Simon Baldry scored just three minutes into his first start after a long injury lay-off to help Huddersfield to victory against Darlington in the Worthington Cup first round.

Baldry, who has been out for nine months, made an immediate impact when he scored from close range following Jon Stead's cross.

The home side, who dominated the early stages, went 2-0 up after 15 minutes when former Halifax defender Matt Clarke headed Kenny Irons' cross into his own net.

The visitors found home goalkeeper Scott Bevan in resolute mood with the big stopper keeping out powerful shots from Mark Ford and David McGurk late on.

Huddersfield: Bevan, Jenkins, Moses, Dyson, Sharp, Baldry, Holland, Irons, Schofield, Stead, Gallacher. Subs: Senior, Mattis, Brown, McDonald, Smith.

Darlington: Collett, Valentine, Clarke, Liddle, McGurk, Cullen, Ford, Maddison, Hadland, Clark, Conlon. Subs: Betts, Naylor, Wainwright, Sheeran, Nicholls.

Referee: R Beeby (Northamptonshire)