Remember Pools - results count more than performances

Chris Turner might think that his Hartlepool team played well in FA Cup defeat against Kettering, but his after-match comments didn’t win a lot of favour amongst supporters annoyed by the fact that however well they played, the result was still Pools 0, Kettering 1. The club and the fans were desperate for a good run in the competition, and playing well in defeat is no consolation.

So hopefully they will make amends this weekend when Leyton Orient visit the Vic in a vital League One game.
Kettering won because Pools missed out on a lot of chances after falling behind, with both Adam Boyd and Denis Behan wasteful in front of goal.
Turner is considering changes in attack, but surely he won’t drop Boyd for a game against his former club … will he?
James Brown, who has missed the last couple of games with a knee injury, is back in training and could be the man to get a chance up front, and a partnership with Boyd could give Pools a dividend – if only the other players realise that delivering the ball on the deck is a better option than delivering it in the air.
A pairing of Boyd and brown could hold promise for Pools, and there are signs that Behan will be rested if Turner has the scope to make changes. 

The good news is that Richie Jones looks as if he will be back in midfield after returning from injury with the reserves in midweek. He has been an influential player recently and was missed in the Kettering game before replacing Boyd midway through the second half.
The fact that only 2,645 turned up to watch last weekend (258 from Kettering) shows that the fans are not prepard to watch a losing tam, even when the prices are cut for a Cup-tie againt non-League opposition.