Darlington FC 1 AFC Fylde 2: Coasters claim victory at high flyers

Jacob Hazel had given the hosts the lead at Blackwell Meadows when he turned inside the six-yard box and slotted into the bottom corner.

However, Tom Walker got Fylde back on track when he finished past Tommy Taylor before Nick Haughton thundered home the winner.

Andy Taylor made one change to the Coasters’ squad which earned an FA Cup replay against Gillingham, Luke Burke replacing Luke Conlan who dropped to the bench.

The first sight of goal came the hosts’ way on four minutes, Hazel spinning on the edge of the area but finding the stand behind Chris Neal’s goal.

However, as the Coasters began to settle into proceedings, the opener nearly came their way as Haughton found Burke down the right, where he took two touches before hitting the post from just inside the area.

Fylde were playing some good stuff, giving Haughton a chance to link up with Luke Charman – returning to his former club – and force Taylor into tipping an effort around the post.

An end-to-end game saw Darlington’s Jack Lambert miss the target by inches midway through the half before they opened the scoring.

Lambert played Daniel Dodds in behind the Fylde defence before he found Hazel, who turned and struck a left-footed shot into the bottom corner.

The home team’s lead didn’t last long though as Alex Whitmore’s switch of play to Walker allowed the wide man to link up with Haughton.

Walker then ventured into the area before firing a low effort under Taylor and into the bottom corner to level the score at half-time.

The second period continued in the same vein with Haughton the first to try his luck.

Picking himself up from a foul, he dipped a free-kick from distance into the keeper’s arms.

At the other end, Darlington attempted to score a second goal when they won successive corners, leading to Jassem Sukar working some space for himself before shooting over from the edge of the six-yard box.

Twenty minutes into the second half, Danny Rowe had a perfect opportunity to put the Coasters ahead after being set free by Haughton’s nice touch.

Nevertheless, as he looked for the bottom corner, Taylor guessed correctly and dived to deny him.

The Coasters then took the lead as Haughton picked up the ball from deep and drove forward before stepping inside and beating Taylor at his near post with a fierce strike from distance.

Taylor’s players sought to add to their tally and had an opportunity when Haughton pounced on a lacklustre ball.

He rounded Taylor and was brought down by an outstretched arm, only for the referee to instead award the home team a free-kick and brandish a yellow card in Haughton’s direction.

Darlington FC: Taylor, Dodds (Felix 46), Sukar, Lawlor, Hedley, Moko, Hazel, Lambert (Rivers 77), Beck, Purver, Leesley. Not used: Rose, Liddle, Barbosa.

AFC Fylde: Neal, Whitmore, Obi, Bird, Walker (Conlan 43), Burke, Philliskirk (Whitehead 64), Weston, Haughton, Charman, Rowe (Hatfield 74). Not used: Davis, Rowley.