HARTLEPOOL UNITED made it six points from six in two home games this week with a 3-1 win over Exeter City.

Pools added to the 4-0 win over Crewe to jump above Notts County in the League Two table – and again it was a thumping second-half display which turned the game around.

It again took Pools a while to get going, and they trailed on 14 minutes when Ollie Watkins held off left-back Sean Kavanagh and fired powerfully home from 20 yards.

Minutes earlier, David Wheeler somehow crashed a volley against the bar, when presented with an open goal after Joe Fryer saved from Reuben Reid.

But with the game drifting by and Pools trailing they switched to 4-4-2 – and the decision to push Rhys Oates up front made the difference.

He was strong and powerful as Pools suddenly found some momentum.

Pools levelled on 66 minutes, as Nathan Thomas played the ball across the area for Lewis Alessandra to deftly finish from a tight angle.

And three minutes later Pools were on top.

Oates powered through the middle and fed Padraig Amond to his left, the striker made no mistake with a confident finish from the edge of the area for his 13th of the season.

And Pools capped the week in the 90th minute, as Alessandra cracked in from the edge of the area for his fourth goal of the week.

Dave Jones said: "We changed formation later to 4-4-2 and first half we started bright, passed it well but looked tired.

“If you say I changed it second half then great, but it was a good team performance by everyone.

“I don’t like picking anyone out, but second-half Oates and Alessandra worked hard.

“When they did score it was about getting in and reorganising things, but we looked tired and lethargic.''

He added: “The whole back five did what we ask them to do. We had a lot of the ball today, but that final pass was going to roll under a foot or the cross was awful.

“Once we got the leveller our confidence came out. It’s been a good week for us.''

Opposite number Paul Tisdale reflected: “It was a very comfortable 65 minutes and then it all changed with the bounce of a ball and a couple of good finishes and we were left chasing the game.

“We were in complete control and apart from scoring second goal we did everything right.

“We played really well, the players were on top of their games today no doubt about it.

“We proved second half, 20 minutes before they scored, we picked the game up and if anyone looked like they were going to score it was us. But it shows the fragility of a 1-0 lead.''

HARTLEPOOL UNITED (4-5-1): Fryer; Donnelly, Walker, Harrison, Kavanagh (Richardson 28); Oates, Alessandra, Featherstone, Woods (Hawkins 58), Thomas; Amond. Subs: Bartlett (gk), Bates, Orrell, Rooney, Hawkes.

EXETER CITY (4-3-3): Ojlenik; Stacey, Brown, Moore-Taylor, Woodman (Sweeney 87); Harley, Taylor (Grant 79), James; Wheeler, Watkins, Reid (McAlinden 65). Subs: Archibald-Henville, Tillson, Hamon, Croll.