HOME is where the heart is, so they say, yet almost two years into their tenancy Blackwell Meadows is a venue Darlington are still not comfortable playing at.

Saturday saw them spruce the place up with banners featuring the club crest, permitted only on match days as part of the arrangement with landlords Darlington Rugby Club and an initiative of new commercial executive Craig Morley, who has wasted little time in making a favourable impression.

They are a cosmetic change, of course, as is the bar staff now wearing shirts featuring the Quakers logo; such alterations being slight yet significant in that they encourage a sense of identity and belonging that has been lacking since Quakers first played at Darlington Rugby Club’s home in January 2017.

What they need now is some victories.

More influential than showing off the club badge when creating an attachment to the place would be stringing together victories, something that Quakers are struggling to do: they have won 19 of their 43 fixtures there.

Saturday’s 0-0 draw with Guiseley means Darlington have won six of 19 matches at Blackwell in 2018.

Tommy Wright’s team have scored only six times there in nine games this season – three of the goals in one match versus Telford - and they rarely looked like breaking the deadlock against a team level on points with them in the middle of the table: Guiseley are 13th and Darlington are 14th.

Wright was pleased and relieved with a point, however, as it stretched the unbeaten run to five games, including three draws in a row, which gives the manager something to build on.

He said: “The lads have dug in and got themselves a really good point.

“We could quite easily have lost that at the end, Guiseley had some good chances and we probably didn’t create as much as we did in the previous two games.

“On reflection Guiseley are probably a better opponent than we’ve faced in the last two games – the league table lies a little bit, it’s misleading. They were a National League team last season.

“Before they got beat by Blyth in their last game they had lost one in 15, they’re not a bad team and they slightly edged it.

“People will point the finger and say it wasn’t as entertaining as Tuesday and last Saturday, but that’s football.

“I’m proud of the lads for what they produced by digging in and keeping a clean sheet. We could’ve lost and that would’ve been a kick in the teeth, but I’m happy overall.”

During a largely dull first 45 minutes that Darlington edged without giving the opposition goalkeeper much to do, a stray rugby ball halting play when it appeared in the centre of the pitch constituted a highlight, particularly when a member of the Guiseley coaching staff booted it over the clubhouse.

Less amusing to Darlington was losing striker Simon Ainge to injury before half-time.

A scorer in a 2-2 draw at Leamington last week, Ainge required stitches after a clash of heads with Andrew Halls, and without him Darlington lacked presence up front.

Wright added: “He’s our talisman centre-forward and captain. We lost a physical presence against a team that would be physical in both boxes.

“We lost such a key player when we were probably on top.

“He’s got a big gash on his head and gone to hospital for stitches.”

Ainge departed just before the break, replaced by midfielder Dave Syers such is the thin squad’s lack of options, and at the start of the second half Harvey Saunders had a shot saved by Joe Green, but that was the only occasion the Guiseley goalkeeper was stretched.

Guiseley threatened down the flanks, Kaine Felix particularly effective, and would surely have won had Paul Clayton not been guilty of missing two sitters.

After Quakers’ Zach Hemmings parried from Kingsley James, Clayton had only the grounded goalkeeper to beat, yet Guiseley’s No. 9 hit the bar.

It was an embarrassing miss for the striker, who later put the ball wide from a tight angle after Hemming saved from Felix.

Late on Wright tinkered by sending on Jonny Burn for Alex Henshall, who is yet to justify his manager’s continuing faith, but Darlington did not come close to snatching a rare home win.

“At least we’re picking up points and doing that against teams that are expected to challenge,” added Wright.

“Guiseley have a hell of a budget and there is a lot of expectancy there. They are fortunate enough to employ two managers, so they’ve got a few quid behind them.

“We’re all disappointed to pick up a point at home. We were also disappointed to draw at Bradford. I think expectancy levels have raised and we’re now expected to beat these teams whereas we were relegation fodder three or four weeks ago. People forget that.

“Opinions are divided. I think we’ve got good players, they are starting to show people they are good players, but the expectation level has shifted somewhat.”