Why do I bother?

That's the question Stewart Davies, David Hodgson and thousands of supporters were asking themselves as they left the ground on Saturday after enduring yet another Darlington horror display.

There have been several shockers this season, this was about the worst of the lot, yet it should have been expected because Quakers are nearly always a let-down on the big occasion.

Recent history suggests they rarely perform when it matters most, especially after doing well in previous games. And so it proved again as almost twice the average gate turned up expecting to see Darlington roll over Kidderminster Harriers, but the visitors again proved party- poopers.

The same club managed the feat in the very first match at the former Reynolds Arena last season when Quakers were beaten 2-0 and, 19 months on, the personnel may have changed radically but the result was just the same.

When Darlington are bad, they're horrific, as the thousands of stunned fans may have been saying as they headed for the exits following Harriers' second goal in the last minute.

Defeat to any team is hard to take but Kidderminster are second bottom for a reason - they're not very good. That fact was amply demonstrated on Saturday, but Darlington were even worse and deserved nothing.

The same cannot be said of chairman Davies, who has put a lot of time and money into the club since taking over last summer and is also responsible for the North Stand finally being completed.

Hodgson is so grateful to his chairman that after last week's fortunate victory at Grimsby he said something he'd never said before: he wanted to win the next match "for the chairman".

Certainly all the statistics suggested a home banker and Davies could have been forgiven for pin-pointing Saturday's gameas the ideal time to open the North Stand.

Darlington had won four of their last five and the previous home win was against top-of-the-table Yeovil, while Harriers have been in relegation trouble all season. Besides all that, after the opening debacle last season, quite simply Darlington owed Kidderminster one.

But too much can be read into statistics. The reality is that Quakers have this season been the big under-achievers, rarely living up to their potential and or fulfilling expectations.

From the moment Davies chose March 26 as the day to open the North Stand he may as well have pencilled in a home defeat, such is Quakers' propensity for failure when the spotlight is on, while all season they have been dogged by inconsistency.

On seven occasions Quakers have won on their travels, but only twice have they followed up with a win on home soil.

In Saturday's programme notes Hodgson showed faith in his squad.

He wrote: "There have been too many instances when there have been some very good results then in the next game, when we have built everybody up, there has been a big let-down. But I believe now that the players won't let us down."

He spoke too soon.

The players really did let everybody down and Hodgson certainly let them know it when, minutes after the final whistle, the seething manager abruptly rearranged the dressing room.

Like Davies, he puts a lot of effort into the club. If last week's football managers survey in the Independent newspaper is to be believed about 80 hours a week of time and effort, so it's only natural he's going to take such performances so badly.

But Hodgson and assistant Mark Proctor must also take their share of the responsibility. They sign the players and they pick the side and on the back of such a bad result, it's the team selection which will come under scrutiny at Bristol Rovers today.

After the win over Yeovil two weeks ago Hodgson said he'd learned from the mistakes of 1999/00, when he stood by certain players in the closing weeks of the season, despite them under-performing.

As well as Saturday's horror show it shouldn't be forgotten that Darlington created little at Grimsby, so Hodgson, with a big squad at his disposal, has plenty of under-performers to think about dropping.

Regardless of team selection and formations, on Saturday the signs were ominous even before kick-off as gaffes littered the so-called afternoon of celebration.

Not only was Darlington's form for tripping-up on the big occasion a clue as to how the day might go, the sight of an almost flooded pitch, due to the sprinklers being accidentally left on, was also a concern.

The 122 mascots, all in shirts and shorts, were positioned around the pitch for a good ten minutes, which must have seemed an eternity for anxious parents worried about their children in such cold weather.

Once the match got underway it was soon stopped as the ball was changed, but it can't have been as flat as Quakers' performance.

Debutant Akpo Sodje won more than his fair share of headers in the first half, but his shooting wasn't as accurate as it might have been, while Kidderminster also had chances.

But neither side stamped any authority on the game.

After 75 minutes of thoroughly lifeless inaction, with some fans having already left, referee Paul Robinson decided he too had seen enough as he limped off with an injury.

Such blunders, and the lack of cutting edge from both sides, suggested it would take a howler to open the scores.

So it proved when a cruel bobble deceived Matty Appleby. His air-kick in midfield gifted possession to Harriers, leading to a shot from Iyseden Christie - surely the most overweight footballer since Jan Molby stretched his Liverpool shirt in the 1980s - being saved by Sam Russell. The ball fell to Dean Keates, who stabbed home the rebound from close-range.

Then, in the last minute, Brian Close failed to deal with a long-ball, allowing Mark Rawle in to round Russell and tap into an empty net.

It capped a thoroughly miserable day for all concerned at Darlington, especially Davies.

At least Hodgson and the regular supporters had prior warning. After all, they've seen it all before.

As part of the North Stand opening celebrations a boy-band called Freefaller sang before kick-off. It was another bad omen as freefall is what Darlington will be in if there are any repeat performances this season.