Brentford v Darlington

Following their exit in the FA Cup Quakers will travel to Brentford looking to preserve their good league form. Whilst Darlington suffered defeat in their cup replay against Drolysden during midweek their form in Coca-Cola League Two remains excellent. Keeping that run going however will be a challenge as Dave Penney's side are missing several key players for the trip.

One of those changes will be goalkeeper Simon Brown. The shot stopper is currently on loan from Brentford and is not allowed to play in Saturday's match as a result. However he also has a slight hamstring problem and probably would not have been risked for the match anyway. In his place Andy Oakes will make his first league start of the season. The thirty-one year old underwent a shoulder operation during the summer but made his return in midweek against Drolysden.

Also out is skipper Steve Foster. The defender is suspended for the game following his red card against Lincoln City. Elsewhere Liam Hatch will also be missing along with Billy Clarke being very doubtful. Because Adam Proudlock is out on loan at Grimsby and unable to be recalled yet it means Darlington are light on bodies up front. Richie Foran and Gregg Blundell are the likely starters in their place but even so Quakers are missing a large part of their regular side.

Hosts Brentford are enjoying a decent season so far and find themselves just four points behind Darlington in the table. Despite their good showing in the league the Bees have struggled a little for goals on their home turf. On only three occasions this season have Brentford scored more than two goals in a match Griffin Park and one of those matches came against a dire Grimsby team.

A point would be an excellent result for Darlington given the absences they are suffering and the difficult week they have endured. If the exit from the cup was hard enough to swallow the worry over Hatch during that very game only served to pile on the woes. Quakers have been unable to replicate their good form with major reshuffles this season and with that in mind anything other than defeat tomorrow has to be considered an achievement.

"We are without the spine of our team so will have to show resolve to get a good result," said manager Penney in the Evening Gazette. "When we have made changes the players coming in have not been match sharp, but they will need to be at Brentford. We have picked up points against most of the teams near the top, and it is important that we continue to do that."