We got promotion via the play offs thanks to Dave Challinor who has still to sign a new contract. Although the close season was short he has both hands tied behind his back as far as new players coming in. WHO is recruiting the players and despite nigh on a million pounds coming in are we not investing in the team or in a ceo with at the least the capability to run a football club. Remember our chairman said we got a good deal for Brad Young well spend some of it. I am afraid the club is being run similar to Darlington during his tenure.

even a free transfer signing costs the club something. think the problem with Raj is that he may be a wealthy man compared to us but in football owner/chairman scene he isn,t. as a club it has to rely on its fans more than most do. none of the new signings have been mouth watering ones but when was the last pools player who you were excited to see after they signed them. all look like lads we,d have signed if we had lost the torquay game but just hope they are good enough to get us at least third bottom come next may.

Running a league two club like a national league north side, and it's showing.

The new signings have been underwhelming on the face of it, but given Dave Challinor's record here and at Fylde it's safe to assume that at least a couple of them will turn out to be valuable additions to the squad.

At the minute I'm more interested in seeing whether his negotiations to get good quality loan players in pay off. We'd have got nowhere near promotion last season without the likes of Cass, Magloire, Armstrong and Bennett. The clock is ticking because of the cut off on loan signings at the end of August and what happens between now and then will be make or break for the first half of the season.

Challinor said he wanted six players in this week; so far he's got two. To be honest I expect Pools to struggle in the first 3-4 games, especially with Cullen not fit. It'll be panic stations later in the month if some good loan signings aren't made quickly.

...... Happy days are here again,
The skies above are clearer again,
So let’s sing a song of cheer again,
Happy days are here again.........

If we won the league this season, there’s some on here who’d be complaining,

All together now...... :violin “Always look on the shite side of life.... da dum da dum dee dum etc, etc, etc.....”

Delighted that I'm travelling up to see Pools first match back in the League on Saturday. It may be a struggle to watch it and to be honest my expectations are low.

I'd still rather be starting the season on 7th August than on the 21st, when the Vanarama starts.

We are BACK in the League and I don't have to watch us playing at Woking.

Happy Days are DEFINITELY here again!

So what's your prediction for how Pools will get on in the early part of the season? Care to give us an insight?

Sure, a ball hasn't been kicked yet, but going heavy on the sarcasm when a lot of fans have genuine misgivings about Pools' struggles to get a competitive squad together achieves what exactly?

The signings have been underwhelming says FG well last season close seasons were no better. I have always had the theory that if you sign 6 free transfers you will do well to get two or three a success and that goes for all clubs about our size.

Correction, there is a knot of the permanently disgruntled ‘fans’ who every season have ‘genuine misgivings’. They’re like pre-season carol singers who come out every year at the same time to go on and on and on and on about how the seasons gonna be shite because they have......’ genuine misgivings’.
There are no ‘predictions’ we have no input and getting wound up by wind up merchants/ fantasists who have a ‘ good contact in the club’.... of course they have and I’m a test pilot.
Like every season since the Vic was laid, we suck it and see because that’s how it goes.

So what's your prediction for how Pools will get on in the early part of the season? Care to give us an insight?

Sure, a ball hasn't been kicked yet, but going heavy on the sarcasm when a lot of fans have genuine misgivings about Pools' struggles to get a competitive squad together achieves what exactly?[/quote]
Correction, there is a knot of the permanently disgruntled ‘fans’ who every season have ‘genuine misgivings’. They’re like pre-season carol singers who come out every year at the same time to go on and on and on and on about how the seasons gonna be shite because they have......’ genuine misgivings’.
There are no ‘predictions’ we have no input and getting wound up by wind up merchants/ fantasists who have a ‘ good contact in the club’.... of course they have and I’m a test pilot.
Like every season since the Vic was laid, we suck it and see because that’s how it goes.[/quote]

Got it in one Snowy good to See some of us keep our feet firmly planted in the real world

totally true. the side needs a good few games behind them to see how good it will be and what standard of our opponents are also like. its 4 years since we were where we now are and no one really knows if division 2 has improved or gone backwards. the jury is out on this as its split between those of both opinions.

always thought you had a bit longer after the window shuts to bring loanees in. we can sign players who have no contracts at any time after the window. lots of clubs also loan players out after the season starts. the ones that have gone already will be those above or below pools standard. think january could be the key to where we will be playing in 12 months time.

feel just the same. be there more in hope than expectation. i,d take a bore draw now.

Be very interesting to see where the standard of football now lies in League 2 as compared to last season. I know we called it tinpot (which for most it was) but to give the NL its due, there was some very good competitive football played by us and others who occupied those 7 top places for the majority of the season. I didnt miss a game last season and like most said it was probably the best standard its seen. I just hope League 2 isnt worlds away from what we had played against last season in the top sides we played and beat.

Im glad we took our chance and got out last season because christ the standard has jumped another level again looking at some of the incomings. Paul Mullin to Wrexham whats all that about ? Paddy and Quigly up top for Stockport. Southend look a good side and Notts looked to have strengthened nicely. Be even harder that league this season.

even with all these signings the two that will go up will either struggle or their starting line ups will be unreconisable to the team that was promoted. there will still be the so called weaker sides that will raise their games against these clubs to bring our the usual number of shock results in that league. lets hope pools can do the same in division 2 as we,ll be regarded as one of the weaker sides.

If you're not slightly going into this season so under prepared you will never be concerned. The team is nowhere near what it should be going back into the football league.

can see the early part of the season to become a battle between the happy clappers and the usual permanent disgruntled fans without any realism whatsoever coming into things. none of know what will happen on saturday even DC come to that. not sure what i,d prefer. a few drawn games that paper over the cracks or a few dickins where something has to be done.

If there's one thing I think everyone can agree on, it's that at least Challinor genuinely gives a stuff about the team and winning matches. As long as he's at the club my mind is at ease.

You couldn't say the same for Jones, Harrison, Bates and even Hignett.

mind you i heard that jones liked the chips.

If Cullen is still injured come Saturday who have we available to play up front? The lad from Scunny, Olomola and Joe Grey? That it?

My mate from Hull followed Scunny last season, he said Olomola was that shite towards the end of his spell there they played him as a centre half.

Think Challinor might play one up top.

Think Jones was more sausage sarnies, Richard Money loved chips!

hes feckin tiny haha no wonder they just about escaped the drop having him at the back haha - In no way have we replaced what we had up top last season. both our forwards are small aswell. I know it never did any harm to the likes of Paddy Almond or Nathan Thomas but dont think these two are of the same ilk. Roll on Saturday who knows, Fela might turn up and run riot with the home fans behind him and snatch 2. I wait with bated breath.

I've always been classed as a happy clapper by the likes of Horden and needed to be for most of the 4 seasons in the National League I kept hold of my season ticket. As all of us who went to games regularly know, it was bloody grim a lot of the time, but that changed almost as soon as Dave Challinor came in as manager.

I still have total faith that Pools have an excellent manager but this shortened pre-season has panned out badly - it's not the friendly results it's the lack of credible signings. Challinor has been keeping a very low profile but has said enough to the press to make it plain that he doesn't think he's had enough backing on transfer targets.

I'm not going to apologise for expressing my opinion that Pools will start this season a long way short of where they need to be and don't appreciate being lumped in with "permanently disgruntled 'fans'" for saying so. Anything other than a defeat on Saturday will be a great result.

Grey's still not fit, Cullen is apparently fit enough to come on as a sub. Odds on we'll start on Saturday with Olomola and Molyneux up front.

Dreading posting this in case I end up putting a jinx on Pools.

In the last 10 years going back to 2010/11 (possibly further but I haven't checked), no team promoted from the national league to league to have gone straight back down a season later. Macclesfield finished just above the relegation spots.

3 teams have gained promotion the season after, 2 from the play offs and 1 in third place.

The average league position for promoted teams in that time has been 13th..

I'm feeling optimistic.. even if that does mean finishing 1 above the relegation spots.

Never say die

Looks bad but if we have Challonor we will be ok in L2. If not doomed.

”Going heavy on the sarcasm” translates as ‘ I don’t like being contradicted.

Correction, there is a knot of the permanently disgruntled ‘fans’ who every season have ‘genuine misgivings’. They’re like pre-season carol singers who come out every year at the same time to go on and on and on and on about how the seasons gonna be shite because they have......’ genuine misgivings’.
Oh yes there is, you just don’t notice it when you’re one of them.

There are no ‘predictions’ we have no input and getting wound up by wind up merchants/ fantasists who have a ‘ good contact in the club’.... of course they have and I’m a test pilot.
Like every season since the Vic was laid, we suck it and see because that’s how it goes.[/quote]

Got it in one Snowy good to See some of us keep our feet firmly planted in the real
world
Excellent, I’ll sleep well tonight.[/quote]

It's a football message board, people get pulled up for the comments they make all the time, including you.

Like the man said “It’s because I don’t care, in fact I never cared”.

Me be happy with third bottom like most poolies.
We can't undo last season which was a brilliant achievement by all involved.
But I won't class staying up as the Great Escape ( part two).
UTP.

I'd be fucking ecstatic with 3rd bottom as it stands

although challinor has done a near perfect job as pools manager this season could be the hardest he has ever had in management. he is not some worker of miracles or a magician. he can only work with what he,s actually got to work with. like all successful managers non have had success with a sub standard squad. at least the vast majority of fans expect very little and hopefully give DC a lot of slack especially early on.

well it was only a blanket discription of some and nothing personal. sounds like you are more like me being realistic about the situation. think entering and exiting the vic can be far worse than when you are in. some of the comments after a defeat makes you look for a cut throat razor just to end it all.

I'd argue for the most part of last season the squad was sub standard on paper. We had no idea that Oates and Armstrong would be as prolific as they were, Ryan Johnson was another huge gamble as well and my first memory of him at Pools was a Kidderminster fan telling Pools they'd get relegated with him at the back. Even choosing Brad James over Ravas was a gamble in the end.

Who's to say Olomola won't be the next Oates? I honestly think Pools will finish lower mid table, as long as Challinor stays.

Challinor the other week sounded as though he was expecting to pad out the squad with some loans this month, we need that as soon as possible because the squad is pretty bare right now. As it stands we will be playing a winger up front for the first game of the season. I just hope and pray we don't end up with some injuries as the squad who remain from last year didn't get much of a rest.

I haven't kept an eye on the league since we dropped out but I suspect it's not the old case of the conference being just as good as league 2, I think we'll encounter a lot stiffer opposition than last season.

I'll stop moaning if we sign that lad from Boreham Wood though

Yes totally agree with this. Most (including myself) thought why on earth are we taking Oates back, really scraping the barrel. But look how much he proved us wrong. By far our best player last season. Johnson aswell as mentioned, who'd have thought he would be such an important player. DC seems to have a knack of getting the best out of players and also getting good loan signings in (Parkhouse the exception unfortunately). Looking forwards to see who the Loan players might be as i cant see him just wasting players for the sake of having them to cover what we already have. Another strong striker looking to make a name for himself from the league above would be good. Get that GK spot sorted and im quietly confident that we will sit just nice in L2 this season. There are other teams lets not forget who are in worse situations than what we think we are in. Scunny arnt the best and havnt really upgraded on what they had last season. Swindon are only just starting to actually build an 11. Sutton are unchanged bar a few none marquee signings, plus see how they do on their new pitch. Barrow have lost their main striker and have a familiar face in Tom White in their midfield. Plenty of time to get this right... aslong as we hold onto DC. Roll on saturday

I quite fancy Sutton to do well to be honest. We never had an easy game against them in 4 seasons and they have slowly got stronger. Plus Ritchie Bennett up front will be a big player for them, I was bitterly disappointed we couldn't get him.

Sutton have one disadvantage though, after years of artifical turf they now have to play on a real football pitch.

You never know how players are going to get on really. Doubt anyone put money on Mullin to score 32 goals in L2 last season after a pretty average career. I certainly didn't see Oates getting 17 goals. Sometimes things just fall into place so theres no reason Fela or Cullen cant do the same.

Most Strikers at this level have at least one or two good seasons in their career. You just have to be the lucky club at the time to bare witness to this spectacle. There is a reason why they are plying their trade at this level. Im hoping a 29 yr old Cullen is maybe ready for that burst out season for us (who knows). Nevertheless he could end up added to the list of forgotten men we have had up top. Oates will be lucky to get 10 this season i reckon, same with Armstrong. Only guarantee is they will notch against us when we do play them.

When I first saw the name of this tread I thought it was about bondage.
Never mind better luck next time.

in other news ... Dimi is our GK coach ...Announce new keeper now

Not really, they have played on grass before, like at the majority of away games last season.