AFTER losing at Barnet three weeks previous, Craig Hignett told his Hartlepool United players that if there was a way of losing a game, they would find it.

On Saturday at Doncaster they did all they could to prove the manager right.

Another away game, another one lost, another one they should not have lost, more points tossed away. It’s a familiar story this season.

Settled and comfortable at 1-1 and ready to see the game out, Pools switched to a five-man defence to repel the home side.

So with an extra man in the back line, any room for Doncaster to exploit was shut down. Or so the plan went anyway.

Rob Jones came on to help repel the long balls. Toto Nsiala had spent 80-odd minutes doing the same, with Matthew Bates alongside him.

But the five-man back line erred. Rovers spotted a gap, passed through it. John Marquis was in and the striker rolled the ball across goal for Liam Mandeville to tap in.

Pools have been to the top three sides, Plymouth, Carlisle and now Doncaster, and came home with one point from a possible nine. They should have had seven.

Plymouth should have been beaten, how they conceded three to Carlisle in the manner they did still defies belief, while a point would have been a thorough and deserved one this time out.

Granted they didn’t have as much possession on this occasion as they did in the other two games, Rovers played a pressing game as they pushed Pools back and didn’t allow them to build from the back and play through midfield.

Rovers, first hour especially, were better than the other two in the top three. Carlisle, as proved on Saturday by scoring two in the final minutes, have a knack of winning games. Pools have the habit of chucking them away.

Pools were organised and resolute. In Toto Nsiala they had the game’s dominant force. Keeper Trevor Carson, playing with a finger injury from the previous week was both well protected and safe with his own game.

And they still lost.

“Is it a mentality thing? As a defender you have to spot danger. That’s my job as a defender, spot danger first and foremost. Don’t react after it’s happened,’’ mused Hignett.

“We have gone to a five at the back and that was because they had a lot of balls flung into the box, an extra body in there should make it comfortable.

“But to slide a ball in through a gap where someone should be there isn’t right. We stopped, no-one ran with the lad and we made it easy for them.’’

The game opened up on 24 minutes. Another example of what might have been.

Home goalkeeper Ross Etheridge was on as a substitute, and his first kick was to pass to Padraig Amond, who lifted the ball over the keeper and at goal only for the ball to come back off the inside of the post.

Etheridge started a counter-attack, James Coppinger weaved his way to the flank without anyone laying a hand on him, crossed and John Marquis nodded in.

From one-up to one-down in seconds.

Etheridge was hopeless, breaking a finger as he came off his line to miss the ball and punch Josh Laurent.

Amond was bundled over in the area, the keeper, in plenty of pain, knew it was time for treatment and had his finger taped up.

Pools’ striker didn’t let the wait bother him and netted from the spot. Five goals in seven games for the joint-top scorer.

He could have nabbed another but swept a volley into Etheridge at the start of the second-half.

That was about it until the regular capitulation.

“I don’t want to be the nearly men,’’ added Hignett. “We have to learn why we drop points like we do. Plymouth we were outstanding, Carlisle we didn’t switch on to set-pieces, Barnet, OK a poor refereeing decision but I said after then if we can find a way to lose a game we will find it.

“That’s a young thing really, Batesy coming back makes us better no doubt, but the young lads have to learn and not just play a game and move on and play the next game and forget about it. You have to learn.

“And we will make sure we do.’’