By Albatross
January 2 2003

Mike Newell's first full month in charge saw Pools also have their worst month of the campaign. However a good result on Boxing Day - followed by a New Years Day Win - means that Pools have once again ended the month in top spot. Manager of the Month has gone to Oxford's Ian Atkins, and Poolies everywhere have reason to thank the occasionally bonkers former Carlisle Boss; two of their three wins in December were over Bournemouth and Rushden and Diamonds, and as a result we started January back on top of the table. Oxford themselves have moved right into the hunt, and with two games in hand are just two points away from an automatic spot. Two wins would see them just five points behind Pools - but the gap between us and 4th is currently 11 points, and even if the teams below us win their games in hand it would still see us clear of the field by seven points.

This is despite Pools having without doubt their worst month of the season so far, and shows how good our form had been up until December - despite only being ranked with the 18th best record over the month, we still remain on top, only being toppled for a couple of days after the Boxing Day defeat at Hull. Despite that result, the horror show at Rochdale, and only picking up a draw against Scunny, we are still averaging two points a game for the season - the sort of record that if maintained will see us comfortably into the Automatic Promotion slots, and in with a good shout of the title.

One thing that has helped has been the poor form of Bournemouth. Although they only lost once, they also failed to win and so even Pools' meagre total of four points saw us increase the gap to the team that is still one of our closest challengers. A Goalkeeping Injury Crisis at the (ironically) Fitness First Stadium hasn't helped matters - during the game against Hull, midfielder Marcus Browning ended up in goal for the Cherries for most of the match.

Elsewhere, Orient and Lincoln had good months, managing nine and eight points respectively. Orient have started to pull up into mid-table as a result, while Lincoln will be pleased to have arrested the slide that has seen them fall away from the playoff spots and consolidate in mid-table. Lincoln fans have been saying for some time that their aim is to avoid relegation, despite their good start; they now look certain to avoid the drop and would no doubt be happy to finish in a comfortable position in the pack.

One of the real surprise packages though has been Boston. After looking certs for the drop for much of the season, they were ranked 4th on form last month and have moved up to 20th. Although they are by no means out of the woods - just three points clear of the drop zone - they have given themselves a fighting chance and some much needed confidence. Boston are of course next up for Pools - just our luck!

Rock bottom of the form table - and the Nationwide League - were Swansea. Four successive 1-0 defeats for the Jacks, and things are not looking good at all. Not only are they currently three points from safety, they are also the lowest scoring team in the division with just 20 goals scored in 24 games so far. They've already changed managers this season with no real improvement, and with money thin on the ground are looking in serious danger of the drop.

Other teams in the battle at the bottom have had a mixed month of it. Carlisle gained just two points and now seem set for yet another struggle to avoid the drop; Exeter gained five points from three matches to move off the bottom; while Bristol Rovers also hit the bottom spot before a win over Swansea on Boxing Day and a draw with Boston lifted them up the table to 21st. Macclesfield continue to hover a few points clear, while the extremely inconsistant Shrewsbury are also at risk of being dragged into the dogfight. The Shrews only played three games in December, getting four points: after a 0-0 draw with Bournemouth they then were hammered 6-0 by Boston before sticking 4 past promotion-challenging Bury on Boxing Day. New Years Day continued this inconsistent form as they lost 5-1 to Rushden - maybe their minds are on Saturday's money-spinning Cup Tie with Ratcliffe's former club Everton.

One area Pools have been very fortunate in so far is postponements. Although it hasn't been that cold yet - the notorious Cup Replay between Carlise and Scunny being one of the few games to succumb to frost so far - there have been a number of games called off for Waterlogging. New Years Day showed the investment Pools have made in the pitch is paying off, with our game going ahead when a number of others didn't. Not only does this mean we've managed to get points in the bag, but we're also managing to avoid the fixture pile-up that some other clubs will soon be facing - Oxford for example are coming in to the Promotion Frame now, but with their cup involvement will have three league games to catch up on after Saturday. And that's before the really cold weather hits.

This month has already seen us complete a double over Carlisle, and there are plenty more opportunities to do the same to other teams. Fixtures against Boston, Oxford and Cambridge all give us the chance to play teams we've already beaten; while the away game at Macclesfield gives us a chance to gain revenge for our first defeat of the season. Eleven points from fifteen looks possible - and would go a long way to keeping us top of the table.