Hi everyone and welcome back to the north of England and to Hartlepool United. After a total of 15 league games played so far this season we were in a decent position to progress ourselves up the league table into a fight for the European spots. It was going to be an important time for the club as this is usually the time in the season where there will be a bit of fixture congestion so I will need to get player rotation spot on.
December Results
December saw a total of 5 league game in which my Hartlepool side managed to pick up 4 points which again wasn’t the best of month and certainly not the form that would see our side move up the table into the European places. After the two previous game in my last post where I lost 6-1 to Chelsea but then thrashed Birmingham 6-0 came another high scoring game but unfortunately we were on the losing side as we were beaten 5-0 by a superior Arsenal side. A draw against local rivals Sunderland seemed a decent result but I had leaded the game twice so it was a tad annoying. We followed that game with a superb 3-2 win over title chasing Liverpool with goals coming from N’Diaye, Campbell and Adebayor. The final two games of the month saw poor performances against bottom side Middlesbrough and yet another thrashing against Manchester United. I will need to work on my defence if I was going to stop conceding silly goals.
January Results
With 6 game to play in January and the start of the FA Cup I was looking forward to a new year and hopefully a successful year as Hartlepool manager. The month started with a FA Cup game against League 2 side Aldershot. I send out a weaker side but a one that I felt would have no trouble seeing the game out with a win. This was the case and I won the game 2-0 with a first senior goal coming from loanee Matthew Chambers. Next up was newly promoted Leeds United who were finding it hard and were struggling in a relegation battle, a poor performance from my side lead to a 0-0 draw and these were the game that I should make sure that we win if I was going to play in Europe next season. After the Leeds game came three league wins on the bounce against Wigan, Leicester and Aston Villa. We managed to score 9 goals in those three games and 7 of those goals came from the strike force of Adebayor and Campbell who were forming some partnership. The final game of January was an FA Cup match against Middlesbrough we only managed a 2-2 draw and this isn’t going to help as it is an unwanted extra game.
February Results
February came with 4 league games and a change of scenery with two games in the FA Cup. The first game against Man City was unlucky as our performance probably should have earned up a draw at the most but Man City took the points off us with a 3-2 win. I needed a positive reaction from the players and this came with a fine 2-1 win against Harry Redknapp’s Spurs. A game to forget against Everton was followed with a resounding 4-0 win against Middlesbrough in the FA Cup 3rd Round Replay. I was knocked out a few days later by Aston Villa with the winning goal unfortunately coming through a own goal by Sean Morrison. We finished off the month with a 2-1 loss against Newcastle United (I didn’t lose this game on purpose)
Performance of Part 2
V Aston Villa
The winner of the POP2 is was the 3-2 win against Aston Villa. It was a close race between this and the win against Liverpool but I feel that because the win against Aston Villa was away I feel that this was the deserved winner. A superb hat-trick from Frazier Campbell got us the three points and it was in a game that was end-to-end for the whole match.
Table
A drop of one place in the league which was a bit disappointing but if you look at the difference in points between 9th and 6th it is only 3 points so Europe is still a very realistic target with 10 league games left to play. It was very tight and it will be an exciting race and one that I will tell how it goes very soon as I am already writing it now.
Thanks for reading
Warren
Darren Smith
20 февраля, 2011 at 18:20
Some great form there Warren, you are unfortunate to be 9th but can still get Europe. Your strike force seem to be getting better and better every month. I really liked Campbell’s three goals vs Villa and I’m sure you lost the toon match on purpose lol :)
Good luck for the end of the season, looking forward to it.
warren
20 февраля, 2011 at 21:14
Thanks Darren
Because I am still only three points away from a European spot I should have a chance of getting into the top 6 places. If I am able to get a good run of form going and not concede a huge amount of goals I will be playing in the Europa League next season.
Laxeyman
20 февраля, 2011 at 20:36
A couple of hammerings Warren, but you always bounce back well, which is a credit to your players. It’s all pretty tight in the race for the European places, you have a decent chance and I hope you do it. Good luck!
warren
20 февраля, 2011 at 21:17
Hey Laxeyman
Whenever I get a bit of a hammering I always feel that I have strong enough characters in the squad to bounce back and take a positive spin into the next game. I cannot wait to see how the season finishes and if I am able to get into Europe. The post should be up in the next few days.
kevin
20 февраля, 2011 at 21:32
Well done Warren. Despite some heavy losses in December your team has bounced back admirably and so you are still in with a shout of a Europa League spot. Keep it up!
warren
21 февраля, 2011 at 09:17
Thanks Kevin
Being only three points away from a place in Europe will hopefully give my players the insentive to want to get into the top 6 places.
Wazz
21 февраля, 2011 at 06:32
Never mind the heavy losses Warren. You’re still in the top half of the table which is great. Hope you do well for the rest of the season. Good luck mate!
warren
21 февраля, 2011 at 09:20
Hey Wazz
I am not too worried about the heavy defeats (although it is dissapointing) I always seem to get a positive result of of the next game and my players soon forget about the result. This should stand me in good stead for getting a place in Europe.
Sears
21 февраля, 2011 at 17:43
Great work Warren! Keep battling, maybe you can sneak a Europa League spot.Good luck!
warren
21 февраля, 2011 at 20:27
I really do hope so and if I can get a bit of form going from here till the end of the season then it should be a very realistic target.
Ana Garcia
23 февраля, 2011 at 15:59
Very good going, at times your team has found it tough but to be where you are is fantastic.
You are well clear of the relegation places and are looking up rather than down so well done! Hopefully you can seal a top half finish.
Good luck!
warren
23 февраля, 2011 at 17:18
Hi Ana
I am thrilled with the position we are in at this stage of the season and hopefully I can add the cherry on the cake by the time the season finishes and I could be in Europe next year.