Darlo fan Karl Alexander has a mammoth collection of Darlington programmes, and today he has supplied us with programmes from the FA Cup in 1954.

We were gripped by FA Cup fever in season 1954-55.

We played six matches in the competition, three of them replays, before we went out in a third round second replay against Hartlepool at Middlesbrough's Ayresome Park.

Our Cup campaign started at our fellow Fourth Division side Barrow, and we drew 1-1, with a goal by Davis.

The replay was four days later at Feethams with an afternoon kick off (we hadn't bought floodlights then) and we won 2-1, Davis and Spuhler scoring

We were drawn at Walthamstow Avenue from the Isthmian League in the second round, and we avoided an FA Cup shock and we won 3-0 with goals by Furphy, Dunlop and Spuhler.

In the third round, we drew our old rivals Hartlepool, who had a long unbeaten run behind them when we played them, and drew 1-1, Houlahan scoring in front of a 17,000 crowd.

The replay was four days later at Feethams, and even though it was a Wednesday afternoon (still no floodlights then) , just over 11000 were in the ground for the 2-2 draw, Houlahan and an own goal were our scorers.

We went to Middlesbrough for the second replay on Monday 17th January, and lost 2-0. We would have played Nottingham Forest in the fourth round.