Classy Clarke sinks Quakers

Darlington's season at The Northern Echo Darlington Arena ended with defeat for the hosts and promotion for Brentford.

Billy Clarke spent the first half of the season on loan with Quakers, scoring nine goals, but he has since joined the Bees and returned the North-East to score two goals today.

The classy forward made it 2-0 just before the break and 3-0 soon after the restart to effectively seal the points that ensure Brentford return to League One as champions.

Crisis-hit Quakers were hoping their final home game of the season would give their suffering fans something to celebrate.

But their chances of a win received a huge blow in only the second minute when Alan White was red-carded after elbowing Damian Spencer while challenging for a high ball.

The Darlington-born defender protested his innocence, claiming he'd had his eyes on the ball.

But referee Rob Shoebridge showed no hesitation in brandishing the fourth red card of White's Quakers career, and at only 1 minute 10 seconds it was easily the earliest.

After a three-minute delay, Spencer was stretchered off with what transpired to be a fractured cheekbone.

He was replaced by Sam Williams while Darlington adapted to their their lack of numbers by playing 3-4-2.

The incident sparked a highly-charged atmosphere with Quakers supporters often left outraged by officials' decisions.

First when Adam Newton was allowed to run beyond Darlington's defence despite appearing to be in an offside position.

And shortly after came a mystifying decision that Shoebridge can only have made without seeing the incident.

He awarded a free-kick for obstruction against Curtis Main who, completely unaware, with his back had blocked keeper Ben Hamer's s low kick.

The ball ricocheted into Jason Kennedy's path and he volleyed wide of an open goal, but it was not to matter as Shoebridge seemed to think Main had eyes in the back of his head.

Kenendy was at the centre of another flashpoint when Hamer raced off his line and injured himself while tackling the Darlington midfielder, but the keeper rescaped unpunished.

The game lost some zip as the Bees began to get a foothold in the game. They were playing some good football but doing did little to test Quakers keeper Przemyslaw Kazimierczak.

Marcus Bean scuffed shot wide wide from the edge of the area and then David Hunt headed straight into Kazimierczak's hands.

But just as contest was stalling, Brentford brought it to life with captain Alan Bennett giving the visitors a 35th minute lead.

He scrambled home after Hunt's corner was only half cleared, though the awarding of the corner again placed question marks over the officials.

Quakers' Ian Miller and Billy Clarke had slid the ball out of play, and both the linesman and Shoebridge took an age before deciding what to do.

Manager Dave Penney sent on Neil Austin for Curtis Main as Quakers switched to 4-3-2 and soon after Franz Burgmeier stung the palms of keeper Hamer's hands with a rocket free-kick that was heading for the top corner.

It had been Darlington's first shot on target, but any hope ten-man Quakers had of getting back into the game were extinguished by Clarke.

An inswinging free-kick from Hunt, whose delivery also led to the first goal, was met by Clarke to nod past Kazimierczak.

There was still time for Burgmeier to come close with a free-kick that deflected off the wall on to the top of the bar, before the half closed with Darlington assistant manager Martin Gray giving Shoebridge a full and frank assessment of his performance.

During the break former Darlington chairman George Houghton receieved a similar verbal bashing from angry fans.

In a coridoor near Quakers' boardroom several angry fans confronted Houghton who made the decision to put the club into administration.

Houghton escpaed to the boardroom while the fans were ushered away, though the former chairman will have been left in little doubt as to the supporters' view of him.

He was also on the end of several derogatory chants during the game which he watched from the directors' box, as did potential buyer Raj Singh, though the pair were sat some distance apart.

The match's outcome was settled in the space of 60 seconds soon after the restart and again that man Shoebridge was involved.

He denied Darlington a penalty on 53 minutes despite Brentford's John Halls clearly sending Burgmeier to to the turf as the winger attempted to latch on to a smart Abbott pass into the area.

Within seconds it was 3-0, Clarke doubling his tally with a solo effort.

His mazy dribble through midfield ended with him side-stepping Austin before lashing the ball into the corner of the net.

Darlington pulled a goal back through Abbott on 59 minutes, giving the home fans something to cheer though, bizarrely, the visiting fans were also celebrating.

Because as Abbott slid the ball under Hamer from the edge of six-yard box, following a sustained and impressive passing move, the Bees were celebrating the fact Wycombe had gone 1-0 down at Port Vale.

Defeat for Wycombe coupled with a Brentford meant that Andy Scott's side would be champions, something their fans were only too aware of.

A contingent of around 1,500 had made the journey from London and the lack of a Darlington attacking threat throughout most of the second half meant they were able to enjoy their day.

Soon after Abbott's goal, Hamer was subbed and replaced by Simon Brown who, like Clarke, spent the first half of the season with Darlington and he received warm applause from the home fans as he entered the field.

Clarke spurned chance of a hat-trick by heading wide, and then Austin headed off the line just as Williams believed he had headed Brentford into a 4-1 lead.

In two minutes of injury time Shoebridge found time to again frustrate the Darlington fans by only showing a yellow card to Halls, despite the right-back raised his hands to Abbott.

Hall's indiscipline saw almost every player come together for a pushing and shoving match, with even an outraged manager Dave Penney entering the field to calm down Adam Newton.

Shoebridge soon blew the final whistle on Quakers' season at The Northern Echo Darlington Arena, signalling the start of Brentford promotion party.

Quakers, meanwhile, are left to contemplate what might have been. Supporters gave the players, Penney and Gray a rousing send off after what has been a traumatic finish to the season.

They complete the season next Saturday at Chester City who were today relegated to the Blue Square Premier.

Goals: 0-1 (35mins, Bennett), 0-2 (43, Clarke), 0-3 (54, Clarke); 1-3 (59, Abbott)

Bookings: Valentine (42, foul); Phillips (43, foul), Hall (90, dissent), Abbott (90, dissent)

Sending-off: White (2mins, violent conduct)

Referee: Rob Shoebridge (Derbyshire)

Attendance: 3,868

Darlington (4-4-2): Kazimierczak, Valentine, White, Miller, Purdie, Poole (Hulbert 85mins), Ravenhill, Kennedy, Burgmeier (Griffin 80), Abbott, Main (Austin 36). Subs: Pocklington, Groves

Brentford (4-4-2): Hamer (Brown 62); Halls, Phillips, Bennett, Dickson; Newton, Hunt, Bean, Wood (Poole 85); Spencer, Clarke. Subs: S Williams, Osbourne, M Williams