By Albatross
August 20 2004

After Monday Night's TV Spectacular, it's back to Victoria Park for Hartlepool United. Blackpool are the opposition, and if you go by the form tables there should only be one winner. The Seasiders though should not be taken lightly despite their horrendous start. To say Blackpool haven't got off to the best of starts is something of an understatement. The opening day saw a 2-0 defeat at the hands of Doncaster, with a showing so poor that a Doncaster-supporting colleague of mine described them as being one of the worst teams to come to Belle View in some time; this was followed by a 2-1 defeat at home to Sheffield Wednesday and then worst of all a 4-0 humiliation at Bloomfield Road by Stockport. They are the only side still without a point in Division 2, have the worst attack with just one scored - and that a set piece - and the joint worst defence.

Colin Hendry is having something of a baptism of fire, and the Blackpool fans are far from happy. While they may not be about to call for his head just yet, there's plenty of disquiet at his original insistence that he'd play people in their best positions going by the board: last season's top scorer Scott Taylor has been asked to play on the Left Wing for example, while defenders are being asked to play in midfield and a right back is playing on the left. Add in the fact that both Taylor and Blackpool's other star performer Richie Wellens have looked disinterested - both it seems had been hoping for moves to higher-ranked teams in the summer - and it's far from a happy ship at Bloomfield Road. The most recent manifestation of this has been the departure of loanee Andrew Barrowman after he apparently refused to take part in a reserve game and had a falling-out with Hendry as a result. Meanwhile, Hendry has moved to try and strengthen his struggling midfield by bringing in Mike Flynn from Wigan - and he will probably partner Wellens in midfield.

Blackpool look to be in almost complete disarray. With Lee Jones struggling with injury, Sasa Ilic has arrived on a short term deal to take the goalkeeper's gloves - and has "impressed" so much that Hendry has already made inquiries about Crewe's reserve keeper Clayton Ince! Jones took part in the reserve game that Barrowman threw a strop about, so may be in line for a recall, while Seasiders Fans will also be hoping that Danny Coid won't have suffered a reaction following the game and will be available for his first start of the season.

However Pools will surely not take Blackpool lightly. They still have players capable of turning it on should they choose, and while the first three games may have been on the disasterous side the law of averages suggests that they won't keep playing as badly - and it would be typical for them to get it together against Pools. After all, last season's horror show at Bloomfield came on the back of poor form from the home side and the opposite from Pools.....

With the only injury worries Barron and Clarke, the odds must be that Neale Cooper will keep the same starting eleven as on Monday Night; there may however be changes on the bench and in positions. Andy Appleby was the player to benefit when Clarke had to pull out through injury, and the question will be whether he retains his slot there - and a goal for the reserves will certainly have helped his case. Meanwhile Kevin Betsy looked pretty good - if this is him not properly fit yet you wonder how much more is to come - and was very effective when switched into the centre. Cooper has to decide whether to play Betsy through the centre from the start, or to play Williams in the middle and maybe switch them over later on if we need a little more height in the centre.

What sort of game we will see may well depend on which Blackpool side turns up. If they play like they did against Stockport, it could be a case of how many Pools will get; a more committed performance though could see them pushing us a lot closer, and they certainly have the players to cause us problems if they fancy it. I'm going for the Tangerines to make a game of it, but Pools quality up front to tell in the end as we get a narrow 2-1 victory, Boyd and Betsy to score.