Match Report
South Shields, 2nd with 95 points, sat 26 points above Darlington (9th, 69). On recent form South Shields sat only 10th league-wide over the last five rounds, well short of their 2nd overall. Scoring rates set the scale: South Shields 2.15 scored and 0.93 conceded per game, Darlington 1.7 and 1.48, with the league averaging 1.53.
Three consecutive defeats weighed on Darlington.
The head-to-head ledger counts 6 games: 2 South Shields wins, 2 for Darlington, 2 draws, at 2.83 goals per meeting. Hosting has counted for little in this fixture — the home side has won only 0% of those meetings. 67% of the meetings finished with three goals or more.
The venue was Mariners Park, with room for 2,500 spectators. On the scoreboard, Darlington led 1-0 at the break, and no goals arrived after the restart: 0-1 the final score.
Goal scorers
Darlington: Cedric Main (25')
Key stats
Possession: South Shields 69% · Darlington 31% · Total shots: 15-7 · On target: 3-1 · Corners: 6-4