WHILE lesser footballers could have crumbled, Jack Baldwin is emerging from a personal blip.

After being part of a defensive nightmare when six goals were conceded at Chesterfield in the FA Cup, Baldwin also had to contend with then conceding a last-minute penalty for Hartlepool United against Oldham.

That spot-kick meant another home defeat for Pools, but picked for the home game with Stevenage at the weekend, Baldwin impressed.

Pools lost again, but Baldwin and his team-mates gave an improved performance.

"My last game was Oldham, but I don't think about the penalty,'' he reflected. "If anything the performance at Chesterfield was the worst thing that's happened to me.

"Chesterfield was a bad one for everyone. I spoke to players about it, Sam Collins and Ritchie Humphreys and couldn't put my finger on why it's gone wrong for me.

"I don't think it was a mental thing, there wasn't anything on my mind. But I could tell at the weekend I was going to have a good game, I felt good in the warm-up.

"I'm glad it showed and I came through it.''

With new boss John Hughes in charge, Baldwin is looking forward to learning from the ex-Celtic stopper.

"The gaffer is a former centre-half, he is very active, hands-on in training and feeds little bits in every day to individuals and that's what I want to hear all the time to keep developing,'' he said.

"I need to know what I need to do personally as well as part of the team and it's important to take it all on board.

"He wants to play football from the back and that suits me, I feel comfortable doing it and I'm confident in how he wants us to play the game.''

Pools youth team face Huddersfield in the FA Youth Cup at Victoria Park tonight, kick-off is 7pm.