South Shields return to home soil seeking to avenge Alfreton Town disappointment v Darlington

The Mariners will be looking to get back to winning ways after a 1-0 loss away to Alfreton Town. The scoreline arguably didn’t reflect what happened on the pitch as, despite creating a large number of chances, Shields were undone by a lone 7th minute goal.

It was Alfreton’s Jordan Thewlis who scored the only goal that day, this goal took the ex-Spennymoor Town frontman to 11 goals for the season. The result meant that the Mariners fell to 9th place in the table with many of the teams above them having games in hand.

Saturday’s opponents, like many of the opposition in recent weeks, find themselves in a poor run of form and currently sit second bottom of the table. Darlington have played two games less than South Shields this season but have won only six times in the league as the business end of the campaign approaches.

Darlington's last fixture saw them comfortably beateb 2-0 by Tuesday’s opponents Alfreton Town. That result means that, out of their last five games, they have won only once and lost on the other four occasions with their last win coming on January 27 against Hereford FC - a game in which they won 2-0 at Blackwell Meadows.

In the reverse fixture back in August, the two teams drew 2-2 with Luke James opening the scoring for the Mariners before ex-Sunderland prospect Mitchell Curry levelled just five minutes later. They then took the lead in the 47th minute through Andrew Nelson before Paul Blackett rescued a point in the 92nd minute with a penalty.

Elliot Dickman's thoughts

Dickman has stated that Darlington’s recent run of form has no bearing on Saturday's game as he anticipates a 'difficult' clash: “It could be a really difficult game if our heads drop before the games even started," Dickman said. "So we need to make sure we are mentally ready.”

Dickman also reflected on his side's defeat against Alfreton. He said: “We may not have won but I wasn’t disappointed, I saw some really good stuff from our team and we have worked on our weak points from that match in preparation for Saturday."

Shields play their first game back at home after four-straight straight away trips and Dickman thinks that playing in-front of their own fans will be a boost to his squad thsi weekend" “We are excited to play in front of our crowd again after such a long time away," Dickman said. “We have a loyal bunch of fans which can be seen in the number of travelling supporters we have had recently, which is always a good surprise at this level”.

Information for supporters

Kick-off at the 1st Cloud Arena (NE32 3UP) is at 3pm on Saturday the 17th of February 2024. Admission prices are £14 for adults, £9 for concessions, £5 for 13–16-year-olds and £3 for 12 and under – (including online discounts).