were generally solid and were close to adding another goal, keeper Jake Turner fumbling an Armstrong header, and Adam Mitchell had a shot saved.

The lengthy delay caused by Harris’ injury meant full-time was way off when confirmation of Blyth’s defeat arrived, drawing cheers from the Quakers fans, and they were cheering again two minutes later as Hardy applied the coup de gras.

After Mitchell showed determination to win the ball back, Portas’ punt was knocked on by Armstrong for Hardy to stab home his third goal for the club.

It completed one of the club’s best away days of the season, atoning for the midweek disappointment at Frickley, when Darlington were also backed by a large number of supporters.

They created a cracking atmosphere on Saturday and striker Nathan Cartman, an unused substitute, admitted he found himself joining in with the visiting fans’ chants.

“Going up,” they sang, and there is every reason to believe that they will.

The Northern Echo: