County travel to bottom of the table Hartlepool United this weekend, as Dave Challinor looks to mark his return to his former side with another three points away from home.
Despite taking the lead after just five minutes against Leyton Orient in our last league outing, the league leaders went on to turn the game around and inflict on County a first defeat in eight games.
That result saw us drop out of the top half of the table and down into 14th, 13 points above Saturday’s opponents and still only six points behind Swindon Town in the final play-off spot.
Hartlepool currently sit rock bottom of the Football League, having lost six of their last seven games in League Two – beaten 3-1 away at Barrow last time out. They have, however, found some success in the FA Cup in recent weeks, beating ten-man Harrogate Town 3-1 last weekend to seal a third round tie against Stoke City.
Our Opponents:
The contrast in fortunes of both these Clubs since Dave Challinor made the move to Edgeley Park last November could hardly be bigger. Hartlepool were sat in 10th place in their first season back in League Two at the time, outside the play-off places only on goal difference, whilst County were 9th and struggling in the National League.
We all know what followed for County, as an incredible mid-season run helped the Club secure promotion back to the Football League on the final day of the season – a second successive promotion out of the division for the County boss. For Hartlepool however, it’s been a year to forget in League Two.
The Club have won just nine of the subsequent 50 league games played since Challinor’s departure, and interim boss Keith Curle is the third different manager hired since that day.
Former Pools player Graeme Lee was DC’s initial replacement, and although he had success in the cups by reaching the semi-finals of the Papa John’s Trophy and the Fourth Round of the FA Cup, a poor run of results in the league saw him sacked after just five months in charge.
He was replaced in the Summer by Cove Rangers boss Paul Hartley, who made the move south of the border after guiding the Scottish Club to two promotions during his time in charge. He oversaw a major overhaul of the squad in the transfer window too, signing as many as 17 new players during a three-month period.
A disastrous start to the season, however, saw him win none of his nine league games in charge of the Club before he too was sacked, with the Club sat 23rd on just four points – he won just one game in charge in all competitions, against Harrogate Town in the Papa John’s Trophy.
Former Carlisle boss Curle was swiftly appointed on an interim basis, and brings with him a wealth of experience in League Two over a 20-year managerial career, winning promotion with Northampton Town in 2020.
He had a solid start to life in charge too, drawing against Gillingham and away at Mansfield before finally securing a first league win of the season at the 12th attempt, when they beat Doncaster 2-1 at the Suit Direct Stadium.
That run of six defeats in seven has followed since however, with their only points in that run coming via a 2-1 win against Grimsby five weeks ago. The side also suffered a humiliating 6-0 defeat at home to Everton U21s in the Papa John’s Trophy as they exited at the group stage, and have now sank to the bottom of the table.
There is still hope for the North-East side – the poor form of teams in and around them means they remain just two points off safety, with Gillingham, Rochdale and Colchester all still within touching distance. The return of their former boss on Saturday will serve as a reminder of what the side are capable of at their best, as they look to quickly recover some of that old magic that DC used to provide.
One to watch:
One man currently enjoying life in the Football League despite his side’s struggles is target-man Josh Umerah. The centre-forward was a Summer signing from National League Wealdstone, having scored 17 times for the Stones last season, and has already proved to be a real handful for Football League defences.
The 25-year-old has already scored ten goals in all competitions for his new side, including two in that FA Cup win against Harrogate Town last time out. He will be looking for his first ever goal against County at the weekend, having failed to find the net in four previous meetings against The Hatters.
Match Stats:
- Saturday’s game will be the 140th meeting between the two sides in all competitions, with County having the historical edge – 56 wins to Hartlepool’s 50.
- We are winless in our last four games against Hartlepool, losing three – our last win against them came in October 2019, thanks to goals from Ash Palmer and Tom Walker. Our last away victory against the Monkey Hangers came in August 2008, when Tommy Rowe’s goal secured a 1-0 win in League One.
- Having lost our opening five away league games, we have now won three and drawn one of our last four. We last went five away games unbeaten in the Football League during the 2008/09 season.
- If selected, Ryan Rydel will make his 50th appearance for the Club at the weekend.
