Darlington boss Tommy Taylor last night promised fans that his players will be in action tomorrow at Exeter after the full squad walked out of last night's controversial Fans' Forum at Feethams.
They stormed out just half-an-hour into the meeting after chairman George Reynolds' wife Susan, who is also a director of the club, implied some footballers 'throw' matches.
Her comments came five days after Darlington put in a very poor display when losing 3-1 at home to relegation-threatened Torquay.
There was immediate outcry among the 350 supporters in attendance the players walked out to the applause of the fans.
With such disharmony clearly now affecting the club there are fears Darlington's first team squad might refuse to play as Mrs Reynolds' comments are sure to cause unrest.
But Taylor reassured supporters, saying: "We will have a team on Saturday and they will play their hearts out, don't worry about that.
"They'll be fine tomorrow. I shall speak to them on the bus to Exeter and I know they'll play.
"I can understand their reaction. No professional player would ever, ever dream of throwing a game and I was a bit upset with the comment. But when people spend a lot of money on something and they don't get a lot back for it, things do go round in their mind.
"Susan was trying to put her point across and it didn't come out as well as she would have liked, and so she had to leave the hall."
Supporters roundly booed and jeered Mrs Reynolds and as a result she left Feethams' Ambassador Suite and refused to return.
Taylor said: "I understand the fan's reaction because I know what the fans' passion is like up here."
Darlington were dealt a double blow yesterday when Barry Conlon and Andy Collett were both ruled out for the remainder of the season, and the keeper may not even be back in time for next year.
Collett was set to return at Exeter, having recovered from two broken ribs, but he suffered a collapsed lung and was rushed into hospital for an operation.
Taylor was left stunned by the news as he's already without several first-team players.
He explained: "We're not having much luck with injuries at this club are we? It just gets worse and worse.
"Andy did some goalkeeping training this morning and when he was driving home he felt a pain in his chest so he stopped to get some tablets.
"But that clearly didn't solve anything and his girlfriend took him to hospital. The physio says he'll be out for three or four months."
With 16-year-old Andrew Grainger of the youth team as Keith Finch's only back-up, Quakers would hit a serious problem if Finch were to incur an injury after the transfer deadline this month.
Conlon took a knock at Leyton Orient on Tuesday and was expected to be out for five weeks maximum, but results of a scan revealed yesterday he will be on the sidelines until next season.
Taylor said: "It would have been better to have had him back before the end of the season so that we could have known he was 100 per cent then instead of waiting until pre-season."
Read more about Darlington FC here.
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