If any of the Darlington squad had been contemplating confessing to not being at the top of their game due to their enforced winter break, they’d better keep it to themselves because Martin Gray says he will not accept any excuses today.

Two successive postponements –six in total inside the past two months – means Quakers have not played since January 3.

They go into today’s match at 17th-placed Ossett Albion (2pm) with five matches in hand on the two teams above them in the table, but the squad will have to come up with a Plan B should they fail to take three points this afternoon.

“It’s a load of rubbish to say players can be rusty,” said Gray, making his thoughts on Darlington’s lack of games lately crystal clear.

“Just get on with your game and get on with what you’re paid to do. There’s no excuses, I’ll put up with no excuses about a lack of games.

“You can’t play enough football in my opinion. Bollocks to all this about footballers have too many games to play. Let’s get on with the games.

“That’s how I see it and that’s how the players will too – nobody will hide behind not playing for two weeks, it’s a load of rubbish.”

The manager has no qualms about his players’ condition, adding: “The fitness levels are very good and they work hard in training.

“We got some game time in with a friendly at Billingham Synthonia last weekend which was good, it served a real good purpose.

“We had a really tough couple of hours on Wednesday night, we’re just keeping on top of things, but we want to get back into the swing of things and get some games played.

“No doubt they’ll come thick and fast once we start playing again and the matches are rearranged. It’s starting to look hopeful that the game will go ahead this weekend. The early kick-off doesn’t make any difference, just as long as we get the game on.”

Although entrenched in the bottom half of the table, Ossett Albion’s home form has improved, winning four of their past seven matches while they have also drawn with Spennymoor Town at Queen’s Terrace, where Quakers encountered a memorably poor pitch 12 months ago, when there appeared to be as much sand as grass.

Gray added: “They’ll always raise their game because they’re playing us, the pitch won’t be great so there won’t be a lot of football being played. It’s about being better in both boxes. Hopefully the pitch will be better than last season.”

Salford City have seized on Darlington’s inactivity to open a six-point gap at the top, but Gray aims to maintain focus on his own team’s progress.

He said: “It doesn’t interest me what other clubs are doing. All I want to do is focus on our team and anything is out of my control.

“I’m not interested in Salford, Northwich or Spennymoor.

“It’s going to be a two-horse race in my opinion and it’s up to us to make sure our horse runs faster than their horse.”

Amar Purewal, a scorer against Albion in a 2-0 win at Heritage Park in October, remains sidelined with a calf strain sustained on December 20 against Radcliffe Borough.

“He’s still injured and we’re waiting for the results of a scan that he had on Wednesday,” said Gray.

“He’s missed a month now and that’s one of the reasons I brought Nathan Cartman in. Whether Amar’s out short or long-term, you need strength in depth.”

Cartman makes his Darlington debut at the same venue where he scored the first of three hat-tricks this season for Harrogate RA.

He bagged a treble in Railway’s 3-2 win on October 7, and netted another goal against the same opposition earlier this month.