DARLINGTON manager Josh Gowling is targeting another FA Cup run when his team face Scarborough at Blackwell Meadows in an early kick-off tomorrow.

Gowling was in charge of Hereford last season when they battled through the qualifying rounds to the first round proper, and were rewarded with a televised tie at home to Portsmouth. It’s three years since Quakers got through the qualifiers and then defeated Swindon in the first round before losing at Bristol Rovers in the second.

“When I was at Hereford, we had some good wins, and I want to do it again here,” said Gowling. "We know how much beating Scarborough means to the club, so we’ve got to do that.

“It’s nice to have a break from the league after the results we’ve been having. It’s good for the lads because they can be more free and open.

“Having an FA Cup run is what dreams are made of. We know what it means financially for the club and, for the players, it will be a really big carrot.”

Gowling, who is getting more and more involved with club activities, began his reign with a 1-1 home draw with Gloucester last Saturday, which saw his team improve as the game went on.

READ MORE:

“There were more positives than negatives last week," he said. "The first half when we were in possession was a bit slow. I spoke to someone and he said that the second half was like the first half on steroids.

“What we did in the first half enabled us to do what we did in the second half. We’d only had two training sessions up to then, and to put in a second half like that was quite pleasing.”

Gowling has had two more training sessions this week, before which he has spent half-an-hour analysing his players’ performances with the help of newly-appointed data analyst Alex Jenkins.

“We looked at the goal we conceded," he said. "The lads can talk about it all they want, but until they can see their work, sometimes you don’t get the changes you want.

“Data analysis will help us come up with a plan to beat Scarborough. The lads can get to see the good bits against Gloucester and the bad bits.”

Tomorrow's opponents have met in the FA Cup before, way back in the 1976-77 season when they drew 0-0 at Seamer Road before Quakers won the replay 4-1. There might well be goals in tomorrow’s game, as Scarborough won 3-2 at Blackwell Meadows last season with Quakers winning the return game 5-2 at the Flamingoland Stadium.

“Just like ourselves, they just missed out on the play-offs last season," said Gowling. "They are a good side, which just had a bad result at Rushall Olympic last weekend. They will be wanting to bounce back, but we’ve got to make sure that they don’t.

“I’m a positive person, and I don’t want any negativity around the place. The lads are upbeat, which is pretty good. We’re working on stuff and the lads are excited about the game.”

Striker Finlay Barnes has returned to his parent club, York City, after the end of his month’s loan.