Coach Confidence
Hartlepool United head coach Lee Clark said he is taking “immense pride” in the club’s flawless start to the National League campaign. The Pools have won two of their first two matches, beating Barrow 2‑0 at home and Aldershot Town 1‑0 away, and have not conceded a single goal.
Speaking at the club’s Maiden Castle training base, Clark praised the staff and players: “I’m taking immense pride in it, from a head coach point of view, I’m delighted with the way the staff are working, delighted with the way the players are working and when you start the season the way we have, two victories with no goals conceded, you’ve got to be happy.”
He added, “I’ve been in this game so long, you’ve got to try and enjoy the good times, because you know that something could go crazily wrong, very, very quickly in this game, and when you’re in management, defeats are very lonely, so you’ve got to enjoy when you win as well, so absolutely delighted with everything that’s gone so far but knowing that there’s always tough tests around the corner and another one on Saturday.”
Season Outlook
Clark, who joined the club this summer replacing Nicky Featherstone, oversaw a summer that saw 14 new players arrive. He said the team is “targeting promotion this season” and that the league typically settles down around the 10‑game mark. “I don’t work in that way, I think because I’ve experienced both where teams have gone off on the front foot and just run away with leagues and I’ve been where there’s been latecomers into the mix, into the promotion mix, so I think it’s just the old adage, the old clichés, just take it game by game,” Clark told the Mail.
He added that the staff have broken the season into blocks of games, setting targets for each period, though he would not disclose the specifics. “We have targets for those blocks of games, nothing that I will divulge but we do have that as a staff.”
Upcoming Test
The Pools’ next fixture is an away match at Sutton United on Saturday at 12:30pm. The club will look to extend its unbeaten run and continue its push for promotion, while Sutton United will aim to halt Hartlepool’s early momentum.
The match will take place at 12:30pm Saturday at Sutton United’s home ground.
