At this point, there are ten minutes of this diabolical, horrendous, abhorrent display left. I could end up seeing us win, and I'd be truly delighted to have egg on my face.

But since I find that about as likely as Beyonce mounting me tonight, I'll start the review shall I?

Our midfield has developed an uncanny ability to create gaping holes in itself and allows almost unchallenged runs to continue for well over 30 yards before they realise what's happening.

Our attack...what attack?

Howard is taking corners. Why!?

I'm leaving the ground now...

Massive changes needed

With who we are so thread bear ? I fear for u this season

I heard a roar...I'm guessing Beyonce isn't giving me a booty call.

2-0

Can you get season ticket refunds???????Honestly.

One attempt on goal all game, not on target. where is the improvement??????

Toothless.

Gutless.

Just pathetic. We hardly touched the ball. If we spent any time in the final third third tonight it must have been less than 1 minutes worth of action.

I'm seething.

I'll wait until I'm in the mini bus before posting a review...I might need to calm down as well.

Fooling awful. Terrible. Appalling.

Abject.

On a cheery note, maybe the Thread Bear could be a mate for the Escape Goat.

I can see a big drop in the gate at the next home game already, people will not watch the same shite as last season.

Jesus! 2 games in and people are throwing the towel in already

if what you are saying is reflective of the game, then it sounds like another Crewe game.... which, if it was, we need to shape up and fucking fast!!!!

It's my opinion only, but Sweeney's presence causes so many problems in the midfield. If he is in the centre with just one other central player, then we WILL struggle because he is simply a body whose only contribution is to get into forward positions from deep. He can't do anything else, literally.

No wonder we struggle with him in a midfield 4. He certainly can't play wide.

I'm now seeing Danny Wilson as having much better vision when he stuck him at right back in 2007/08 season. cos he realised Sweeney was in fact not contributing much at all to the centre of the park

Midfield is so vital, it defines whether a team is going to struggle or not. Even the best defences will leak goals when they are overrun and over exposed. Walton and Murray have to be tried together, and if Sweeney has to play then he must be in a 5 man midfield and on no other occasion than that should he be picked.

Then that gives rise to the problem of only having one out and out forward, but why should that area of the pitch have to suffer even further because of lack of quality in the midfield

Exactly Blue Beard, why the F**k is Steve Howard taking corners ??

Thinking about the sheer legwork involved in being a lone striker five in midfield, for away matches at least, would surely mean dropping Howard. I'm not saying you're wrong but I can't see it happening.

Utter tripe again, too many half arsed players Poole especially .Cooper needed to get rid of the dead wood in the summer. Sick as F&&&&& already.

I feel suicidal after listening to that let alone whatchin it

Feel sorry for the poolies who travelled.

Oh and the useless kunts cost me £415 had a 8 fold goals goals goals.



Howard taking corners

There is always next season where we will once again be promised wholesale changes and some decent players.

Haha a took 4-3!!!!

Just a random punt goals coupons mark them without looking if you see what I mean.

Fookoff pools spineless kunts.

I was going to go, it's not far from here but decided against it at the last moment.
Sounds like nothing has changed.
Nothing on target apparently.
I know it's early and additions can be made but until changes are forthcoming I fear the worst.

But it is an improvement., the last 2 seasons we've been dogged 3-0 down there. And we were fuppin awful on both those occasions to.

From site...

"But while Pools struggled to adapt to the conditions, Notts County seemed to enjoy them and gradually came right on top of the game."

Apparently we've not experienced rain in Hartlepool before.

Poor Mr I live g in notts can't be good.

I just think that the players simply aren't going to be good enough over the season for anything but a struggle... the same players treading water for years aren't going to get better, they are only going to get progressively worse

Meanwhile other teams are trying to constantly improve, and so then we have our team which then looks out of depth in this division.

Loan signings might have to come into play later in the season to save our arses

Loan signings may have to come in sooner rather than later.
By the sounds of it an awful performance and midfield non existent!

Can see someone with one of the posters on a stick with `The end is nigh` walking up and down, handing out God is the answer leaflets at the next home game

Only if we lose at Orient.

Notts c, donny and Swindon 2 or more for me. Happy days, jut need notts c to keep it up for a mega pay out lol

Fortunately I'm in France.

Is that a euphemism Mr I?

Nope, sat here in La Rochelle with thoughts more on the moules than footy.

Bon appetit!

After Carcassonne and Toulouse, I'd most like to see La Rochelle...

The Knights Templar had a strong presence in La Rochelle since before the time of Eleanor of Aquitaine. There is a legend that the Templars used the port to escape from France with the fleet of 18 ships which had brought Jacques de Molay from Cyprus.

Yes chip betting on pools to lose is great?? Fukn knob!

Seem as tho your a yakker I suppose it's condonable though!

Long way to go.....but can Man City donate 1% of their available funds....sorted !

Last time I went to La Rochelle there was some sort of fete on that involved a lot of fairly portly, 'tached up, cross dressing firemen eating lots of moules. Not sure if that is what has attracted Mr I but it seemed to overshadow the history.

Wasn't there tonight but I agree with all of that. Sweeney wasn't a bad right back actually. Now it is really worrying that the staff at Pools seem like they are too fukking thick to see this. Sweeney struggled in the centre of midfield in Division 4 and has been iffy there since especially in a 4-4-2 formation.

Cooper should know this, why doesn't he? Barron and Humphreys should also know that the midfield will be over run if we play this way - it's only happened the last 50 odd times it has been tried. We never hold the ball when we play this way - we never get on top of teams, seriously this is frustrating as hell.

I seriously couldn't bring myself to back pools to lose, and I can't understand why any fan would

Over the years if we have a key player out injured its too tempting not to. Also sometimes you just know pools will lose. Tonight was one such ocassion. If you ever bet against pools its always comforting to know we didnt lose should you lose your cash.

Loan signings do not always have an effect as we have sometimes seen

To be honest over recent years we havent made many good loan signings.

Ryan noble and Jake kean suggest otherwise

The only thing that has kept Sweeney in midfield is his goals.
I like any player who gives 100% and Sweeney has nearly always delivered on that, but to play midfield in league 1 you also need crunching tackles and the quality to spray the ball about a bit and pull off the odd telling pass.
Unfortunately Sweeney has never really delivered on any of those in all the years he's been here!

Explain what keeps horwoods place at left back?

Maybe because we don't have a half decent left back on the books. I could probably say the same about Austin, is Holden as good. Possibly worth a try if Austin is still injured.
Maybe also worth putting Baldwin in at centre back!

I'd take ODonavan over Noble any day. He's a goalscorer who would score goals in league 1 as proved in the past!

I want to see players that are comfortable with a football and who will get stuck in play in the centre of midfield.

Willie Boland, Paul Stephenson, Tommy Widderington to an extent, Paul Murray etc; Looking at things now we should have offered Liddle better terms and Paul Murray needs to be starting every game.....

Liddle wanted away and going by the general feeling on here when he was released I didn't see many people shouting for him to be retained not least breaking the bank for.
Would love another Willie Bolland or Mark Tinkler.
I'm just hoping Walton comes good and maybe by playing Murray alongside him his game might improve.