Love hearing the stories about this scout that scout.

I have a pretty good idea who these scouts are watching.

My Questions are ?

Do our players know they have scouts watching them.
How do you all know which club scouts are here.
Which scouts have been watching our lads.
Do these scouts make contact with the players.

I am also very confident that everyone on here can tell a good
footballer from a bad one !

Its always baffled me this scout chit chat ?

My guess anyway is in no pat order.

Luke James
Jack Baldwin.
Brad Walker.
Scott Flinders.

These are all good prospects for any club to have a dabble with.

Best Wishes Lads.

I was at the Newcastle v Southampton match the other week in the bar after the game we got talking to Mick Tait.

Smashing bloke to be fair and he had a few stories to tell about his time at Pools and Darlo. Anyway he scouts for Newcastle these days (mainly looking around the local boys clubs) but he was sent to the Pools v Dagenham game to watch Luke James. He sounded more impressed with Jack Baldwin who he remarked played the game with a cigar in his mouth.

Don't worry I told him he is normally shit.

Have you read some of the post match comments on here? Some posters would struggle to differentiate an arse from an elbow.

Scouts get in touch with clubs for tickets. So pools know which scouts are present.

I always imagine them in a 90s Umbro coat n flat cap, should be very easy to spot them.

Thats them Yubep! Also double up as refereeing assessors

Everyone knows you just need to bump into a scout on the street and they will reveal all you ever wanted to know.

Tbh there is no point appointing a scout, just employ someone to sit with them and ask them who they are watching and they will reveal years of scouting work at will.

Most people in football when asked by fans will tell them exactly what they want to hear to get the conversation over as quick as possible so they can get on with their lives

Spotting a scout at pools is dead easy, they are sat sharing notes n telling a total stranger who they are here to watch.

I used to work with a scout who had worked for Newcastle and Sunderland. He knew exactly what he was looking for- touch and pace in players who were under 20 and might have slipped through the youth systems. He then passed on the info he gathered and never had any input into the stage after that. He didn't actually get any inside knowledge about possible future deals but he would happily speculate about who was good or bad with anybody who would talk to him.

We sit behind the scouts in the exec boxes every week, most notable scouts there all the time are QPR, Cardiff City, Fulham, Brighton and Sunderland. Cardiff & QPR have watched Jack Baldwin for almost 2 years now and after the Rotherham game the Brighton scout had said if it was up to him they would bid in January for Baldwin, because he's the best centre back / midfielder in the bottom 2 divisions bar none.

90 % of scouts at the Vic always have their club logo on their jackets, so its a bit of a give away really

Seems daft to watch a player for 2 years, surely they know by now whether he's worth signing or not?

I've convinced myself both luke James and jack Baldwin will not be pools players next season. Im also convinced both will go for over 1m. Ken is a business man that's very clear and hell know how good these 2 are and how they are valued. The more teams that want them then it becomes a bidding war. 2 things that must not happen are we sell to the 1st bidder that does offer the 1m and secondly we must be able to loan them back for the remainder of this season.

League 2 is extremely tight and 1 good month and we will be on the playoff picture and we need those 2 playing to do this. Watching them yesterday they are both huge to any chance of success. Baldwin just walks through games, his composure for a centre back is just top drawer. Everything seems effortless for him. As for James the problems he causes defences is just countless.

Hopefully duckworth will remain at pools for next season but in worried he too will be away as the vultures must be liking what they see.

You always seem worried about duckworth leaving, you should probably see someone about that

Best right back iv seen in a pools shirt

Would be nice to get some clean sheets while we have 3 of the best defenders in the league and such a brilliant keeper.

Not really. You look at all the top clubs around Europe they thoroughly scout an individual, Barcelona for instance scouted Neymer for 3 years before offering a bid and Man Utd scouted Rooney for 4 years.

We as regular follows of HUFC can see the qualities that James and Baldwin have and its easy to see why a figure of £1M for each of them. Personally I think Baldwin would easily fetch that amount maybe more, and as much as I like Luke James I think he may just fall short of that figure but not by much.

I was going to say 25 conceded in 23 games is hardly bad going especially when you consider we started the season with 3-0 defeat.

all clean sheets rely on an element of luck. Even the last 2 seasons where Pools were woeful in attack, every game presented 2 or 3 opportunities to score. We just weren't good enough to take them. If an opponent is good enough to take the chance, then you just have to accept it as part of the game

It's inconceivable that you could go through a game and not concede an opportunity... it's whether or not that opportunity is converted by the opposition

Usually there's not much you can do about that... same as they can't about your own team's chances

This is football, and this is what gives the game its unpredictability

It is how a bottom side beats a top side

Top side creates 10 great chances scores one, bottom side creates 3, but for a change scores twice

It's why we love footy

What if the Chesterfield striker had side footed wide or James' shot had gone in?

What happens is what happens... you either take your chances or you don't

Clean sheets are as much by accident as by design