Punchless Pools throw away result away

The age-old Hartlepool United failing in front of goal cost the team not just one point, but probably three as they threw away an eminently winnable game at Leyton Orient’s Matchbox (or is it Matchroom?) Stadium, the ground formerly known as Brisbane Road. Pools were the better team in every aspect of the game but one, and as usual it was the all-important one of putting the ball in the net.

But with time running out fast, even a point from a goalless draw didn’t look bad after three consecutive wins … until Orient pinched a win in the last minute.
The game was never a classic - fact, for most of the time it was cr*p. But it came to life when Orient introduced subs Paul-Jose Mpoku and Jonathan Tehoue, and it was the latter who slammed in the winner from close-range after a home corner.
Pools were as well organised as usual in defence, and young keeper Jake Kean was hardly needed until he was beaten late on. With 11 corners to Orient’s five, the stats showed Pools had done most of the attacking.
But the most important stat of them all - Orient 1, Pools 0 - shows that Pools failed to make their superiority count.
Against a side in the bottom four, it was a perfect chance for Pools to add weight to their recent League One revival, but they blew it by failing to create chances, let alone convert them, and now next weekend’s home game against Bristol Rovers takes on a new importance.
Mick Wadsworth was naturally disappointed and he told the club website: “It’s a shame, really, because we didn’t deserve to lose.”
He and his players were angry that a free-kick leading to Orient’s decisive corner was not taken properly, and he added: “He slipped and had two or three touches on the ball. That’s why the lads were very angry.
“But the effort was fantastic, and it’s a shame really. But we’ll be OK – this team has a lot about it, a lot of right and a lot of spirit.”
Hopefully he’s right – because if they lose games like this, they are going to need them both.
And turning pressure into chances and goals might help as well.