Darlington under Penney were on the cusp of the automatic promotion places before administration

Darlington manager Dave Penney has paid tribute to his players for all they have done for the club since going into administration in February.

The Quakers played their last home match of the season in the 3-1 defeat by champions Brentford on Saturday and Penney took time to hail his squad.

"They way they've performed it gives them great credit," he told BBC Tees.

"I'm sure it will stand them in good stead and I'm sure other clubs will see there are good characters among them."

Brentford's win ensured that they were crowned champions immediately after the game, and their players and fans celebrated accordingly.

However, having been in the promotion picture themselves prior to being placed in administration, Penney admitted it was tough for the Quakers players, staff and supporters to watch.

"It makes it worse, everyone thinks we could have been in that position and it would have been great to fight for the title or automatic promotion," he said.

Darlington, currently 12th in League Two with 59 points, would instead be sat in the fourth and final play-off spot at this time had the club not been hit by a 10-point penalty for entering administration.

E-mail this to a friend

Printable version