DARLINGTON kick-off a big week at Blackwell Meadows when Warrington Town visit in National League North tomorrow night.

Quakers go into the game sitting third bottom in the table, five points adrift of fourth-bottom Rushall Olympic, who will be the next visitors to Blackwell on Saturday afternoon. Darlington start the midweek programme eight points behind King’s Lynn and Peterborough Sports.

They lost 2-0 at Scunthorpe in the FA Trophy on Saturday, but manager Josh Gowling feels he can take some positives from that game into tomorrow’s game.

“We’ve got a platform, which is really pleasing,” said Gowling. “The performance gave us confidence. I know it was a loss, but where we are at the moment, it gives us some good momentum.

“Put that scoreline aside at Chorley (when Darlington lost 8-0), and we’ve won two out of the last four. If we continue with that form, we’re going to be comfortable.

“That’s what we’re looking at first and foremost, we’re coming into these two home games really looking to pick up some points.

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“I’ll always fight for this football club, no one’s working harder than me to get this right. We will get this right and get higher than we are.

“I look at the group just above us, and some of them are dropping down now. We’re off the bottom of the table and climbing, and I’m sure we’ll meet some of them on the way up. I’ve told the lads that we need to be hunters now.”

Gowling will be forced into changes tomorrow. Midfielder Jonny Ngandu has reached five bookings for his previous club Stratford and Darlington, and is suspended for one match, while striker Andrew Nelson starts a three-match ban for his red card in the defeat at Chorley.

Loan striker Jim Simms, who was subbed on Saturday at Scunthorpe, has now returned to his parent club Hull City at the end of his temporary spell. Defender Jake Lawlor is struggling with a shoulder injury, while Mitch Curry and Jordan Windass are both injured.

Tomorrow’s opponents, Warrington, are 11th in the table, and have won four times on their travels this season.

This is the first meeting between the clubs at Darlington. They played each other in the EvoStik League on four occasions, one of which was abandoned because of an injury to the match referee, then Warrington refused to continue playing when a replacement was found. Quakers were later awarded the points by the league.