10:03am Friday 19th March 2010
By Nick Loughlin
HARTLEPOOL United may be about to change their playing style in a bid to end their rotten sequence of away results.
Pools have lost their last nine away games, a run last racked up 25 years ago.
After slipping to within touching distance of the bottom four, they cannot afford to lose at Tranmere this evening.
And to avoid an all-toofamiliar reverse Chris Turner is prepared to engineer a change in both style and personnel.
Ritchie Jones and Adam Boyd are the most likely casualties tonight, with James Brown and Leon McSweeney ready to start, although Armann Bjornsson and Ritchie Humphreys are pressing for a return.
“It (playing away and losing) may be a physiological thing,’’ he admitted. “We have just gone and played two home games and scored seven goals in winning them both.
“Speaking to managers they know the difference.
Terry Skiverton at Yeovil said last week that Huddersfield, who are challenging for the play-offs, went there, hit long balls, played into the corners and won 1-0.
“Do we have to do the same? We have been playing some good football and coming away with nothing.
“It’s not rocket science, some go away play badly and win or draw. We go away, play well and lose and end up with a pat on the back.’’ He added: “Look at Norwich, they are top of the table and we outplayed them down there, we got all the praise from their manager and we lost.
“I speak to other managers, listen to them, and what others have to do away from home.
“Maybe it’s time to change the way to pick up results away from home. We have tried everything while playing good football, but maybe it’s time to change.’’ After last week’s 4-0 humbling at Yeovil, Turner admitted: “The week has been just how I expected it to be, because we have a good squad of honest lads.
“They work hard and rarely have they let us know.
They know last weekend – we have looked at the dvd and it’s unbelievable how the game changes after the first goal.
“They will work again ready for this game and I’m not surprised with the reaction.
“We don’t worry about the last games, we are fresh for a new game every week.
“Confidence sapped out of the players last week and we have to put it right.’’ Exeter’s win on Wednesday put Pools deeper in the mire, but Turner insisted: “Results didn’t go for us, but I’m fed up of hearing about others – it’s about us.
“Home results are fine, it’s away results and picking up no points that has dragged us down there.’’ Pools: Flinders; Austin, Collins, Liddle, Hartley; McSweeney, Gamble, Sweeney, Monkhouse; Brown, O’Donovan.
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