A Farewell to Arno as Carlisle agree transfer

By Albatross
January 28 2004

Paul Arnison has joined Carlisle United on a permanent deal, according to the official Hartlepool United website. It's no real surprise, as Arnison has been at Pools for almost four years and hasn't really made a breakthrough.

Arnison joins a Carlisle team that may still be favourites for relegation but are now at least making a fight of it. He's been a regular for them since joining on loan at the beginning of November, playing thirteen games and even scoring a goal in the 2-0 win over Torquay in December.

It's a move that has been on the cards pretty much since he was allowed out on loan; since joining Pools at the end of the 99/2000 season he's struggled much of the time to obtain a regular place. He did have his moments for the club, but was simply not consistent enough on the right of defence.

After spending time as a trainee at Newcastle, Hartlepool-born Arno came to Pools initially on a loan spell - although he was about to sign permanently, the deal hadn't gone through and by taking him on loan he was available for a game against Barnet. He came on as a sub, and I first saw him in a friendly against Brann at the Vic - playing with a mixture of first teamers and reserves, he looked promising and even scored one of Pools goals on the night. He'd captained the reserves at Newcastle but never broke through into the first team, and was looking for a permanent deal elsewhere - he had a trial with York before signing for his home town club.

Mainly known at Pools as a defender, he arrived as a utility player - able to play in midfield, he had a dream start at the Vic when, less than ten minutes after replacing Lee Fitzpatrick as a sub, he scored Pools first goal in a 2-1 comeback win over Exeter. It was enough to get him into the starting eleven, and in midfield he stayed until the last game of the regular season, when he came off the bench to replace the injured Darren Knowles at right back.

The next season saw Arno and Knowles battling it out for the right back spot, with both making over 20 starts; he also managed two goals, against Scunthorpe in the LDV and then in a league game against Carlisle. With Knowles leaving during the close season, Arnison looked set to be a regular - but then Jon Bass arrived to contest the spot, neither seeming to quite fit the bill as Pools struggled with a 3-5-2 formation. When Turner did switch to 4-4-2, his preferred choice on the right side of defence became Micky Barron - and Arnison made just eleven starts. He did have one lasting impact on the season though - after being recalled for the Playoff second leg against Cheltenham, he scored a spectacular goal to put Pools ahead temporarily in the tie.

It was the same old story last season though - struggling to break into the team, he started just twelve games - and one of those was as part of a reserve side in the LDV. With Barron the regular right back, opportunities were limited - and although he came in when Barron was suspended against Bristol Rovers and once again scored a spectacular goal, he couldn't keep the place for long. He was given a new one year deal by Mike Newell, but has again failed to break through - his two starts came against Peterborough and Oldham. His last appearance in Pools colours came as a sub against Chesterfield in October.

Sorry to see him go? As a local lad I suspect Arno will be a little disappointed. However he too often failed to show the consistency needed to win a place in what admittedly counts as one of the strongest sides in Pools history, and so it's a firm handshake, a thanks for your efforts, and all the best for the future. Maybe he'll come back to haunt us along with Kevin Henderson - but having been a squad player for almost four years at Pools, it was becoming increasingly obvious he wasn't going to make the breakthrough at the Vic.

Talking of which, Boston are once again making noises about signing Adam Boyd. The young forward is apparently interested, but as yet no deal has been agreed. Watch this space....