2003/4 Season Review: January - The White Stuff

By Albatross
June 8 2004

Pools Online looks back on January 2004 - a month that saw arrivals, departures, a big Cup Tie with more than 9000 Poolies in attendance, and five away goals in a game for the first time in years in front of less than 100.

With Cup Fever in full swing, tickets for Pools cup tie at the Stadium of Light were going like hot cakes. Sunderland sent us 9100: Pools sold them all. Some fans were left without tickets, and took their chances in the home end - meaning that the crowd of 41,000 - the highest for the Mackems all season, higher even than their Playoff game - wasalmost a quarter Poolie. The team caused Sunderland plenty of problems, forced several good stops from Poom, and one Williams effort was cleared off the line - but a second half goal from Arca was enough to end our cup dream for another season.

The next home game though was a case of "where have all the fans gone" as fewer than 5000 were present to see Pools take on Peterborough. Pools won the game thanks to a strike from Eifion Williams to move into the Playoff places - yet despite doing the business on the pitch, the majority of the town still seemed to think Pools were stuck in the bad old days of the 70s and 80s.

There was plenty of business being done off the pitch by Neale Cooper, as comings and goings reached a peak. Marcus Richardson's loan move to Lincoln becamse permanent, and at the end of the month Paul Arnison's spell at Carlisle went the same way; meanwhile, Andy Appleby and Darren Craddock joined Whitby on loan. Scott Walker signed from Alloa to provide cover in the centre of defence. Tony Williams moved out on loan again - this time to Stockport. Adam Boyd returned from Boston, but looked to have shot his bolt by arriving back carrying more than half a stone of extra weight - to the public dissatisfaction of Cooper. And Cooper staged another swoop towards the end of the month when Hugh "Shuggie" Robertson arrived from his former club Ross County.

There was another, somewhat sadder departure as well though when Marco Gabbiadini announced his retirement. The knee problems that had seen him operated on in November proved to be too much - and so he called time on a playing career that had seen him score goals wherever he went, including seven for Pools.

Meanwhile, Pools played out a frustrating 0-0 draw at Tranmere - Matty Robson hitting the bar being as close as either side came to scoring - and lost 2-1 at home to Bristol City. City were on fire at the time, compiling a record of eleven straight wins that for a while suggested they might even challenge for the title.

The game that was the biggest talking point though was the one that was possibly seen by the fewest Poolies in the whole season. With the country in the grip of a cold spell and heavy snow forecast or already on the ground, Pools travelled to the Potteries to take on Port Vale. The conditions had prevented many from travelling, and there were less than a hundred in the away end to witness an incredible 5-2 win for Pools that saw five different scorers - Shuker, Humphreys, Nelson, Williams and Clarke - and a real fear towards the end that the game would be abandoned, with heavy snow laying on the pitch and making most of the lines invisible!

With Pools in 8th place and well within striking distance of the playoffs, January had proved to be a good month. With new blood coming in and a Valentine's Day reunion with Chris Turner to look forward to, February promised much. Would Pools deliver the goods?