Darlington continue their promotion drive today by undertaking their third successive away game having spent considerably more time on the road than at Heritage Park this year.

Four of Quakers’ first six matches of the year have been away, and there’s another game outside the North-East in midweek when Darlington play a rescheduled match at Farsley.

The Farsley trip was postponed just after Christmas because of snow, while today’s game at Kendal was abandoned on New Year’s Day due to a waterlogged pitch, two of Darlington’s six weather-hit matches in recent months, four of them away from home.

They are now ploughing through their backlog of games and Martin Gray says that playing away so often could prove an advantage.

His team swept aside play-off contenders Harrogate RA last weekend, and he said: “Whether it’s home or away doesn’t matter to me, we just get on with it. If anything it’s better because it means have to come and have a go at us, which is what we prefer as a team.

“Kendal away is another tough fixture and we go there in very good form. I’ve watched our highlights from last week and there was some good team play.

“Graeme Armstrong’s build-up play was very good and he got himself a couple of assists. Overall it was a very good performance from the goalkeeper right through to the last substitute that came on.”

Last Saturday’s 5-1 win stands as a high point of the campaign, one that sees Darlington top on goal difference with three games in hand on second-placed Salford City.

While aware the level of performance was impressive, especially considering the standard of Railway’s playing surface, Gray is eager his players do not dwell on their most recent three-point haul.

“Training was really good this week, but I said to the players that they are only really as good as their last game,” said Gray. “Our last game was smashing, but it’s on to the next one now and the players need to focus on what’s to come.

“Everybody needs to play their part, the players and the staff, in approaching the game in the right manner because if we don’t it’s easy to get caught out.

“We’re level-headed and we’re keeping our focus on what we need to do.

“It’s been the same message every week, but the lads understand what we’re about and we’ve got to maintain it.

“I don’t look further forward than this weekend and I mean that. I’ll get a phone call at 5pm after the game from our scout and he’ll tell me how Farsley have got on, and then we start again to prepare for the next game.”

With defenders Chris Hunter and Alan White both available having missed out seven days ago, Gray must decide whether Gary Brown or Andrew Cartright makes way in defence.

Liam Hatch, who formed a good partnership with Brown, will not start, while there is again no Adam Mitchell as he serves the second game of his two-match ban, giving Nelson Mota another opportunity.

The Frenchman has scored Quakers’ first goals in each of their last two games (3-1 at Padiham and 5-1 at Harrogate), though Gray says the winger has work to do on his game.

“Nelson did okay last week,” said the manager. “He’s different to anything else we’ve got or what we’ve had in the past.

“He still needs to learn what we’re about defensively and work rate, he can do more there, but I don’t want to be critical because he’s got a lot of ability and he’s scored two goals in a week.”

*Supporters with a ticket from the abandoned game on New Year’s Day are permitted free entry today, say Kendal Town.