NEALE Cooper's Hartlepool United continue to set new standards in a new division.

Tuesday's thumping 5-2 win at Port Vale was the first time Pool have scored five goals away from home since a 5-1 win at Aldershot in March 1991.

The victory put Pool into eighth spot, a point and two places outside the play-off places and, with 18 games to go, they are on course to achieve their best-ever league position.

That is currently the 11th place finish they achieved in 1992. The lowest position they have been in this season is 12th back in September.

Earlier this season they played in front of their biggest home league crowd since 1967 when they drew 1-1 with Chris Turner's Sheffield Wednesday.

Weather permitting, they face another former boss in Mike Newell when Luton visit Victoria Park on Saturday.

The boss, who was sacked by Pool in the summer after leading the club out of Division Three, enjoyed a victory over his old side at the start of the season.

Newell was at Vale Park on Tuesday, but left early in the second period before Micky Nelson, Eifion Williams and Darrell Clarke killed the game off.

Jubilant Cooper admitted: "I think he will have seen that we played quite well on Tuesday night. Now we need to keep it going and beat Luton.

"Tuesday was a massive result for us, they have hardly dropped any points at home. After we beat them at home their manager said it would be a different story when we went there.

"We played well that day, but this was a different picture all together - we scored five times instead of two.

"But we kept the ball well and took the game to them. We had 95 nutters supporting us. I know it might not sound like many, but on a night like Tuesday, with the weather like it was, it was a massive thing for them to get there. We appreciate it. We had a hard game last Saturday and lost, but bounced back.''

The win was Pool's second double of the season, after they beat Vale 2-0 at Victoria Park last August and also completed two victories over Peterborough.

* Boston boss Neil Thompson is hopeful of concluding a permanent deal for Pool striker Adam Boyd ahead of Saturday's game with Hull City. Boyd has been on loan at York Street.

Read more about Hartlepool here.