Cheltenham Town recorded their first ever point at The Darlington Arena after a game that began with so much promise for Martin Allen's side.
Justin Richards' third goal in two games gave the Robins a deserved lead at the interval but with a little more composure in front of goal the margin could have been wider.
You could almost hear a pin drop at the newly-named Northern Echo Darlington Arena which provided an eerie backdrop to this game with only 1,840 spectators present inside the 25,000-seater ground, the legacy of former chairman George Reynolds' grand ambitions before he left the club in acrimonious circumstances back in 2005.
The club are currently experiencing lean times as a direct result and began the day without a point from their first five games of this current campaign with only two players surviving the summer fire sale.
The Quakers have recruited an experienced frontline in Kevin Gall and Dean Windass, but the Cheltenham defence turned in a much-improved performance after their capitulation to Bradford last weekend to keep the strikeforce at bay.
However, an error by Drissa Diallo, who had performed well until that point, handed Gall the opportunity to level with a little under 20 minutes to earn his side a share of the spoils.
TEAM NEWS: Martin Allen was forced into three changes with Shane Duff (calf), Oliver Bozanic (knee) and Elvis Hammond (ankle) all missing out after picking up injuries by the half-way point of last weekend's nine-goal thriller against Bradford City. In came Frankie Artus, who returned to the club for a second loan spell in midweek, while Marley Watkins made his first appearance of the season on the right wing with Barry Hayles re-joining the attack alongside Justin Richards. David Bird wore the armband.
Seventh minute: Nathan Porritt provided the Cheltenham defence with their first moment of concern with seven minutes on the clock. The pink-booted left winger surged towards the Cheltenham box before releasing a shot which flew over Scott Brown's crossbar.
13: Ian Miller, the only player in the Darlington side who was involved in their final game of last season, up-ended Richards to hand David Hutton a chance 13 minutes in. The diminutive winger attempted a cheeky low free-kick from a tight angle, but goalkeeper David Knight was alive to the danger. The former Spurs man blasted one over a minute later from 25 yards.
18: Kevin Gall went close after he was picked out by Porritt from the left with a searching delivery to the back post. The former Carlisle United and Yeovil Town striker, however, should have done better from a promising position eight yards from goal.
22: Darlington edged the opening exhanges and created another chance in the 22nd minute, this time Jordan Cook fired over from an angle down the inside right channel.
23: Hutton drew a smart save from Knight after some nimble footwork inside the Quakers box created a shooting chance from 12 yards.
27 BOOKING: Gall became the first player to go into the book after an ugly challenge on Artus in midfield. Cook had initially infringed the Bristol City loanee, but Gall raced in and connected with the Cheltenham man on his left ankle.
32 GOAL: Darlington 0-1 Cheltenham Town
A wonderful piece of play by Marley Watkins down the Cheltenham right fashioned the opening in the 32nd minute. The young winger went past Mark Bower, the Darlington left back, made the byline and cut it back into the path of Hutton, who had arrived at the near post. He was prevented from forcing the ball over by his marker but it spilled loose to Richards, who couldn't miss from close-range.
33: The goalscorer dragged a 20 yarder well wide a minute later.
35: Richards should have made it two only three minutes after his goal when he was presented with a great chance, again by Watkins after the Welshman had flighted a delicate ball over from the right. The striker met it firmly enough at the back post, but his downward header bounced over the bar.
36: Watkins almost grabbed the second himself in the 36th minute after Hayles had squared from the left. The 18-year-old though was denied by defender Miller, while Artus drilled over the loose ball from the edge of the box.
40: Porritt switched flanks and created a chance of his own five minutes before the break, shooting wide from 20 yards.
41 SUBSTITUTION: Hutton was withdrawn and Josh Low sent on for his first league appearance of the season in the final minutes of the first half.
45+1: Watkins, who enjoyed a highly productive first 45 minutes, fizzed one over the bar on the stroke of half time.
HALF TIME: 0-1
46 DOUBLE SUBSTITUTION: Quakers boss Colin Todd made two changes at half time, replacing Rikki Bains and Gary Smith with Matthew Plummer and James Bennett respectively. The move had the desired effect with Darlington making a positive start to the second period with Cook going close within a minute of the re-start.
52: Cheltenham turned defence into attack after their hosts had won a 52nd minute corner which Diallo headed clear into the path of Low. The winger pushed it past Jamie Chandler and half the length of the pitch as far as the edge of the box before failing to match his impressive run with a finish, rolling a low one at Knight, who fell on the effort.
55: Quakers defender Miller almost converted a low David Bird cross into his own net after a promising passage of play by Cheltenham down the right.
58: Windass was the width of the post away from squaring the game with a curling free-kick 20 yards from goal after Gall drew a foul from Diallo in a central position.
60 BOOKING: Windass had been warned about his conduct throughout the game but the former Hull City and Bradford City striker finally went into the book for dissent on the hour.
70 SUBSTITUTION: The game was held up as Windass, now 40, received treatment for a cut he had picked up in a challenge with Diallo a moment or two earlier. The away contingent jeered the man, who claimed the goal which clinched Hull City's place in the Premier League the season before last, for his involvement in an unsavoury incident with John Finnigan back in the 2006/07 season when he turned out for Bradford City at the Abbey Business Stadium. The striker was taken off 20 minutes from time and replaced by David Dowson.
71 GOAL: Darlington 1-1 Cheltenham Town
Gall got his team back on terms in the 71st minute, capitalising on a Diallo mistake to beat Brown with a low strike from 16 yards. The ball arrived from the right, but the Frenchman missed his header to present the Quakers striker with the opportunity to claim his first goal of the season, and his side's first in five games and it raised the noise levels inside the ground in the final stages.
75: Porritt wasted a glorious chance to put his side in from for the first time in the contest, lifting one over from 10 yards.
78 SUBSTITUTION: Allen pressed Julian Alsop into action with 12 minutes left in place of Watkins. Richards meanwhile dropped back into the right midfield role.
83: Gallinagh tried his luck with a clean strike from 20 yards, but it flew wide of the left upright.
86 SUBSTITUTION: Kyle Haynes replaced Hayles with four minutes to go and went to right midfield.
90+1 BOOKING: The 17-year-old was booked for a ill-timed tackle on Porritt in injury time.
FULL TIME: 1-1
ATTENDANCE: 1,840
DARLINGTON (4-4-2): Knight; Bains (Plummer 46), Foster (c), Miller, Bower; Cook, Smith (Bennett 46), Chandler, Porritt; Gall, Windass (Dowson 71). Other subs: Smith, Thorpe, Liversedge, Convery.
CHELTENHAM TOWN (4-4-2): Brown; Bird (c), Diallo, Townsend, Ridley; Watkins (Alsop 78), Artus, Gallinagh, Hutton (Low 41); Richards, Hayles (Haynes 86). Subs not used: Richardson (Gk), Denton, Tabor, Durrant.
REFEREE: K. Wright (Cambridgeshire)
ATTENDANCE: 1,840
Murry Toms at the Northern Echo Darlington Arena
