Here's a round up of how our youth teams fared last weekend in the Russell Foster Youth League and the Teesside Junior Football Alliance League.

Because of FA rules, we're unable to publish the results of any matches involving Under 11s and below.

U9 Girls

Boro Rangers v  Darlington F.C

A fantastic entertaining game of football this morning for the U9 girls. It was a really closely contested game right till the end and could have went either way. Both Darlington goalkeepers FH and TR were superb in each half, as was the Boro Rangers GK who made numerous crucial saves. The girls are an absolutely pleasure to coach and always play with a smile on their face. They are improving each week and progressing as a team and were really unlucky not to get anything from todays game. Great to see the improvements week on week.

POTM: Orinayo A ⭐️

Sponsored by Brinkburn Domestics and Imperial Recruitment Group

U11 Girls

Darlington  Feethams vs Boro Rangers Girls

Today we faced a very strong Boro Rangers side which we knew we going to be a challenging game. With three players missing Darlington knew they had to put a shift in which they did not fail to do. The determination throughout the game was unbelievable with some amazing football played. Both teams battled right until the final whistle. Huge well done to Darlington’s keeper LB who made a whopping 25 saves throughout the game!

Well done girls, we look forward to playing Boro rangers in the semi final of the cup in a few weeks.

POM- Lilymae Burnside

U13 Girls

Darlington Vs Aycliffe.

Today it was Aycliffe who we welcomed to Eastbourne who are sitting top of the league & unbeaten this season with ourselves in second so we knew it would be a tight game.

It was Darlo who took an early lead with some excellent football through Izzy K only for Aycliffe to equalise to take us in at half time level.

Second half kicked off & Aycliffe grabbed a couple of quick goals to go 3-1 up.

The girls never gave up and as we pushed on more Aycliffe created chances on the counter attack and were unlucky to hit the bar.

With 15 minutes left we finally got our breakthrough when Annie A broke through the Center of defence and make it 2-1 .

Now it was the Aycliffe goal which was under attack as Xienna dragged a ball back in the box to shoot in the bottom corner to make it 3-3.

Darlo almost won it in the last minute as Izzy broke though to be denied by a fantastic save by the Aycliffe keeper & it finished 3-3 which was a fair result.

Both teams worked so hard & played the game the right way , a pleasure to watch.

Goals

Izzy K ⚽️

Annie A ⚽️

Xienna ⚽️

U14 Girls

Darlington FC Feethams  Vs Birtley Blades

Darlington 15

Birtley 0

Today we played bottom of the league at home and soon after the KO the goals started to go in for us, so then we started to move our players around into different positions, it’s the real genuine positive we have taken from today’s game apart from minutes on the pitch for our girls, it’s a great opportunity seeing our players playing in different positions seeing how they handle the different positions, and playing out of their comfort zones and also players who don’t normally get on the score sheet really enjoying themselves when scoring.

Our girls were very respectful and gracious to our opponents today which was really pleasing to see. 👏🏽

POM

Lily Marsh And Ava Pascoe

Both brilliant today. 🔥

Match Sponsors

Sofa And Bed discount Warehouse

Luxury bed company

U14 Girls

Darlington F.C Quakers 5-0 Washington A.F.C

A great result for the Quaker Girls this afternoon and a clean sheet for the second week in a row. The girls took a bit of confidence from last weeks 3 points into todays game and although the game started off a bit scrappy on a heavy pitch, the girls kicked on after 20 minutes or so and were 4-0 up at half time. The first goal coming from Ella Leach who kept the corner alive and squeezed it in from a tight angle. The second game from a great cross along the box from Grace for Captain Amber Swales to get on the scoresheet at the back post. The third and fourth came in quick succession from the Gleghorn twins. Mads was on the scoresheet for the second week in a row with a driving run and powerful finish and Laila got her first goal for the Quakers from another corner, poking home.

In the second half we changed shape and took more control of the game. Keeping a lot of the ball and limiting Washington to few chances. A moment of brilliance from Ella Leach, saw her finish off a driving run with a thunderbolt into the top corner, in off the bar, a contender for goal of the season so far. Girls are starting to pick up some momentum and will go again next week.

POTM: Ella L ⭐️

Goalscorers:

Ella L x2 ⚽️⚽️

Amber S x1

Madeline G x1 ⚽️

Laila G x1 ⚽️

Sponsored by Hayley Liddle at Bespoke Financial and Howell Cummings Joinery

U7 Boys

A faultless performance today against a strong Leven team, The boys are impressing more and more every week. We certainly have a team who are wanting to learn and improve every week.  Harvey and I thought that it was going to be a very close game today but the team played some excellent football.  Trying to play the right way at such a young age is amazing and full credit to them for the mental and physical effort they are putting in at training and on match days. 

We awarded the player of the match trophies to FL and BL today for some excellent defensive performances🏆

That said we must mention OM with 3 goals and WS with 2 goals who were both outstanding also, OR scored a great goal directly from a corner to make it a great day in the office for the U7s 👏👏💪⚽

U10 Boys

Darlington FC Quakers v  South Shields

Goal. FC10

Great game of football this morning between very good sides. The first 10-15 minutes both sides cancelled each other out and neither were able to dominate the game at all. South Shields brought along a large squad which allowed them to freshen up the outfield players with regularity and Darlington at times struggled to identify the changes and adapt but as always defended resolutely and attacked with pace and power on the counter attack.

We took the lead in the second half when NP7 burst down the wing and pulled the ball back to the penalty spot for FC10 to knock in.

The second half opened up slightly and whilst South Shields were always in the game the quality of Darlington started to show and we used the ball a lot better to create a few very good chances and were just missing the final touch.

The game then became a great contest with both teams going at it. Towards the end of the game South Shields threw more players forward and we created chances to finish the game off but were unable to make the chances count. At the other end LF4, TB5 and JB6 defended for their lives and were supported well from a tireless performance from our midfielders. On the rare occasion south shields broke out defensive line CR1 made two good saves to keep a well deserved clean sheet.

It was a massive test for the boys this morning against one of the best sides in the division and they delivered another outstanding performance. The result means that the Quakers u10s win the Russell foster premier league for a second consecutive year. An amazing group of players who are a credit to the club and who continue to go from strength to strength 🏆🏆

U11 Boys

Darlington FC Quakers Vs Thornaby town FC

Today we really struggled for numbers with a lot of key players absent today we were very depleted, we starting with eight players today and credit where credits due the Thornaby manager offered also to start with eight players too.

Big respect for that.

Nevertheless our boys battled to the very end with the boys playing in different positions for the good of the team today and showing great Character, they gave a great account of themselves with no changes we were able to make the boys did tire towards the end but they never gave up.

POM Tate Marshall 🔥

Our midfielder slotting in brilliantly at the back today and Bravely putting his body on the line to stop a goal going in!  👏🏽

U11 Boys

Leven Athletic Vs. Darlington FC

A good start to the game by the boys and within minutes of kick off early pressure saw us awarded a penalty which TO dispatched. A spate of Leven attacks in the mid to latter stages of the first half were dealt with well except on a couple of occasions when the boys will feel they may have done better. Leven led at half-time. The boys went into the second half wanting to get their rewards for a decent performance so far but it wasn’t to be. Our best chance to score was from a good run and effort by LE who had the Leven keeper beat. Unfortunately his shot which everyone thought was on route into the net hit the inside of the post and was cleared to safety. The second half ended stalemate with neither team able to score. It was a quick game on a fast surface today. The 14 DFC players involved as well as our opponents can be proud to have played their part in todays game. Both teams played some excellent football, looked to play in an aesthetically pleasing style and the competition throughout the 60 minutes was relentless. Leven are currently at the pinnacle of this division and the small gulf between teams is reflected in the competitiveness of games each week. Well done to both teams.

Sponsored by:

First Class Learning

The Cross Keys (Gainford)

U15 Boys

Darlington 0   Shotton 1

Despite our best efforts it just didn’t click today, and the whole game was a scrappy affair to be honest.

The only goal was a shot from outside the box we should have dealt with, but a lack of communication saw the ball find its way into the bottom corner.

Despite the defeat the lads were very positive at full time, knowing exactly what needs doing to put things right.

That’s resilience for you!

MOM:

Charlie 🏆

Sponsored by:

Support Solutions UK and

Bristol St Motors

U16 Boys

Darlington 6 - 3 Whitby Fishermen

Darlington controlled the first period, with Whitby unable to get out their half due to the waves of pressure. A glut of opportunities past Darlo by before Ollie Watson calmly netted the opener. Finn Talbot grabbed a second after 30 minutes, arriving with perfect timing to slam home an effort from 14 yards. Lennon Harland claiming excellent assists for both goals. The away side scored with one long clearance over the high line of the defence, the striker (in a questionable position) raced clear and tucked it away. 3-1 HT

Darlington had coasted the first half and failed to raise the game early in the second. Whitby fought back to 3-3 with a well worked throw in and a penalty. At the start of the season this newly formed team could have let their heads drop, blamed each other and crumbled, but not now. The togetherness and spirit of the team shone through and every player did their bit to ensure the result didn’t slip away.

Firstly, Troy Hollow curled an instinctive right footer into the bottom corner after Lennons mazy dribble into the box. Ollie added his second chasing onto Ewan’s superb long pass from defence and poking under the advancing keeper. MOTM Lennon Harland completed the scoring with a similar goal taking the ball in stride and slotting home to finish the scoring at 6-3.

In truth, the scoreline was closer than it should have been and Darlington will have learnt a lot about not putting teams to the sword when completely in control. The win moves us up to 2nd with 3 games in hand on first. Another step towards the title 🤞🏼💪🏼

⚽️⚽️ Ollie Watson

⚽️ Finn Talbot

⚽️ Troy Hollow

⚽️⚽️ ⭐️ Lennon Harland

Home Match Shirt Sponsors: Claire Hogg Mortgages and Protections Ltd

U17 Boys

U17s were away to Marton today for a 1st v 2nd clash.  The game as you would expect started very quickly with Marton having the advantage of the early exchanges.  However, Raph Oppong made it 0-1 on the 16th minute.  This seemed to settle the nerves and it remained this score line till HT.  The second half kicked off and within a minute Darlington were 0-2 up after a half volley from the outside of the box from Raph, which looped over the keeper.  The score line didn’t remain that for long as 2 mins later, Marton played a speculative ball over the top of our back line to which was then a 1v1 situation and Marton scored to make it 1-2.  Things got a bit nervy and challenges were flying in to which Marton found themselves lucky to have 12 on the pitch as Dom Stacey was sithed down! The lads worked for each other today and fought till the end but the best was still to come as Kayne Williams sliced through their midfield and defence as a mazy run to which the space just opened and he fired one in straight in to the top right corner from outside the box. The boys continued to work for each other and it finished 1-3 to the Darlo.

⚽️⚽️ Raph Oppong

⚽️ Kayne Williams

🏆 Kayne Williams