Darlington welcome fellow under-achievers Shrewsbury to Feethams this afternoon with manager Mick Tait quietly optimistic of a victory which should secure Third Division safety - providing his side are quick out of the blocks.

Tait believes his side have played catch-up too many times for comfort in a campaign which has been littered with inconsistency.

Second-half strikes from Barry Conlon and Clark Keltie rescued a point for Quakers when the sides last met in November after they fell behind to two early goals.

"We grabbed a point down there but if we'd have had an extra five minutes we may well have came away with all three," said Tait.

"We murdered them in the second half but we have to make sure we do that from the start.

"We can't afford to wait until half-time before we start playing well because we were 2-0 down last time.

"It has been a problem for us and we need to make sure we get at them right from the start."

Tait will be hoping for a positive reaction from his players after last week's defeat at Southend.

It was the absence of skipper Craig Liddle towards the end of the first half which eventually turned the screw on a Quakers defence which was otherwise untroubled.

"It was disappointing to lose because we didn't look like conceding a goal all day," said Tait.

"We didn't create a great deal ourselves but we had 45 minutes of pressure in the second half without opening things up enough.

"They just sat on the two-goal lead they pinched just before half-time and they just allowed us forward.

"But they defended deep and we couldn't find a way through

"We always seem to get punished when we have a bad spell.

"There's no getting away with it and it's something we need to do to other teams."

Tait remains confident another win will ensure League safety with Quakers six points above the relegation zone with five games remaining.

"We've just got to approach it in the right way because we know three points will be enough to keep us safe," said Tait.

"We've got to go all out and get that win.

"It doesn't mathematically make us safe but another win will make it awfully difficult for every team below us to reach us."

Tait has defender Matt Clarke fit again after an ankle injury but he is still without Richard Hodgson (groin), who broke down in training during the week.

Striker Mark Sheeran is also ruled out with an ankle injury, while Keltie serves the final game of a two-match ban.

Quakers are boosted by the return of top-scorer Barry Conlon, who is expected to partner Jim Corbett up front, with Danny Mellanby likely to drop to the bench.

But it is the return of Clarke which is causing a major headache for Tait and his defensive planning.

"The defence did very well last week but I will put out what I think will be the strongest squad on the day, defensively and attacking," said Tait.

"We'll try to be solid but with plenty of attacking options.

"That is a big dilemma for me because we have four centre halves who are playing really well."

Shrewsbury, meanwhile, go into today's game without a win in nine and level on points with second-bottom Carlisle after losing at Wrexham in midweek.

Shrews boss Kevin Ratcliffe welcomes back Nigel Jemson from suspension, while former Nottingham Forest winger Ian Woan returns to the side following a leg injury.

"They've had a terrible run and had a terrible result in midweek so they're going to come out scrapping on Saturday and we know that," said Tait.

Read more about the Quakers here.