Accrington Web - 2013 Prediction League; Game 36 v Hartlepool United (home)

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Hartlepool Utd

2013/14 Prediction League – Game 36; v Hartlepool (home)

14th September 2013; Hartlepool 2 Accrington 1 :o; their first win, our run went on :eek:……..and they climbed the table and did ok in the Cups – for a while - including 5 wins in a row …………..they hit mid-table, and they’re still there – currently 10th; but, remember, 6 points covers York in 9th place down to us in 22nd (inclusive) :rolleyes:, and you sort of think (or would do, if it weren’t for Torquay and Northampton :p:p) that 50 points isn’t going to guarantee survival this season. :D:D

Hartlepool lost 4 of 5 in January, and since the turn of the New Year they’ve taken just 14 points from 12 games :rolleyes: (we’ve got 15 from 11 :D) with 4 wins, 2 draws and 6 defeats ………their 6 away games in that time have given them just 4 points :o:o (a 2-0 win at the Daggers, and a 1-1 draw at Southend); P6 W1 D1 L4 F5 A9 ……….Overall, P 35 W12 D9 L14 F40 A40 Pts 45 ………Safe? No way! And it’s worth recording that there are only four sides who’ve lost more games than the Monkey Hangers have – Exeter and the Wombles with 15, the Cobblers with 16, and the (surely doomed?) Torquay with 18 ;)

They haven’t done a lot in the markets; they sold CB Jack Baldwin (20), who they signed from Ryman League side Faversham Town in 2011, to Peterborough on Deadline Day for £1/2 million (described by Posh as “the best centre back in the Football League” - no he isn't; perm any one from Tom Aldred and Dean Winnard for starters); they loan-signed Nick Barmby’s :D:D son Jack, a 19 year-old MF, from Man U and also forward Luke Williams (20) from Middlesbrough, and on 13th January 2014 they proper-signed 34 year old striker Marlon Harewood, whose career includes 12 clubs, notably Notts Forest, West Ham (for £1/2 million), Villa (for £4 million), Barnsley and, most recently, Bristol City ;)

They went out of the Capital One 3-1 at Notts Forest in the First Round; in the JPT they did Bratfud 5-0 at home, then the Blades 1-0 away (bet they wouldn’t do that now – the Blades into the FA Cup semis today on the back of a ninth consecutive win in all competitions :D:D), before losing 2-1 at the Victoria Stadium to Rotherham; in the FA Cup they saw off Notts County 3-2 at home, and then drew 1-1 with Coventry at home, losing the replay 2-1…………. 55 goals in all in 42 games; leading scorers are home-grown striker Luke James (19) with 14; winger Andy Monkhouse (33) – ex Rotherham and Swindon – with 53 in 271 since 2007, has 6; MF Jonathan Franks – once of Middlesbrough, with loans at Yeovil and Oxford and appearances for England u16 to u20 – has 5; two others have four each, one has 3, two have two and four have one …………who got the other eleven I have no idea ……………:p

We’ve met them since we came back into the League; 2006/7 – the year they went up - we lost 1-0 away, and 2-1 at home (Andy Todd with the goal); 14th September we lost 2-1 again (our goal on 57 from James Gray)…………played 3, lost 3 :eek::eek:; that needs to change a bit rapid! :mosher:

The deadline for entries is, as always, scheduled kick-off time, which is 7.45pm on Tuesday 11th March 2014. 3 points and a reduction of the goal-difference ? You’d fancy our chances after Saturday, I might think ……………… :D

Good luck to everyone ……………….Remember; passion overcomes logic ………..Keep the faith ……………………. And thanks for playing!

:banane58: