New year heralds fresh start for Clark

NEVER mind a new year, January has heralded a new season for Ben Clark.

It’s been seven months since he last started a game, almost a year since he played in his preferred central defensive position and he slotted back in seamlessly on Saturday.

For January, read August for Clark.

Injury and a brief suspension has kept him out of action and he’s had to watch from the sidelines as Hartlepool United central defenders Sam Collins and Gary Liddle have established themselves as first choice this season.

But against Oldham on Saturday, a frantic last ten minutes aside, Clark and debutant Julian Cherel performed every bit as well and solid as the normal pairing at the back.

As Clark admitted, if the added on time had been longer than four minutes, Oldham would most likely have snatched a point, which would have meant more winning position points dropped for Pools.

But they enjoyed a slice of luck and a bit of fortune as they earned a useful win and a first double of the campaign.

Victory over Oldham was, for the most part, every bit as comfortable as the 3-0 win at Boundary Park in early September.

By the final whistle, it was a scrambled victory over Dave Penney’s side, but one that cannot be underestimated.

Pools are 11th in League One and, with a daunting looking fixture list to come in the next six weeks, need all the points they can muster.

They couldn’t afford to pass up the three they had in the bag on this occasion.

“We were comfortable until the last five minutes, but then I was glad there wasn’t another few minutes to go,’’ admitted Clark.

“Did I expect the equaliser?

Yes and no really. We all have faith in Scott, he’s an excellent goalkeeper who talks all the way through the game.

“But we were put under pressure at the end and we were all at sixes and sevens.

“They brought some good subs on who changed things around. They would have played if fit, Abbott had one chance and scored and we are lucky there wasn’t five extra minutes to go.

“But it was all about winning and we got the result.’’ Somehow they did.

The arrival of three visiting substitutes gave a previously toothless Oldham side some impetus.

Chris Taylor had already troubled Peter Hartley before he knocked him over on 83 minutes.

Shown a yellow card, the left back then got dragged into a spat with Sean Gregan and his feinted head butt didn’t go unnoticed.

Down to ten men, the resulting free-kick could have turned into a penalty, as Leon McSweeney handled right on the penalty area line.

Then, from a soft free-kick awarded on the other side, Pawel Abbott got ahead of Ritchie Humphreys to divert a header home.

Game on and panic stations.

Taylor lifted a free-header over the bar, Nick Blackman’s finish on goal was kept out by Flinders’ leg before the ball was rolled across the face of goal by defender Krisztian Timar and none of the away players were as bright as their shirts and be able to get on the end of it.

Coasting at two goals up thanks to Ritchie Jones’ free header and Andy Monkhouse’s eighth strike of the campaign, Pools were in control.

Monkhouse swept his finish across keeper Dean Brill and the way the goalkeeper was beaten provided further proof on the back of his display in the early season meeting that Pools were far better in opting for Flinders ahead of Brill last summer.

Brill by name, but not by nature it would appear.

Pools will be without Hartley for the next three games, and there’s every chance Clark will stay alongside debutant Julian Cherel at Charlton on Saturday.

It was only in the final minutes the pair were tested under pressure and Clark admitted: “It’s been a long, frustrating season for me and it seemed like a debut for me.

“Playing at the back was nice as well, it’s a long time since I’ve done that. I thought we defended well until the last five minutes.

“I’ve played with Julian in the reserves a few times and it was a pleasure out there. He’s keen, eager and always wanting to learn.

“He’s always asking questions in training, a bit annoying at times! But he just wants to learn and improve.

“He did well out there on his debut and he’s played some reserve games with me and we’ve done OK together, but we all want to play in the first team.

“Before the game he was speaking to Sam (Collins) and he was told to head it and kick it – simple really and that’s what he did.’’ He added: “The season hasn't started for me, it's been injury and then a suspension to deal with. Getting sent-off at Southend was down to stupidity I guess, I was trying to impress.

“But hopefully this is the start of the season for me and I can kick on from here.’’

Match facts

Goals:

1-0: Jones (33, free far post header to meet a Sweeney cross from the left)

2-0: Monkhouse (40, burst into the box to shoot low across the keeper)

2-1: Abbott (88, low glancing header to turn in a Taylor free-kick)

Bookings: Goodwin (51, foul);

Hartley (82, foul);

Gregan (84, unsporting behaviour)

Sending-off: Hartley (83, violent conduct)

Referee: Carl Boyeson (Hull): Tried to maintain his stance and posture towards the end, when the game was drifting away from him 4

Attendance: 2,634

Entertainment: ✰✰✰✰

HARTLEPOOL UNITED (4-4-2):

7 Flinders: Didn’t have a great deal to do, but his save at the death ensured three points;

5 Austin: Never troubled by Whittaker on the flank and switched to the left late on

6 Cherel: A simple and solid introduction to English football, did the straight-forward things

8 CLARK: First start of the season and slotted straight back in. Comfortable in possession at the back

4 Hartley: Rush of blood late on so nearly cost Pools as it gave the visitors some much-needed impetus;

6 Jones: Did what was asked of him playing on the right flank, and capped his day off with a goal

7 Sweeney: Grew as the game went on and kept making his runs from deep, creating the opening goal like that

7 Humphreys: Played some intelligent passes forward and made the most of the space available to him

6 Monkhouse: Made it eight goals halfway through the season from the left wing and enjoyed a brief stint up front;

5 Bjornsson: On the fringe of the game, but made some clever lay-offs and touches to bring others into play

6 Boyd: Regulary hit early by the visiting defenders, but ignored them to cause problems in possession

Subs:

Larkin (for Bjornsson 56): Introduced on the left before being moved up front alone 5 McSweeeney (for Boyd 75) Fredriksen (for McSweeeney 90) (not used): Cook (gk), Haslam, Fredriksen, Power, Greulich.

OLDHAM ATHLETIC (4-4-2):

Brill 4; Lee 4, Gregan 6, Timar 5, Jacobson 6; Colbeck 4 (Abbott 70, 7), Goodwin 6, Stephens 6, Whitaker 5; Brooke 5 (Blackman 64, 6), Smalley 6 (TAYLOR 68, 7). Subs (not used): Furman, Black, Ollerenshaw (gk), Marrow.

MAN OF THE MATCH

BEN Clark – a seamless return to the starting XI