MANY observers will have viewed this week as a test of Dagenham & Redbridge's promotion credentials.

The team faced Rochdale and Bournemouth in the space of three days, two sides that sat alongside the Daggers in the top three of League Two.

Despite taking an early lead through midfielder Peter Gain on Saturday, Dagenham let Rochdale back into the game at Victoria Road and were left empty-handed.

Naturally, another defeat at the hands of top-of-the-table Bournemouth was expected to follow on Tuesday.

However, in blustery conditions, John Still's men dug deep and ground out a valuable point at Dean Court.

The two sides struggled to cope with the wind and were largely restricted to pot shots from outside the area, Paul Benson going closest when he forced Shwan Jalal into a save.

The result sees the Daggers drop out of the top three for the first time in a number of weeks, with Rotherham taking their place.

There is little doubt that, had Still been offered fourth place at the start of the campaign, however, he would have bitten your hand off. And, with two of the season's toughest fixtures out of the way, it would come as no surprise to see the team climb back into the automatic promotion spots in the coming weeks.

There is no fixture for the Daggers on Saturday, and their next game is against eighth-placed Aldershot at Victoria Road on Tuesday.