DARLINGTON manager Steve Watson says his team are full of positivity as they prepare to take on Gainsborough, managed by one of his former coaches, in the third qualifying round of the FA Cup this afternoon.

Thanks to a seven-match unbeaten run, capped by a 3-0 home win over Southport last weekend, Quakers are in a good frame of mind, but they know that they mustn’t under-estimate Gainsborough, who are a step below them in the Northern Premier League.

“We’ve had a good run in the league defensively, then last Saturday we turned the corner a little bit to get here, by creating the number of chances that we did," said Watson. “We’re full of positivity. We’ve got ourselves into a much better position in the league.

"No disrespect to West Didsbury and Chorlton from the last round, Gainsborough are going to be a different kettle of fish. They played in midweek at Macclesfield and we didn’t, so hopefully we’ll have the energy levels to do really well today.

“The history of the Cup is littered with teams under-estimating others – that certainly won’t be the case with us. It’s very important for the club and the fans that we do well.”

Watson expects new loan signing Will McGowan, who scored twice against Southport last week after joining from Gateshead, to be an important player.

“His first goal was really good, real quality, but it was just his all-round performance (that impressed)," said Watson. "The way he kept the ball, the way he made decisions and held the ball were excellent. He’s going to be very important for us going forward.”

Injuries have dogged Quakers since the start of the season, with striker Cedric Main, defender Ben Hedley and midfielder Tom Platt all out, while defenders Kallum Griffiths and Elliot Forbes will both have fitness tests.

New signing Andy Evans, from Morecambe, will be allowed to play by his parent
club, as will McGowan by Gateshead.

However, defender Levi Andoh is definitely not involved as he has gone back to York City because of the thigh injury he received last Saturday against Southport.

Watson is expected to resist the temptation to ask the club’s successful Under-23 side for a couple of players. They have a big game at the top of the table in the Wearside League which will probably mean that their top scorer, Matthew Kirokiro, will be on duty at Middlestone Moor and not Blackwell Meadows.

Gainsborough are from a step below Quakers and have already played twice in the FA Cup this season. They beat Telford in the first qualifying round and Grantham in the second.

They are managed by Russ Wilcox, who Watson knows well from his time at Sheffield Wednesday when he was a player and Wilcox was a coach.

“We spoke a lot in the summer," said Watson. "I went to Sheffield Wednesday when I was in the twilight of my career and I wasn’t involved at West Brom.

"Russ and the manager at the time, Brian Laws, were really good to work for and they re-ignited my love for the game.”

The two sides have played each other in the FA Cup before, with Quakers winning 2-1 in 1946.