By Albatross
January 13 2005

Hartlepool United travel to Torquay United with a double in their sights; however Leroy Rosenior's men have not proved to be pushovers this season and it will take something better than was on display against Boston if we are to come away with all three points. Torquay have surprised a few people this season simply by not already being dead and buried - however the good work on the pitch hasn't continued on their official website; apparently our club captain is Mickey Scott, and Martin Scott is the manager - which will be news to Mickey Barron and Neale Cooper!

While 19th place doesn't exactly see them challenging for the top, they are four points clear of the relegation zone at the moment and stand every chance of staying in Division 2 this season - not bad for a side that were relegation favourites pre-season, with tightly-controlled resources. Much of the credit has to go to Leroy Rosenior; despite losing star striker David Graham in the close season, he's been doing some wheeling and dealing and making plenty of use of the loan system to fill out what would otherwise be a very thin squad.

Goalscoring however has proved to be something of a problem, with just 31 in 27 league games this season. To try and remedy their limited options up front, Torquay have been forced to lay out some money: Leon Constantine has arrived permanently after a loan spell from Peterborough for a fee reputed to be 75K. His impact has been swift; with six goals scored in just nine appearances, he's already joint leading scorer. Constantine netted once for Posh earlier this season as well, and after scoring 25 for Southend last season will be the main threat - if he plays that is, having missed out since 28th December. Rosenior is hopeful that he will be available, and needs him to be really - last week's 1-1 draw at Huddersfield saw him very much down to the bare bones with illness and injury preventing him from picking a settled side. Alex Russell is also striving to be fit for the game, and there are apparently also one or two concerns about goalkeeper Ole Gottskalksson.

As well as Constantine, Adebayo Akinfenwa and Martin Gritton have scored six times while Kevin Hill and Jo Kuffour have managed five each.

Home form hasn't been great this season, and in fact they have a slightly better record on their travels. W3 D3 L7 is not too threatening, and in fact they haven't won at home in four matches; their last game at Plainmoor was a defeat to Stockport on New Year's Day.

Pools won the fixture up at Victoria Park back in September thanks to a flurry of goals in the last half hour. Joel Porter put us ahead in the first half but Gritton quickly equalised; homever goals from Sweeney, Tinkler and Humphreys secured the three points.

The good news for Pools is that we are rapidly approaching full strength. Mickey Barron's recovery from knee surgery took a great leap forward with his appearance in the reserves win at Tranmere in midweek, while Darrell Clarke is out on loan to regain his fitness. I can easily see Cooper sticking with the same team again, despite the feeling from some fans that Tinkler needs a break from the starting eleven.

Torquay may be struggling at home, but they are not a side to be taken too lightly; not many sides have scored really convincing victories over them, and with the addition of Constantine up front they pose more of a threat than before. Despite this, I'm going for Pools to win 2-1, Boyd to make up for last week's penalty miss with a double on the South Coast.