Is it just me or a getting older thing?

There was a time when a Pools loss would have spoiled my whole weekend whereas now it’s more ‘ho-hum’ and forgotten within minutes. Maybe it’s just my expectations are far more realistic these days. For example I have no expectations of the play offs and even less of success should we manage to scrape in. None of this affects my life any more.

It could also be down to having been kicked in the teeth so many times, it’s stopped hurting!

could just be an age thing. as a kid you thought any of pools players as being gods. in you teens and twenties you fought their corner against non poolies even though they might be crap. as you get older after years of having your teeth kicked in by them you get not to bother anymore and expect the worst on matchdays. its the young kids i feel sorry for as they have not suffered the hurt yet and thats still something to come in their lives.

Pools just don't seem to be part of the community now. Loved it back in the day down Church Street Saturday night having a pint with the players. But I don't mean the players now should be down Church Street after a game....it's just that I can't relate to the players these days.

I'm only 57 so might get to that stage next season or 5pm Saturday if the bastads shit all over us again.

The season after promotion back to the football league was exciting, with some excellent results . Since then there has been a succession of embarrassing results, dumped out of the FA cup by teams from lower leagues, dumped out of the trophy ,at home , by teams with little football pedigree. Shocking results in the league, Oxford City, Gateshead, Ebbsfleet and others that I am trying to forget. You can only take so much .

I agree there were times a pools defeat would ruin my weekend but now it is easily forgot and thought of as normal.

I'm also 57. Born in Hpool, moved around a lot as Dad was in the Army. Taken with him when Pools played nearby - so I got lumbered. Like others here, it used to take up more of my attention span/ time and effort but nothing like as much now. Living in the town, I'll attend more Woking matches than travel to Pools like I used to. There are just too many other things that are more important to me than subjecting myself to the likelihood of seeing another abject defeat. I'll be seeing my local non league team that is so far down the pyramid I can have a pint with a mate in the stand, watching the match. Football is the excuse to get together rather than the reason now.

It's an age thing.

For decades with my team I just couldn't get enough. Not only that, working full time in a tough job almost makes you fixate on the weekend and the football on offer.

As George Harrison said "All things must pass"

and if you were really lucky one could live in the same street as you living in an average house. some might miss those days of having their house decorated either for free or mates rates. this type of thing went on to the early90,s and how many of them actually do live in the town anymore including the youth team.

with this live streaming thing and the international weekends i actually have seen more pools game than i have since leaving the town. cannot ever see me going to a mid week match ever again so you see a game but miss the crack in the ground. can see more like me as time goes on which in the long run cannot be good for the game.

This was one of the reasons I advocated a phoenix club back when Singh took over. When you look at Darlo they have caught us up despite the challenges they’ve had with grounds. We would never have had that problem and would not have been saddled with Sage debt either. I reckon we would be L2/NL by now.

Can remember back in the 70s and playing Aston Villa in the last 16 of the League Cup and talking to mates about the possibility of Wembley and even Europe (the naivety of youth).
Saw the draw for next round of FA Trophy and just thought we'll that's us out before we even played Tamworth. Disappointed massively but over it before I got home a day hardly totally unexpected.
Think it's definitely more age and expectation after so many disappointments rather than apathy. Wouldn't have bothered going if it was apathy.

By what measure have Darlo caught us up? They haven't got a ground that's up to EFL standard, their crowds are around 1000 (they were a better supported club than us), they're still a division below us and not in a play off position even?
And how long has it taken to get to where they are now, would our fans accept 15 to 20 years to get back to where we are now? No good to many of us on here as I suspect ma y of us will have shuffled off this mortal coil.

PULL YOUR FUCKING SELVES TO GETHER YOU MOTLEY FUCKING CREW!!
You’re suffering from the apathy of being out of our natural surroundings in a league were nearly every team is the same.
It’ll be like this till we get promoted so get used to it till we get out of this Care Home of a League.
There’s no easy cure.

Have a nice day. …..if possible.

4 4 2
Easy cure
Hello 4th division.

I think everyone on the bunker has had their highs....early to mid IOR years. Never going to see anything like that again.

I always found the lows interesting too…….because that’s all I was used to…..then hated the eager beaver top Poolie Klingons when the good times came.

I've heard from reliable sources that the superfan and super director only really started going to Pools regularly at the start of the IOR years. Must say I can't remember seeing him either home or away before then. Apparently he was a regular at another north east club.

Missed all our penalties for the first time in our history and I just laughed.
There’s been an ambivalence for years bar a couple of seasons. Raj has to take some credit for instilling a sense of mediocrity across the club. The cost of living crisis also contributes though, as some things are more important than football, despite statements to the contrary.

The town has a club to support other than pools, If people dislike Singh so much then Hartlepool FC is there for all and any to support.
Not having a go just stating, If pools go tits up its an option.

PS: It still gets to me, And i,ve been supporting since the 60s.

Like the Singh link,

Aye ya right hes Mr NOBODY. He,s T.A.P.S

T.A.P.S.??

for me its almost the opposite---I get irrationally and childishly angry for short periods....though it doesnt last
I was fuming after Tuesday when we f'd up those pens---It feels like at the top though no one cares.

Lawrence is clearly competent but does he really care at his age and with his contract what happens?--its all being treated so casually like a part time job by those at the top---thats where the apathy is

There’s been a few of them…..once the money stopped they stopped.
I like to think we were there when they were needing them not feeding them.

It used to be that a single Pools defeat would ruin my entire weekend. Then I took up golf, and now they both ruin one day each.

Try fishing to get a 3rd day.

Who cares...

Here's one. Work Xmas meal tonight at 1730. Most people were meeting at 1500 for pre drinks. I pitched up at 1630 in the pre drinks pub, a big noisy one. Glimpsed the work lot at the back. Went to the bar, found at least one beer that wasn't shit. Waited ages to be served as all the bar staff were making cocktails. When someone who arrived after me got served I left and went to the quiet pub over the road and I'm enjoying a decent pint on me own. I'm tempted to stay here! Am I old before my time?

You don't say

Couldn't resist... but this is an interesting thread.

The simple truth is we're all different. I love going to the match, and don't feel as disconnected from current players as some are saying - in the stands they're only 20 feet away.
Streaming matches is soul destroying and brain eating - seriously, if you've got any choice at all in the matter get along to some games!

Hate losing, always have done, but mentally I've moved on 15 minutes after a bad result. The feeling you get from a good win sticks around a lot longer

Can we start with this:

York 5 Pools 3
York 3 Darlo 1

Hands up if you think we would beat Darlington at the moment.

Nooooooo you ain’t alone.
A number of years ago at a Xmas do on her majesty’s property they needed someone to go to the guard room to let them in ……I volunteered….got a bit of buffet every now and then feet up and patted on the back by various people for volunteering….it was pure undiluted bliss.

Are you that Welsh gaddgie who had a fling with Lizzie.

What about me and Lizzie Dripping.

Just what I would of done in my last job. Well done.

I’ve never got the impression the sage debt was much of a thing in the end? Accounts don’t show it up as an issue and I thought he just got a bit of money when we went up? Don’t think we’re shelling out huge amounts to them are we? And someone on here the other day said Raj paid a quid for the club?

The finances of football clubs are something even the greatest minds would avoid trying to make sense of with that particular branch of finance that denies the certainty of mathematics.
A mystery.
Basically 1+1 = 2435678286.7

got to a point now where i just laughed after the penalty farce expecting it to happen. its not just the last few years but most of my life when going to an away game more or less meant defeat and some bloody heavy ones at that. gave you somrthing you could not buy, strength and adversity in defeat which a lot of club fans have not got in their lives.

It appears very strange that 3 players miss penalties more so one who is our regular penalty taker and hasn’t missed one as far as I can remember ?

Sulky Penalty that one.

The Klingons were class.
It meant we weren't shit anymore.

And quite a lot stayed with the club.

We need and deserved return to

KLIngonisation

UTP.

I saw them more as vultures, turn up for the ‘food’ then fuck off when it’s gone.

Yes, defeats are hard to take at the time but are usually forgotten as more games are played.
Maybe it's because Pools have not played for a while but I find myself becoming more and more angry about the defeat at Ebbsfleet as they continue to prove that after 26 games that they are incapable of beating anyone else.
I shudder to think what I will be like if the 3 points missed out on cost us a playoff spot!

Each to his own but personally I can’t get excited about a defeat that occurred several months back under a different managerial regime, team selection and tactics - shit happens I’m afraid. What does make my blood boil is the time wasted in dismissing the knobhead that was (and doubtless still is) Sarll when an earlier disposal may have resulted in an additional six or perhaps even nine points on the board at this stage of the campaign.

Bad decision from the new boardroom to appoint Sarly.
Even worser to delay his sacking as long as possible.

Looks like this Aussie gadge already got next seasons job.

Not a problem if its league 2.
Still never a better time to exit this tinpot division.
UTP.

going all out to get the bloke was the big mistake at the outset. it wasn,t as if he was a top manager we just got lucky finding. as for the ebbsfleet loss, they could do the double on us and we could still make the play offs. its only the same number of points we will lose if york do the same agaist us. shocks are not confined to just pools but every club has them both in the league and the cups.

To be fair they rested a couple against us and only brought them on to pile more pressure on us midway through the second half.
We would give you a good game currently but I think you would win.

would not bet on it and we might see next season when darlo do an ebbsfleet impersonation.

treading water mid-table every season in the National North does come with a certain sort of calming effect every week..no stress,eh.