Stockport's over-used pitch is cutting up badly (Credit: PA Wire)

Stockport County manager Jim Gannon says the poor state of their Edgeley Park pitch is making life harder for his promotion hopefuls.

County moved to fifth after beating Darlington 1-0 on Saturday less than 24 hours after Sale Sharks, with whom they share the pitch, played on it.

"The lads were fantastic today because the condition of the pitch is making things so difficult for us," he said.

"I'm disappointed... we're trying to play but the pitch is killing us."

After seeing Liam Dickenson's winner take Stockport to within three points of automatic promotion, Gannon's joy was tempered by his worry over the condition of the playing surface.

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"More worryingly, we're seeing players getting injured on the pitch," he said.

"Julian Joachim went over on his ankle and Dom [Dominic Blizzard] did.

"They were innocuous little things but it's because the surface is so uneven because of the damage that's being done from all the training that Sale Sharks have done on the pitch."

Guiness Premiership rugby union side Sale have shared County's pitch since 2003 and beat Brive 49-24 in the European Challenge Cup quarter-finals in heavy conditions on Friday evening.