The clenched fist which welcomed another hard-fought victory perhaps says it all about Neil Maddison.

Out of contract in the summer and out of the side until recently, many players in his position will surely have conceded that their playing days were nearing at an end. Not Maddison.

Even at 33 the experienced midfielder, who has rubbed shoulders with the best in a career which has span over 15 years, still feels he has a lot to offer and on Saturday's evidence he certainly has a case.

Maddison has featured in seven of Quakers' ten league victories this season despite only playing in just over half of his sides games.

And it was the experience of Maddison and skipper Craig Liddle which helped Quakers claim their second successive win, which takes them seven points clear of the relegation zone and surely Third Division safety.

Caretaker boss Mick Tait believes the presence of Maddison and Liddle provides an ideal learning curve for the younger players in the squad.

"It's great for the younger lads to have the likes of Maddo and Lidds around them," said Tait.

"They will get better and better as time goes by and I'm sure some of the older players will be there to help them.

"We do need that little bit of experience in the team to help them along."

Tait won't have been encouraged by another sloppy start from his team, who fell behind after just 11 minutes when Lee Connell broke clear before slotting past Andy Collett.

"I think we did enough to win the game although I wasn't happy with the first 15 minutes because we were all over the place," said Tait.

"We had loads of chances in the first half even though we had quarter of an hour of poor football because we tried to play it too much.

"The pitch was a bit too bobbly to pass it around all the time.

"We kept on getting caught on the ball because it wasn't zipping about as much as it usually does.

"We still need the points and no matter how we're going to get them we're going to do what we think is the right thing to get points on the board."

And while some fans will be hoping to see Maddison in a Quakers shirt next season striker Jim Corbett would no doubt be welcomed with open arms too.

The Blackburn forward is out of contract in the summer and Tait had admitted that he would love to make his move permanent after another impressive performance which was finely capped off with his first goal for the club.

Danny Mellanby made amends for an earlier miss when he linked up well with Corbett, who shook off the attentions of Gateshead-born defender Michael Nelson before rifling home with a pinpoint finish into the bottom corner of the net.

"Jimmy's had some very good games since he joined us," said Tait. "He's been very lively and I'm sure we'll be in competition with other clubs to keep him.

"As we saw today he can cause defences all sorts of problems."

Pawel Abbot almost restored the lead for the visitors when he was played clear by Chris Billy, but defender Gary Pearson read the situation well and cleared off the line after the Bury striker had nicked the ball past Collett.

Quakers were unlucky not to be awarded a penalty minutes later when George Clegg tapped the ankles of Mellanby just as the striker was teeing up for a shot.

And just before half-time Liddle struck the upright after Maddison's header had came back off the top of the bar.

Quakers continued to dominate with Mellanby going close with a glancing header and Maddison seeing his header cleared off the line by Clegg.

Simon Betts then sent a crashing volley just wide before Maddison forced Garner to acrobatically turn away his free-kick in the 70th minute.

Mellanby was later replaced by Glenn Naylor, returning after a three-month absence.

And it was the introduction of Naylor which eventually turned the screw on the Shakers with three minutes left.

Betts' free-kick from the left was spilled by Garner and Naylor was on hand to stab home from close range.

Liddle sealed victory in injury time when he celebrated his 250th full appearance for the club from the penalty spot after Corbett was dragged down by Danny Swailes.

Result: Darlington 3 Bury 1.

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