The last time we lost two decent forwards we replaced them with? We're still waiting I guess. We could sell sterry for 500k to Stockport and we probobly won't invest back in the squad. We lost a decent manager received money and replaced them with two lads who's records were abysmal, I wouldn't like to think we sold anymore now we need them for the relegation battle.

with both teams having the divisions worst defences.

not long ago it was holohan. why would they splash out on a player just to replace southam hales. mind you i,d take cash plus him as long as the cash is in our favour.

Stockport definitely taking a keen look at Holohan and Sterry for moves during this month. Watch this space.

Challinor if he has any sense might leave raiding pools alone, I think if he ever gets to manage Stockport at pools the atmosphere will be toxic enough, I'm sure they can go and piss off someone like Bolton as they try to buy the title.

If Challinor left Pools because he couldn't build the squad he wanted, why would he raid our players?

Stockport (and any club) are welcome to a large majority of our squad.

you must have more faith than i have in the club recruiting better players than those who did leave. ever merlin challinor failed to do that with us. what chance two football league rookies have.

Don't disagree with you Mr Accy but it is worth pointing out that the two football league rookies will soon have more football league experience than the other rookie who deserted us. Funny old game.

Correct, we are looking for better, much better.

And you'll get it as long as the money supply tap keeps running and as long as DC spends it wisely and as long as the results match the expectation of the fans but your huge spell in the hellhole should remind you all to keep your feet planted firmly on the ground.
There are far bigger clubs than you who are frustrated at their current status, like the one just up the road from us.

Not frustrated at all, we have laid the foundations now and we can start to move up, DC has worked with the same players he inherited, not spent a penny, we knew we had a top top squad of players just the wrong manager. He will have money to spend if he wants it but we have Whitfield due back after 2 months out, all we need is a quality centre half so I don’t think you need to worry about losing any of your players.

Challinor has done well since he went to Stockport no surprise with the squad depth and some of the teams you have played. But things can soon change when you have to play the Wrexhams, Chesterfields and Notts county of the league, I still believe he will be found out in away games like he was with us.

His away record in the league so far is won 3 drawn 1 lost 1, he has more at his disposal here than he had at Pools, we would have won the league last season if it hadn’t of been for Rusk, our biggest danger will be Notts County but we have the best squad by far in this league, Rooney who has been National player of the season 2 years running struggles to get in the bench now.

Don’t get too cocky, only one elusive place is guaranteed and don’t kid yourself you’re the only horse in the race, you’re not. ..... then it’s the cruel lottery for second place where things get really testy for those who would be king.
The National league clings onto it’s victim’s remorselessly...like quicksand.

Nobody getting cocky, think we understand the vaigrys of non league football more than most, 11 years and counting.Just saying we have the best squad by a mile in this division, DC is getting a tune out of them but we need to win the title, lottery of the play offs is a sobering thought after last season.

you have a strong divisuon 2 squad playing in non league football. much better than sutton who are around the automatic promotion places. could find promotion a bit harder than you think with the traditional non league sides raising their game when they play stockport treating the game like a one off cup game. the wrexham will have the same problem but somehow chesterfield are not thought of in the same way.

We have to play Chesterfield twice yet, and at the moment have to be favourites, because our games in hand are keeping us around the final play off spot we are keeping under the radar , we had a difficult start playing the teams who occupied the top positions and it didn’t help with Rusk in charge, think the table will alter dramatically as teams come under pressure, looks like Grimsby are the first to falter. Anybody remember a Pools fan who used to watch home and away in the mid 80s and was in a wheelchair ? met him at EP once and we stayed in touch for years, his friend who travelled with him informed me of his death around 89/90 ? His name may of been Keith.

That's the impression you get with Stockport fans though all of a sudden, I noticed a few on your board were already saying you will go up next year and be challenging for the Championship. That's worked well for Salford, who can probobly buy anyone they want.

Anything but top spot this year would be a disaster for yourselves, because as you know too well, you get a team that turns up on the day in the play offs and a seasons work is out on the window.

[quote="billinghampoolie1908"]
That's the impression you get with Stockport fans though all of a sudden, I noticed a few on your board were already saying you will go up next year and be challenging for the Championship. That's worked well for Salford, who can probobly buy anyone they want.

Think people who are restrained in their views and life can end up like swivel eyed loons once football and their clubs come up in conversations. At times i think some would defend their clubs and have OTT ambitions for it above ones they have for their kids. football and sense are not the best things put together.

Very true just a bit strange their even talking about the Championship when they aren't even in the play offs of the national league and by the time they play their next fixture will be even further out of contention for top spot. The national league is harsh Challinor is flavour of the month at the minute because he has only lost one league game, facts are Chesterfield have only lost once all season.

Bit of a contradiction there sunshine.
Just a thought, if you have the best squad by a mile, why aren’t up with the top lads?

Already told you..Rusk, look at the after match reaction of opposing managers after we have played them, they all say we are the best team/squad in the division, ok we now need to prove it and just because we believe doesn’t make us cocky, you come across as jealous.

Worked well with Salford?? hardly, they’ve been chucking money around for years, we aren’t a million miles off top spot and btw it was the owner who is targeting the championship in 7 years so pardon us fans for being optimistic, we will enjoy our ride, selling out home tickets on Boxing Day averaging over 6000 which will increase , now if I was looking for negativity I suggest you look a bit closer to home.

optimism and negativity go hand in hand for football fans i,m afraid. if you are realistic you,ll be thought of a boring old fart. saw loads of optimism and high expectations when your owner or someone below him sacked your lord and master jim gannon for simon risk. negativity was like the usual rain cloud above your ground.

Whoosh!

Years not months , calm down.

We had over 5000 for 15th v 24th in league 2. Think most pools are quite negative at the minute with our ridiculous managerial decision, but at the end of the day we are in league 2, not plodding about having to beat the dog and duck every week, in an fa cup 3rd round tie with Blackpool and in a random cup competition that could get us to Wembley. Yes next week we probobly be out of both competitions but at the end of that week we will still be in league 2.

Make the most of it, I know which camp I’d rather be in, your a club going backwards, gates dwindling, better players leaving, manager , well you need to ask why all these are happening, Dog and Duck league not bad when 9000 turn up for a home game, enjoy your big day out in Blackpool err don’t forget the sun cream.

This irony-free zone of a so-called Stockport supporter sure spends a lot of time perusing this board.

Good to know we'll be going to a replay in Blackpool though.

First of all I doubt we will need sun cream in hartlepool on Saturday, I know your club hardly ever brings many up here but I thought word would of got round, gets quite cold some days, least it doesn't rain every day of the year though.

Let's see if you get 9000 next game? 6000 if your lucky.

Lastly when borhamwood play you in the play offs
and do what we did to you last year, you might not be as cocky. Long way to go before you can go shouting off the rooftops about how great Stockport are.

If we played you now we would wipe the floor with you, DC would be giving you the one finger, this board is a bit like your town so dull, leave you boys to it, bitter soooo bitter

Yeah like you thought you would wipe the floor with us last year, erm 3 times. We have only beaten the 4 league 1 teams this year. Promotion chasers Wycombe, Sheff Wed beat Lincoln on their own patch and got past Morcambe, so it's fair to say we will be utterly shitting ourselves if we get you in round 4 of the fa cup. Oh hang on a sec .....

Jesus you must have a sad life

Jealous ?:laugh: You are the one bigging yourself up, doing the chest beating and generally declaring to the world your all round greatness. You may be world famous in Stockport but that’s about it .
Jealous

You know where the door is......

actually i agree with you that if pools were playing your lot away on saturday in the cup on saturday i,d make stockport the odds on favourite. the town centres of both towns are as dull as each other and the only thing better is stockport has much better rail services. do actually see stockport a few times in a season as my lad is a season ticket holder there.

Cricket and alternative music.

They were odds on favourites to beat Torquay the other week but got beat trying to do it.
To me the name Stockport has changed from being another of the clubs we have traditionally competed with to a club with ambitions beyond their traditional status and are now looking down on the "likes of Pools", simply because they currently have an owner with a bit of brass.
I remember Darlo having the same delusions of grandeur when George Reynolds lured them into thinking they were heading for greatness and building the great white elephant stadium. They were going to the premiership remember with chants of "we'll never play you again ". They got that right but it was the Northern Premiership they were heading to and they haven't played us in a competitive league game since 2007 and last beat us over twenty years ago. We actually have a 100% win record at the white elephant.
Like us Stockport fell on hard times and lost their league status but whilst it took us four years to regain our league status, they are still languishing there in their eleventh season and counting.
I used to be a bit sad for them and most of the traditional lower league sides that I was brought up watching and who also lost their league status and I was happy to see Accrington and Barrow claw their way back.
However recently, and not just because they were able to flash the age old thirty pieces of silver, they leave a nasty taste in my mouth simply because of their arrogance and the smug spouting of some of their fans as depicted by the one on this thread.
We are Pools, we know who we are and I would hate to see the day when we mocked, sneered at, gloated over and looked down upon the very clubs we grew up with and enjoyed the same fears and dreams as their hard core fans. Obviously with the exception of Darlo but even so I would like them back in their traditional spot.
DC and his wife alluded to problems at Pools as a big part of the reason they left and insisted it wasn't just the money. So did they go because of the offer from Stockport or would they have stayed if the choice was which of the two clubs was the biggest attraction if all things had been equal. Big question that is. We'll probably never know but we'll see how much DC thinks of Stockport if another club comes a knocking.
I seem to remember Kate Challinor's parting words of "we would love to come back one day". Were they cheap words or a genuine love of the club and a reluctance to be leaving.

Getting back onto subject - Pools were fucking dreadful against Oldham.

I hope Raj keeps his word and gives us a few quid to spend this month.

GOOD

your last 7 fixtures will determine your future.
those 7 teams plus yourselves will be expecting to reach the playoffs.

[quote="Wommers"]Getting back onto subject - Pools were fucking dreadful against Oldham.

going just on the extended highlights only they were no better and on the day both got more than they deserved.

'Fucking dreadful' is how any team looks when it can't score goals. Pools are a much better side than Oldham but the Latics realised they were in with a sniff when we kept missing chances. 15 corners and nothing to show for any of them! May as well send Killip up for corners for all the use Byrne and Liddle are in the opposition box.

A proper goalscorer and a dominant centre back - like Lee and Nelson both were in their day - should be top of the shopping list this month. And a dominant keeper too if there's any spare change.

Keeper should be first thing on the list, first thing Cyril knowles did when he arrived here, got two central defenders who won everything in the air, then got someone who could get stuck in midfield. We had an instant turn around. Two lads from non league who are banging the goals in for fun might also help us out big time, another 40k in the bank plus no one has even mentioned 20 k just for appearance money in the competition, take our total to over 100k already surely we have enough to improve us now?

This would be my exact shopping list also - it even showed last night the flapper isnt good enough. few times we got away with murder but wouldnt of if he had come out and collected balls / parried crosses away. Luckily there wasnt much going into the box via the air as there usually is for him to deal with. His kicking was woeful aswell which usually is one of his stronger attributes.

Odusina had a steady game but still makes me more nervous than anything when he gets the ball or tries to do something with it. His decision making is very worrying at times. If it not for his pace he wouldnt be a pro footballer.

again we now 100% should have some cash to at least get in a good striker or defender. But for me the midfield needs a tighten up also.
hopefully start hearing something after the Blackpool game.

[quote="Eiphos_3"]

again we now 100% should have some cash to at least get in a good striker or defender. But for me the midfield needs a tighten up also.

a good 6ft 3 inch type od defensive midfielder to take some pressure off the defence and cause a bit of havoc in the box making room for our forwards would be my wish. How many times do pools get beaten in the air in the middle of the pitch through lack of height. even last night i was getting more than a little would up by this. killip may be a problem but listening to the bolton fans rant they have a similar one. do that type of keeper actually exist anymore that dominate their area. if you know one let us know as they all seem to stick on their line as much as possible or think they are ronaldo with the ball at their feet.

Plus the FA cup winnings/gates, plus 5.5k + crowds up until recently, plus the wad received for Challinor

And the Sponsorship cash.
And Brad Jones cash.

Yes i think this has been one of my main rants and concerns since we let Gus Mafuta go. He was the kind of player we need at this level and had we had that against Oldham and Mansfield it would have meant more points on the board. Someone to really get into the oppositions face on set pieces, someone to rumble some feathers in the park when we are under the cosh. The good old nasty stuff from the 80s to slow the game down is what we need. Then if he can strike a ball and put them away as Mafuta did/does then thats an even bigger brucey bonus. BUT... like GKs who can command their area they simply dont exist at this level unless you pay big bucks and lure them from championship clubs or dare i say it Scottish prem clubs.
lets hope the coffers are even further busting at the seams from last nights win / gate. UTFP !

would love pools to become a side the opposition hate to play and their fans feeling the same as they know their lads are going to get a rough time on the pitch. at least the cautions players did pick up are just the same caution as you now get now for sod all but the wrong haircut. gray,s caution on tuesday night proves the point.