ALUN ARMSTRONG says Darlington won’t be getting carried away despite recording their best win of the season against Guiseley.

Quakers bounced back to an extent from their Southport nightmare against a patched-up visiting side that had made ten changes from their previous outing because of Covid, with their Academy manager coaching them from the bench. 

Nevertheless, there were some good plusses, with Jack Lambert, on his first start, providing plenty of energy, while Jake Cooper and Junior Mondal scored their first goals for the club.

“Our players did the job, but they can play a lot better,” said Armstrong. “You have to give Guiseley credit because they worked ever so hard. Any team up against them though in this league would expect to win, so we’re not getting carried away.

“It was a potential banana skin. I looked through their team before the game and I couldn’t see any of their main senior players. I needed to find out what was going on.

“Our lads did their job, they needed to win the game no matter what.

“The disappointing thing was, we conceded a sloppy goal from nothing. I would have been a lot happier with a 5-0 win, but at least we won after Tuesday’s defeat at Southport.

“I thought the lads worked ever so hard, but I just thought we forced it too much in the first half instead of moving their defence about. They were young kids who would tire, and we would eventually find the gaps. Nothing will banish those Southport memories, but this will help. There’s still plenty to fix.”

Lambert, who took the place of the injured Luke Charman up front, was outstanding early in the game, and pressed his claim for a regular place.

He scored the opening goal on eight minutes, finding Jarrett Rivers on the right. When the winger beat his man, he timed his run perfectly to place the ball under advancing keeper Declan Lambton.

Quakers then created and missed some good chances, partly through some good saves by the exposed Lambton – one in particular from Darlington skipper Will Hatfield – and some going off target.

Guiseley occasionally threatened on the break, and Luke Hall was unlucky with a left-foot shot that whistled just past the post.

But Quakers steadily ground them down, and the second goal came at just the right time before the break when Lambert made another good run into the box and set up Jake Cassidy to roll the ball past Lambton.

The game was just about over a few minutes into the second half. Lambert’s dribble into the box saw him pushed to the ground by a defender, and skipper Hatfield dispatched the penalty for his fourth goal of the season.

Alex Storey nearly got on the scoresheet with a header before Guiseley pulled a goal back on 67 minutes when Jacob Gratton made a good run into the box from the right and Lewis Hey beat Tommy Taylor with a low shot.

Storey had an effort cleared off the line, before the home side got the fourth on 71 minutes, when Cooper headed Rivers' corner into the top corner.

It was all Quakers after that, and in the dying minutes Rivers split the defence with a precise through ball for Mondal to sidestep the keeper and slide into an empty net.