Pools ease to familiar victory at Vale Park

THERE was a familiarity about Hartlepool United's visit to Port Vale - they won there again - and now hope players and management similarly au fait with their next venue will help secure another victory tomorrow night.

Ahead of their Carling Cup tie at Sheffield Wednesday, Pools chalked up their fourth successive Vale Park victory with some ease after playing well within themselves for long periods.

After a 5-2 win in 2004, Pools have followed it up with three more triumphs at the same venue, each without being overly troubled. Winning there has become a familiar tale.

"We never get beat here, do we?'' asked Ritchie Humphreys, one of four at Victoria Park who have played for or managed tomorrow's Carling Cup opposition, Sheffield Wednesday.

"I said that in the dressing room. You don't want to tempt fate before the game, but we've always got good results here. It's a nice big pitch and it suits our game and type of football.

"Had we been really on our game in the first half we could have really turned them over.

"I think when you get the lead early on away from home, you don't want to open yourselves up too much. Matty (Robson) was getting in - we both were - down the left side and on another day we could have scored more.''

In their February 2005 win at Vale Park, Joel Porter scored the opener after just two minutes. This time they had to wait four minutes longer for the first goal.

James Brown won possession inside his own half and Robson was in miles of space on the other side. With his marker, Justin Miller, nearer to the pie hut than the ball, the left winger had every bit of time and space he could have asked for and rolled his shot into the corner.

They had to wait until the 88th minute to finish the job off. Brown this time the scorer as he skipped into the penalty area to latch onto Jamie McCunnnie's raking pass and bounced his effort into the corner.

The gargantuan Richard Barker should have scored minutes earlier, but he somehow turned a shot wide from six yards and David Foley missed an equally straight forward chance.

But by then, Pools should really have been out of sight anyway. Vale were terrible and Pools knew it. Home defender George Pilkington turned a cross against his own bar and half-time saw the home side booed off after regular calls for the manager's head.

Pools appeared content with their single-goal lead and if they played anywhere near as well as they did at Luton two weeks beforehand, they would have been out of sight.

They were put under pressure for 15 second-half minutes and needed an athletic goalline clearance from Godwin Antwi to preserve their advantage.

Humphreys performed admirably at left-back on his recall and admitted: "For me personally getting 90 minutes was important - I'm delighted to play the full game and get the win.

"They had a couple of chances and hit the woodwork, so on another day we could have conceded.

"Rafa (Antwi) cleared one off the line and Barks did his share of defending in our area. He took a real crack to the head, I was right on top of it and he really took a bang, but that's what we are all about and everyone in this team will put their body on the line.''

Next up is another Wednesday reunion for Humphreys. He used to clean the boots of teammate Barker when the pair were at Hillsborough as young hopefuls 14 years ago.

Pools boss Danny Wilson and Chris Turner, the club's director of sport, have both recently managed there and Humphreys admitted: "It's a game I am looking forward to and we all will be,'' he admitted. ''It's good to go to Hillsborough and play against a massive football club.

''Most of my mates are United fans and when the draw was made I got a couple of texts from mates who are Wednesdayites saying 'bring it on' so let's do it.

"It's not on the same scale as the last time we played them (2005 play-off final), but it's a decent game. We've played them enough over the last few years and it's pretty even between us.

"There's a few of us who have been at Wednesday as players and managers and we will all be looking forward to it. There will be plenty of people there and I'm sure our fans will make the journey in numbers as well.''

He added: "We've won there before in the Carling Cup (2003) and that was a good night - Gavin Strachan scored the winning penalty and I spoke to him on Saturday morning.

"It's a game against a big club and it will be the same this season when we go to Nottingham Forest or Leeds United, they all have a good history.

"To put one over on a big club like that would be good for Hartlepool United.

"But there's a lot of hard work to do and let's hope we are in the hat come the next round.''

Watch the match highlights from Monday, August 27