What seems to be happening at the moment with no fans teams playing against us are not raising their game which is allowing us to play conrolling fooball which suits us fine.

Anway tonight hard game.

Pools 3 Bromley 1

Agree. Also our players probably less anxious because of no fans, and away teams unable to wind our fans up with gamesmanship etc

Even more difficult to predict scores with no fans

2-2

Agree. Also our players probably less anxious because of no fans, and away teams unable to wind our fans up with gamesmanship etc

Even more difficult to predict scores with no fans

2-2

2-0 To us.

2-1. Bromley have scored 5 in 2 games so it's a fair bet both sides will net.

1-2

2-0 Pools. Holohan and Ofosu.

lose 0-3

Pools 1 Bromley 1 Afoso.

Hopefully the lads have got a taste for goals:

Pools 4 - 2 Bromley

Bromley won 5 of their last 25 games. Certain defeat for pools tonight then.

Seem to remember they were half decent up until New Year , then fell away, which seems to happen to a lot of clubs, particularly the smaller ones in this league. I think they will give us a good test tonight, they have some decent individual players, but the type of side who win 4-0 one week and lose 4-0 the next, again quite common occurence in this league, a NL version of a club like Burnley, lets hope we catch them on a bad day, but I think they generally start seasons reasonably well.

2-1 win Hooligan and Featherman. Defensive error costs us a goal against.
Vast improvement in catering.
Hartleblue spotted on top of christ Church with binoculars.

Told you we'd be 0

Should have won that. Hit the bar twice and Donaldson managing to clear it with an open net beckoning.

Its ok did well and a point.........?....

Not as well as expected. Same old Pools eh? Fix needed for Saturday

Rhys Oates has scored around twenty five goals in his entire career, so why do we sign him. We have no strikers. If Holohan has an off day we're fucked. We could have easily scored six or seven tonight but got zero. All our success this season will come away from home, simply because we can't turn our home dominance into goals. We have had this problem for over ten years now and nobody seems to have the answer. Until we find the answer to our inability to convert so called dominance into wins, we are in this league forever, unless of course we descend even lower.

Its what happens when you make a reputation for yourself, teams will try and stifle your key players, in our case Featherstone and Ferguson. We still shouldve put the game to bed though, but as I have said before, our strikers are not up to scratch, Oates was a dreadful signing, Personally I would go 442 and put Parkhouse and Grey up front, Our lack of a quality striker will be our undoing, I think Challinor would be aware of this, and I find it hard to believe that the forwards he signed were his first choice targets,

Quote of the night from the stream commentary. ‘How has he missed that?’
Still early in the season.

Had to laugh at the commentary on Tees , ! a great strike, but 5 yards wide of the post ! ! ooh a great ball into the box, but unfortunately about a foot too high for Bloomfield to head it! How can these be great strikes and great deliveries? we are easily pleased at Hartlepool.

Donaldson couldn't hit a barn door if he was sat on the latch. He was a success as a wing back but if we no longer want him in that role we should get rid.
Our only hope is picking up a predator in the making on loan who is hungry and wants to impress. This is where my concentration would be. Preferably two of them.

Remember Donaldson when he was on loan, 10 or 12 years ago, one of the worst finishers I have ever seen at Pools, yet apparently was scoring goals for fun in Newcastle reserves at the time. It came as no surprise to me that he rarely played as a striker at any of his clubs after that. I think Parkhouse and Grey are our best hope , but I don't think even that partnership would be good enough. Loans are our only hope, but all the best players are usually taken and we havent got any money left anyway, of course there is this bloke called Williams ......

That was the type of game we’d have lost until recently. I don’t know why people have to complain about individuals. Could be a good point come the end of the season and we’re unbeaten after 4. I like the style of play in the main, creating chances through the game. We’ve all been to games where we’ve had one shot on target in 90 mins and the players don’t seem interested. Couldn’t question the effort of any of the players. I hope Oates gets off the mark soon, I like his attitude and work rate. He just lacks composure. Looking forward to the next game.

That was the type of game we’d have lost until recently. I don’t know why people have to complain about individuals. Could be a good point come the end of the season and we’re unbeaten after 4. I like the style of play in the main, creating chances through the game. We’ve all been to games where we’ve had one shot on target in 90 mins and the players don’t seem interested. Couldn’t question the effort of any of the players. I hope Oates gets off the mark soon, I like his attitude and work rate. He just lacks composure. Looking forward to the next game.

Sounds like we creating plenty of goalscoring opportunities in all 4 games.
Add in the defence n keeper r improving.
Results business.
4 excellent results so far long may it continue.
UTP.

I like Oates attitude, he just isnt a very good footballer

Just to summarise last night. A point is a point, we are still unbeaten; we should've won but could of also of lost , teams like Bromley either defend and early lead for 80 mins or defend for 80 mins and hit you with a goal in the last 10, that never happened, as others have said in the past it may have. Another clean sheet for Ben Killip, could he have possibly turned the corner? lets hope so, The defence looks solid, as I have said before, we have arguably the two best full backs in the division, Ferguson should be playing in league 1. We have a top six midfield that looks balanced now the defence is much better, the midfield can concentrate on creating chances rather than worrying about shoring up the defence as in the past. The forward line is not good enough though and this needs to be addressed, if iit is not we can kiss goodbye to promotion. we will either fall short of the play offs or get baat in the play offs. A proper forward would be on 7 or 8 goals already with the service Ferguson and Cass are providing, some of the chances missed last night werent a one off , they were typical of the players involved and I'm afraid this will continue. We may be able to get by on the goals from elsewhere in the side, but ultimately the lack of a proven goal poacher will be our undoing, Challinor said something in his interview last night that struck me " If a player didnt miss chances he wouldnt be at Hartlepool " is it just me, or was that a slight moan at the fact he was unable to bring in a proven frontman, because of finances? I cant believe Ofusu. Oates and Bloomfield were his first choice targets.

Best start to a season for years. We’ve had some luck which is great. Players need the opportunity to bed in and they will make mistakes. They just need a bit of time and support. The manager has said we aren’t world beaters and we will miss chances. I don’t really want a reply horden, just try and relax would be my advice. Look for the positives a little more. People will respect your opinion if you do that. Try not to chip away at players, commentators or anyone else who are giving their best which is all the manager and supporters can ask for, particularly in current circumstances. The manager has put the best squad together he could with the resources he had available. It’s a little disappointing we didn’t get the win but double figures after 4 games is far better than 4 months. We look like we can compete. Eventually we will lose a game though so be aware that it won’t be the end of the world and the team will no doubt work on areas they felt they could have been better. Take it easy.

I was also disappointed with the result last night but surprised at the amount of negativity on here.

In my view that was the best we have played over 90 minutes so far this season and the approach play was the best I have seen for years.

Yes we lack a 20+ goal a season striker but will still score goals given the amount of creative in the team and way we are playing. 2 goals a game average so far isn't bad.

Agree Parkhouse needs to be given another chance once he returns and as Johnson seems to be the best finisher in the squad, we could even try him up front if needed once Liddle is back fit!

Anyway although frustrated by last night, I am more optimistic now than before the match and beleive we have every chance of a top 7 finish. Challinor deserves a lot of credit as we certainly dont have a top 7 budget.

I agree with a lot of that, but I have been around a long time and know the drill. I am as pleased as anyone with our start, but unlike many others I can foresee problems long before they arise, I am not chipping away at players, just highlighting what is painfully obvious, certain players have history for not being able to score goals on a regular basis, the others are bargain basement signings, you know the old adage. you buy cheap you pay twice, we have seen that too many times over the years. We will get beat eventually, I reckon it could be this Saturday. Best start since late 50s by all accounts, first time we have been top after 4 games since 1996, shocking really, but it is what it is.

agree. doubt anyone is not satisfied with that. first time pools have not scored all season and an inch or so the other way and they would have done. its when teams do not create chances thet you have a problem. ok oates aint for me either, but finding one that is with pools budget is harder than some think. a goalscorer in our league will cost the earth on wages and someone from leagues below is a gamble that pools cannot afford to take. at the end of the day its one point more against bromley than pools got last season.

I don't see much negativity, you must mean me? if so dont look at it as negativity , if you do, that would make you negative, look at it as an opinion from someone who maybe can foresee problems before they arise. Anyone who knows anything about the game knows our lack of firepower will eventually be exposed in terms of results.

I believe we should revert to 442 with Parkhouse and Grey leading the line, the best of all the bad options IMO.

I have every faith in DC. top 7 is possible, but really ! in this piss poor division is that what we should be aiming for, small budget or not ?

[quote="horden"]I agree with a lot of that, but I have been around a long time and know the drill. I am as pleased as anyone with our start, but unlike many others I can foresee problems long before they arise,
think its a pools thing where fans are just waiting for the wheels to come off. it does make a change in looking at the top end of the table rather than the bottom end for pools position. think the big problem that will arise is once injuries kick in without the side having no real strength in depth. at the moment lets just enjoy where things are.

Thats the problem though Accy, a gamble we cant affford to take, but can we afford another season in this league? sooner or later that gamble has to be taken, otherwise we are down here forever. I get the feeling DC had someone in mind but was knocked back. Instead it looks like we went for 3 sign and hope for the best bargain bucket type players.

As has been said above, going out and getting a proven 20 goal striker isn't something Pools have swerved or forgotten to do, at our budget it's just not going to happen. You've got to gamble on players like Parkhouse and Bloomfield.

Rhys Oates hasn't been brought in to be that player, he's been brought in to do the role he did quite well last night, to hold it up and bring the midfield into play after they've dropped deep to begin the move. We lost some momentum after he went off and Bromley got back into the game. I would have liked to have seen Molyneux on earlier for Ofosu, who I do like but was shocking last night, and keep Oates up top with two wingers for a bit longer. I do think Parkhouse offers more in that role though.

Last night was frustrating but I'd be more concerned if we weren't creating chances rather than missing a few after scoring 8 in 3. Chins up gang.

This. There's no getting away from the fact that good chances were missed but the overall performance was good. The back four all had excellent games - got to say Ryan Johnson has been a massive plus since Liddle got injured and he 100% deserves a longer contract. Considering Pools only had half a defence a few days before the season started it looks well sorted now. 4-0 on Saturday flattered Pools, 0-0 last night was a bit of a travesty, but if we keep on controlling games and creating chances we'll get the rub of the green more often that not.

It'd be good to see David Parkhouse start a game but he didn't feature in the 20 for either of N. Ireland's U-21 games over the weekend so it looks like he's picked up an injury in training - Liam Donnelly all over again!

Ha! How about us? Actually expecting the team to win and being disappointed when they don't
How things have changed since Raj took over.

4 games in, not lost yet. Well done Pools!

I think everybody is impressed by our start but there is always room for improvement and constructive criticism is not negative.
Oates and Donaldson are not prolific goalscorers and never have been, except maybe at junior level. That is a fact and it is also a shame because both give their all.
Our full backs and midfield are creating chances, good chances. Our central defenders are not only defending well but they also create attacks by their deft passing out of defence and that is a massive bonus. Our goalie is making fewer mistakes and there is obvious improvement there.
What is a glaring shame is the fact that our finishing is nowhere near the standard of our approach play and therein lies the frustration and I'm sure DC is as frustrated as the rest of us because of it.
The danger that lurks beneath the surface is the possibility that the creators within the side also get frustrated when they continuously see their creativity go to waste. When will they start thinking "what's the point" or "am I wasting my time". That leads to finger pointing and the inevitable bickering which leads to the erosion of team spirit.
I know that the sort of strikers we need don't grow on trees and they are expensive but that doesn't hide the fact that we need a couple and some of us are simply pushing that point. We have come a fair way under Challinor but the jigsaw isn't complete and, as our main aim is to get promoted from this league, we need to have the completion of the jigsaw uppermost in everybody's mind. That is why that particular problem needs to be constantly highlighted. Even if we can't see a way of solving it, we mustn't dismiss it. We must keep at it.

It's been a great start to the season. We are light years ahead of the rubbish of the previous 10 seasons. Long gone are the laings of this team. We will be up there if we keep playing as we are.

Saying that despite a great start we should not let it cloud over the fact we probobly do need that elusive goal scorer, fans should not be knocked for suggesting it, with one,we may well win this league, we are not far away.

There’s no issue with anybody wanting a 30 goal striker. And why stop at 30? We all agree on that. But we may not get one or need one and if the ball goes in off Rhys’s bum to guarantee us promotion I’ll be the first to kiss it. In the meantime the entire team are playing for the manager. So in Dave I trust. My point was it’s a bit early to criticise individual players. It’s a team game. Everyone will make mistakes through season. Let’s see if the manager can improve the players. He’s not had a huge amount of time with them up to now. He’ll give them every chance and I think we should too. Once players have settled in and had a run in the team we’ll be able to tell if horden is the all seeing eye that he hopes to be. In the meantime we can all work on developing our chakra.

I think for once we are all just about on the same wave length. You do not have to be a brain surgeon to see that we need a goal scoring forward but getting one will be hard to get on our budget. We have not really seen Parkhouse so it’s hard to judge him but he hardly impressed against Aldershot but time will tell.

Now I am over the disappointment of not scoring I am very pleased with the way we played. What a good attacking display. What a good team to watch. Good players all over the park.

A lot of sense getting spoken on here, in a civilised way, this is The Bunker?

It is refreshing and a pleasure to get involved in civilised discussions. Well done everybody.
Maybe discussions like this will make the club sit up and say, these people talk sense and are worth listening to.

Makes a change from the other pools message board, who keep banning people for having a difference of opinion.