We are top of the League(s)!

By Albatross
January 13 2003

Not only are Pools still top of the League Table, but we are also the best in the division for something else - our disciplinary record. In fact, the overall table shows that kicking your way out of Division 3 is no longer the preferred option.

Conventional wisdom says that the teams that tend to be successful in the third are the big, physical sides who put it about a bit. However, a quick gander at the Fair Play League reveals that this season at least, the opposite would seem to be the case.

The Fair Play league uses a points system - 5 for a red card, 2 for a yellow, and 1 for each foul given. On the table published on 3rd January, Pools have received almost 40 points less than Wrexham, our nearest challengers, and are averaging about 12 points per game. In fact, in the whole Nationwide League, only one team - Crewe - is averaging fewer points than Pools.

It's not just Pools though who are managing to keep their noses relatively clean and stay at the right end of the table. The other teams in the top 7 - all averaging 16 points per game or less - are Torquay, Bournemouth, Bury, Oxford and Cambridge, all teams that are well into the top half of the table and looking to challenge for playoff or promotion spots. The only realistic challengers outside the top half are Rushden and Scunthorpe, in joint 13th spot.

Meanwhile, the bottom five in the league show a broadly similar pattern. Swansea are 17th, Bristol Rovers 12th, Exeter 24th, Carlisle 21st, and Boston 22nd. Exeter are in fact currently the most ill-disciplined team in the whole of the Nationwide League, averaging 21 points per game. Darlington meanwhile will be glad that relegation doesn't depend on the Fair Play table, as they sit in 23rd on the list - mainly due to recording no less than 370 fouls in their games so far.

Does this pattern tell us anything? Maybe. It could be a signal that more and more teams are looking to play football rather than just outmuscle the opposition - and that overall they are the teams that are succeeding. There's little doubt that with the influx of foreign players in the top two divisions, better footballers are appearing in Division 3 - and as a result teams are relying less on the big hoof forwards. It used to be that a lot of teams would look to play the long ball on every occasion - so far this season it only seems to be Lincoln who are trying it, and even that is more to do with the players they have been able to sign than a John Beck style philosophy about the best way to play.

It's also a sign that teams are finding that a physical approach that leads to a lot of bookings is counterproductive. For teams with smaller squads, the fewer suspensions the better - think about how many Pools Players have actually missed games due to suspension this season: Barron has missed two, Clarke one, and Spike is due to miss one. Compare this to the situation at Carlisle for example, where influential players such as Mark Summerbell and Ritchie Foran have missed or are due to miss games (both have recieved two red cards so far this season) in addition to the likes of Lee Maddison and Peter Murphy picking up suspensions.

Rushden's win on Saturday means that the gap in the proper League Table has closed to two points - albeit with Pools having a game in hand - and Tuesday will see the unusual spectacle of some Pools fans at least hoping that Darlington will get at least a draw. The Loids take on Oxford in a rearranged game, and with the team from the Kassam Stadium on a good run and looking to join the promotion chase it will help Pools if they are denied three points. With Oxford the visitors to the Vic on Saturday, the crucial games are starting to come thick and fast.