Come on Ken, choose the right man

Hartlepool United are expected to nametheir new manager this week after chirman Ken Hodcroft asks the top contenders to sit through a second interview. He's obviously taking the process vey seriously, as as none of the men on the short list listed "miracle-worker" on his CV, he does right.

With the team 11 points from league One safety and the season really getting on the situation is far from ideal for whoever does get the job, but the performance in the 1-0 defeat at Yeovil last weekend suggests there is some hope.

Former Pools defender Phil Brown is still thought to be clear favourite for the job and Hodcroft is said to be keen to have his man in place by the weekend, when Coventry visit the Vic, followed by another home game against Oldham three days later.

It’s the perfect scenario for a new man to show what he can do, just like Kevin Blackwell has shown that better fortunes can be found after turning former bottom club Bury into a team enjoying a five-game unbeaten run which has made a massive difference to their outlook.

The first half performance at Yeovil demonstrated why Pools are ion the mess they are in, but in the second they did enough to suggest that the new man might not quite need a miracle. Not quite.

Yeovil took an early lead and everybody must have expected to worst to happen again, but it didn’t and in the second half Pools had the home team worried, without actually managing to pull them back.

The League position looks awful, the outlook is bleak, the squad is down and the fans are restless … it’s a situation Pools have been in before.

The choice Ken Hodcroft makes this week is vital.