Frustrated Darlington manager Alun Armstrong has hit out at referee Paul Brown following his performance in today’s FA Cup tie with Chester.

The game ended 0-0, so Quakers must head to the Deva for a replay on Tuesday.

The condition of the playing surface also irked Armstrong, the grass at Blackwell Meadows appearing to be too long for a football match, but Brown was the manager’s main target at full-time.

Asked about neither side having a sustained period of pressure, Armstrong said: “The referee made sure of that, I thought he was absolutely shocking.

“He booked me at the end for telling him that, but something has to change with him because every time he comes here he gets worse and worse.

“I’ll probably get in trouble for saying that.

“But I’d love to sit down with an assessor to go through that game with him and tell me what he sees compares to what that referee sees. He spoilt the whole game from start to finish.

“It’s not an excuse, they battled extremely hard, I’m delighted with the workrate.”