Darlington fans will be hoping Southend United are not as motivated by thoughts of revenge tomorrow as their own side were when beating Shrewsbury Town 3-0 last Saturday.

The Shrews were made to pay for a 4-0 win at Gay Meadow in December as Quakers extended their unbeaten start to 2005.

But David Hodgson's side will be keen to ensure the tables are not turned in a similar fashion when they visit Roots Hall tomorrow.

The Shrimpers were on the receiving end of a 4-0 drubbing at the Williamson Motors Stadium when Darlington produced one of their best performances earlier in the season, but they have since established themselves as one of the promotion contenders and are currently fourth in the League Two table, two points and two places above the Quakers.

Craig Hignett, returning to the starting line-up after a virus in place of the injured Clyde Wijnhard, was the star of the show last Saturday. His two second-half goals sealed the three points after Neil Wainwright had opened the scoring after 28 minutes.

The struggling visitors, fourth from bottom at the start of play, tried without success to contain Darlington and fell behind when Hignett and Adrian Webster combined to set up Wainwright for a simple finish.

Shrewsbury rarely threatened, but Quakers were still relieved to establish a two-goal cushion midway through the second half when Alun Armstrong robbed former Darlington defender Stuart Whitehead and found Hignett, who netted from eight yards.

It was all over bar the shouting seven minutes later when Hignett tapped home after substitute Mark Convery and Wainwright had efforts saved.

Keeper Sam Russell preserved the clean sheet with a good close-range stop from Duane Darby as Darlington ran out comfortable winners.

The victory moved them up to fifth temporarily, but Macclesfield overtook them when they won 5-0 at Notts County on Tuesday evening.

So Quakers need to keep their good run going with at least a point from tomorrow's trip south as the race for promotion play-off places hots up.

They will have to cope without Webster, with the Australian ruled out for at least a fortnight with a hamstring injury.

His midfield place could be filled by Hignett, but only if Wijnhard is able to return from a hip injury to line up alongside Armstrong in attack.

Craig Liddle could also be involved after playing 45 minutes of Wednesday night's reserve game at York City, while Stephen Thomas and David McGurk are also on the way back.