Best of luck to the new guy but I didn't much care for this echo of IOR days:

"The Club has been through a rigorous selection process and Harrison stood out as a young, dynamic and ambitious manager with an impressive record."

Yep, he stood out, but not as much as your first choice, Paul Cox!

Hope Harrison has spent a fair amount of time looking at games and players in the English National League - there's half a squad needs recruiting over the summer.

Oh and by the way, in terms of levels he's surely the only Pools manager we have ever appointed with Champions League experience!?

It is massively important who we sign, we have surely got a bit to play with after the retained list and recent departures. Pam said the other night they have players lined up for the managers approval.

I'm willing to give this bloke the benefit of the doubt. Listening to his interview on Tees today, he sounded understated and humble, I like that. He also said , when asked about the clubs off the field affairs, that he was just here to manage, and what happened off the field doesn't matter. Well I'm afraid it does, because without support from above and the money to buy new players, he is destined to fail. He needs the spine of the team to be his own signings, a competent keeper ( assuming Carson leaves, though hopefully he can persuade him to stay, a dominant centre half , if not two, who can win 90% of headers, a tough tackling midfielder and an aggressive centre forward. Get them and we will p*ss the National League.

I think though, and I got the feeling Harrison in his interview also felt the same, that it could be a 3 season job, consolidate next season, play offs second season, and then win play offs or title in 3rd season. That to me , given the state the club are in, is rational and realistic.

The appointment of Harrison is a wild card and a big gamble, but why not ? we have tried everything else. My worry is the lack of funds off the field available to him for new players and new staff. He will never have experienced the constraints he will face at pools, on the flip side, he should be able to handle the pressure, as at TNS , with all the financial backing, he was expected to finish 1st and nothing less, albeit we are talking about the LOW here.

He seems like a decent bloke, and for that , I think we should give him at least until the end of September, before we start calling for his head.

Good balanced post until the last bit, no Pools manager of is afforded as much time as a that.
O

Thought I would break with tradition PJ, and put things back a month

Saw a documentary about the bloke and a good article in the Guardian, the club appears to be a fan orientated family club that's very well organised and run on a tight budget which makes its success all the more impressive. The playing staff are full time too.
Looks like the sort of bloke we need for the long term with the ability to navigate through stormy waters. He obviously has a plan and to be fair and came across as a really good bloke which is more than we can say about some appointments over previous years.
If he applies the same principles here, it could actually be a very fruitful appointment.
A warning..... Can the assorted gobshites, whingers, armchair strategists, terrace chunterers, cackling vultures, doubting Thomas's, illiterate fuckwits and all other species who gather on the terraces and achieve some bizarre sexual arousal by going on and on and turn up to share their unique insight, just fuck right off. You're not needed on the voyage.
Ah, that's better. Give the bloke a chance, get behind him, not in his face.

What makes you think Cox was 1st choice?

Mr.Shilts is a poster I respect completely....I reckon he was on the drink yesterday!!!!!

Only time will tell with new Manager....but I have a good feeling about it!!!!
Might take a year or two but....!!!!

Mr.Shilts....Cheese and Bacon toastie with red sauce!!!!

Brown. HP surely?

Agreed

Well I didn't have the mind reading capabilities of the Bunker to keep me right at the crucial time. Instead I had to rely on umpteen press reports on the NewsNow...site.

They seemed pretty conclusive!

Yesterday I spent 5hrs in a boiling hot car with bickering kids in the back and a wife who wasn't talking to me. I thought I would go on the bunker during stops to get some light relief and just added to the blood pressure instead.

Had a decent night's sleep and just finished filling my boots with the buffet so all is good in the world again.

I have my reservations about Harrison but not to the extent expressed yesterday. You can focus on pools in two ways at the moment - fresh start, keen and committed manager, exciting times re fans and ownership or inexperienced manager, terrible owners with no money and half a team. I was firmly in the latter yesterday. More in the former today.

For the record, I'm not the sort to go apeshit about either players or managers on the terraces, I get behind whoever they are and will continue to do so....sorry that's a lie...i refused to clap the players after a 1-0 defeat at Portsmouth because they just didn't turn up and I had a very long journey to look forward to.

By the way, thanks Mr mutley

I liked Harrison's comments about having alternative plans for each game if plan A doesn't work. He wants to play attacking football, but is prepared to switch things in a game if plan A isn't working

All we did was ask to speak to him then had a brief chat. I took it that we were merely assessing every option before making a decision

Noooooooooo. Bacon = Red Sauce. Mr Mutley was correct! FACT

I fully understand your views, Shilts, but I also agree that there are many "unknowns" who have turned out to be something special. Quite frankly, I couldn't give a shit whether we had brought him in from Raggedarse Rovers as long as he can achieve a vast improvement on the dross we have all had to endure in recent seasons.

I had in my own mind the kind of manager I thought could do the best job for us given our current situation and when we didn't get him I felt it was another backward step and given my mood yesterday it really wasn't the best time to be posting on here.

I'm the same Mr Hucker, I'd be happy my 2 dogs to take charge if I see improvement

All management appointments are a gamble. I could not believe a manager with Jones cv coming to Pools and look what a mess he made of it.
I am not exactly over the moon with Harrison's appointment but let's wait and see. Remember Turner came from nowhere and turned the club round albeit he did have financial support.

Spot on, Johnjo, they are, of course, a gamble but a manager with a reasonable track record (as Shilts had in mind) would probably provide fans with a tad more confidence/expectation than one without. That said, Jones (with all his experience -albeit dated) proved that he could make as big an "orchestra's" of the job as the next man.
Many thanks for the link, Chip; I was unaware of the interview but I must agree that it is most enlightening and, despite his difficulties, he has a well-rounded view of the world.

It would not have bothered me if Cox had got the job, And if he really had wanted to be here there are ways
to get out of your contract, RE: Gary Monk
There are also many who would not have liked his style of play in the slightest.

I believe Harrison will do a good job wheather its enough to go back upto Lge2, Only time will tell.
I wish hilm well.
I only hope the PLAYERS back him, Because from what i,ve witnessed recently some have been lacking in their professionalism.

I think Harrison meets a lot of the criteria I'd have on my list if I was picking a new manager. Young, ambitious, successful at a lower level and wanting to step up, and knows the area from his time at Boro.

His hair is completely unacceptable though. It makes him look like the porky older brother of a Manic Street Preacher.

how much are the tickets at the gate next season adult and concession?

Does anyone know if there are plans for more night games, changes in kick off times and what is BTs coverage going to be like. I keep on hearing its a lot different to league2............!

Excellent article. It took some resolve to dig himself out of his post injury state and he has been trying to move on with his career for a while, so having got that chance he'll be all over it. Really hope he can do it.

I do think it might take him a couple of seasons to get us back fighting for promotion and I hope fans give him the chance.

Please let us know how you can get a wife to stop talking to you. Even if I've pissed mine off her talk switch is still firmly stuck in the 'on' position.

Absolutely my first thought when I read this post.

Great article, he has certainly been through a lot. I hope his new appointment is a success not just from our point of view but also for him. Sounds like a genuine bloke with a real determination to do well. Good luck Craig!