Darlo's first ever visit to the New Meadow, Shrewsbury's new ground, saw a much better performance than that at Wycombe four days previously.
Mind you, Quakers had to play against the weather and the Shrews in the first half. A strong wind blew down the pitch, and just after the start, there was a heavy shower that didn't help the game as a spectacle - and some fans had to clamber over seats to escape the rain and hail and find a drier spot.
Manager Dave Penney recalled top scorer Tommy Wright to the starting line up alongside Kevin Gall in a 4-4-2 formation, but after just thirty minutes he subbed the on loan Carlisle player and sent on Guy "Dave" Ndumbu-Nsungu to liven the game up and change to a 4-3-3.
Wright went close with a dipping volley from the edge of the box against the wind, but he should have done better with a one-on-one chance in the second half when Quakers largely dominated. Midfielder Jason Kennedy was also just wide with an effort after a good lay off by sub Pawel Abbott, while Steve Foster's goalbound header from Ben Parker's inswinging corner was deflected over the bar by an unwitting defender.
The best chance that Shrewsbury had came in a goalmouth scramble with ten minutes left, that Ben Herd hit against the post. But that was a rare opportunity for Shrewsbury, with Darlo's defence looking back to its best.
Unfortunately, Hereford won at Mansfield, so Darlo dropped to fourth place - but as Dave Penney said: "There's going to be a lot more twists and turns yet."
On the performance, Dave said: "I thought the best chances in the game fell to us. Tommy was back to his best - two of their defenders knew that they'd been in a game.
"The conditions were very difficult in the first half - some of the players said that they couldn't see because of the hail. Overall, I thought it was a much better performance than Saturday at Wycombe."
Shrewsbury: Garner, Herd, Langmead, Murdock, Tierney, Hunt (sub Hall 88), Davies, McIntyre, Cooke (sub Hibbert 81), Constable, Pugh (sub Humphrey 57).
Subs Not Used: Darren Moss, Bevan.
Darlington: Stockdale, Austin, Foster, Miller, Parker (Wainwright 74), Valentine, Kennedy, Cummins, Joachim, Gall (sub Ndumbu-Nsungu 30, sub Abbott 81), Wright.
Subs Not Used: Blundell, Liversedge.
Referee; R East (Wiltshire)
Ray Simpson
Freelance Journalist
