PERHAPS the terrace talk was of Gateshead and of planes, trains and boats because the overall feeling of brooding was occasionally mocked by the handful of Staines supporters at Princes Park last night.

Having served one-match bans, Elliot Bradbrook and Joe Bruce returned to the fold and James White was on the bench.

Carl Rook made way for Jon Main who started his loan spell with a quietly impressive performance.

Typically when you're down on your luck, Tony Burman had to make an enforced substitution when the hard-working Lee Burns had to retire hors-de-combat just before half-time.

In the end it could be deemed a blessing in disguise for it was replacement White who scored Darts' late leveller with a shot through a crowded goalmouth.

The effort was correctly flagged fully over the line by the linesman on the wooden man side of the pitch, which is more than be said for some of the goals ‘scored’ by Staines in previous encounters.

Darts are in the process of rebuilding in their first season in BSB South and there were many encouraging signs last night.

The commitment is there, the errors far fewer and even with time running out there was no panic.

Overall it was one of those many ‘anyboby-can-beat-anybody’ occasions which Dartford FC need to learn to handle in this division.

Darts started very positively and probably should have gone in at half-time just in front but the loss of Burns didn't help.

For their part Staines buzzed forward, urged on by the aptly-named Darty Brown.

Staines showed first after the interval and took the lead on 65 minutes by raiding down the right and cutting into the area for Danny Gordon to slide a shot under the advancing Andrew Young.

Ryan Hayes came on for George Purcell but didn't see too much of the ball as Darts went a bit route one in pursuit of the leveller.

It finally arrived with six minutes left when White hit a Rook back-heel through a forest of legs with enough power to register a goal.

To their credit Darts went for the winner – another positive from the evening.

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Dartford: Young, Burgess, Bruce, Bonner, Goodacre, Noble, Purcell (Hayes 62) Sheringham (Rook 75), Main, Burns (White 43), Bradbrook. Subs not used: Harris, Ibrahim. Att: 774.