The Poolie Bunker

With news stories being few and far between over the holiday season, Vital Hartlepool has compiled some stats from our season so far.

Pools have now played 24 games and gained 29 points, at the same point in the relegation season of 2005/06 we had 30 points but a slightly worse goal difference.

At this point in the season he had picked up 7 points in his last 7 away games Danny Wilson's side have collected no points in the last 7 away games.

If we were to have a similar end to the season and pick up 29 points in the remaining 22 games we would have a final total of 58. We had 50 in the season we went down and if compare this to the last 3 league one seasons we would be clear of relegation

In 2004/05 we would have finished in 16th position with 7 points between us and the final relegation spot. In 2005/06 this would have gave us a 15th place finish, six points from the drop zone. Last season we would have finished 17th, 11 points from the final relegation place.

While some of that may not make nice reading, it is highly unlikely that we would go down if we had a second half of the season similar to the first half.

This is using a rough prediction based on the season so far but if we look at the form tables based on our last 8 games, where we have won just twice and lost 4 times, things look much worse. Our current run of 1 point per game would leave us on 51 points, just one more than we were relegated with but this would have kept us up by 4 points last season. Looking further back this points total would have seen us finish outside the relegation places in the last 5 seasons but soemtimes only on goal difference.

These results also don't take into account the quality of opposition, we have already faced high flyers Leeds, Leyton Orient and Carlisle twice and have yet to play strugglers Cheltenham and Northampton.

We have also visited all the 'top teams' and the only side we have to visit in the top 8 is Walsall.

We have a much easier run of fixtures coming up, we face just 3 games (Doncaster, Southend twice) against teams in the top half in our next 12 matches and we have 7 games against the teams below us.

This upcoming run of games will be key, at the end of the season we face Nottingham Forest and Swansea at home and have tough trips to Brighton, Bristol Rovers and Walsall in the last 6 games.

If results improve in the next few weeks we'll take a look at the chances of us reaching the play-offs but for now you can sleep easy, we're heading for somewhere between mid table mediocrity and narrow survivors unless our results take a upwards, or downwards, turn...

Just one small point, most people regard the 2004/2005 season as the greatest in the clubs history culminating in the Play Off final at Cardiff plus we nearly reached 5th round of the cup, I've never heard it referred to as the 'relegation season'

Statistics..... .....here we go, relying on the unfounded theory that because something happened once, it will probably occur again.... er, .... not necessarily.

Maybe a sign of how unrealistic some expectations were to start with. Surely most of us have spent the whole season looking at the two gaps between 6th/us/21st.

And I say again...........WALSALL are doing ok.

What have they got that we havent then?

an S in their name?

And I say again...........WALSALL are doing ok.

What have they got that we havent then?

We are playing nowhere near as poorly as the relegation season and we did actually play some really good stuff on New Years Day in an attacking sense.

But if the defence is going to let soft goals in every week from now til the end of the season...

If we defend like we did at Carlisle we are totally fooked!

But you'd like to think won't defend like that again for years.

We do need to replace Budtz big time. He quite simply isn't good enough. That's one area I hope is addressed in January.

If Wilson can't see that now I'm seriously worried.

And I say again...........WALSALL are doing ok.

What have they got that we havent then?

Oh and by the way Walsall fans were having similar hissy fits about 14 games ago, I know we have been frustrating but we can turn this into a decent season still

I havent rated Budtz all season..............sadly I havent seen lee Barrett play.

He cant be very good though if Wilson doesnt fancy him.................oh hang on though...........

And again... if you win when you think you've played badly (as we have done a few times), is the truth that we are just not bad enough?

Northampton is a big game. Their form over the last dozen games is only slightly worse than ours. They are similarly placed and will see the game against us as a chance to pick up three points. A win for us would be massive.

We do need to replace Budtz big time. He quite simply isn't good enough. That's one area I hope is addressed in January.

If Wilson can't see that now I'm seriously worried.