THERE’S no concerns at Hartlepool United, no panic inside the club and why should there be?

Disappointment abounded around the Super 6 Stadium on Saturday afternoon, as Pools lost to Sutton.

Defeats have been the norm at the club in recent years, after all Pools have lost more games in front of their own fans than they have won for each of the last eight seasons.

Proof, if it was needed, that turning this ship around may take longer than hoped. But Pools have lost only three times this season, three defeats in 17 games.

While the social media reactionaries were quick to have their say, things are more level headed than that at the club now. Stability off the pitch has been achieved and Bates is achieving it on it too.

The problem was that problems linger and this defeat was similar in nature to other home disappointments already this campaign.

When it’s going well at home, there’s no better place. The resilient and winning performance against Chesterfield on August Bank Holiday Monday was celebrated raucously.

When it’s not going well at home, it’s a difficult place to live and play.

Pools could have seen this one off, but the normally stout defence was a bit too open, conceding two goals to turn a 2-1 lead into a 3-2 reverse.

Boss Matthew Bates said: “The chairman said some nice things in the programme, but that comes from results and what we have done in the 17 games – he wouldn’t be backing me if we weren’t going well so far! But everyone at the club, Jeff, the owner, the directors, fans, we all want the same thing.

“We are in a good place and we lost this one and sometimes you look at performances and there’s reasons why we lost – there’s a reason today.

“The chairman understands the game and we all speak - chairman, Craig Hignett, me – and it’s not rocket science to know we are looking for more players and we want a striker in. We talk all the time.’’

Of the game he spoke honestly: “We tried to get on the front foot today – I don’t think there was much wrong with this, but the back three / five will admit they weren’t at it. It doesn’t go right all the time, but on a positive we could have scored more.

“First-half I understand the discontent of the fans and if it was against opposition who pass it around it would have been end to end, but in those conditions we thought it would be tough at times against a team like that.’’

Sutton were a bit like other National League teams. Big at the back, direct to the front and willing to win their share of second balls.

But, even with the vicious wind behind them first-half, the visitors felt they needed more than their one-goal interval advantage.

Visiting boss Paul Doswell admitted: “I said after 35 minutes, when we were one-up, we needed two goals to make a difference against this wind. We didn’t get it, but we had a few half chances for it. They are a team who have lost only once here this season.’’

Bates countered: “The conditions weren’t ideal and at one-down I was confident we would win it – they players said it too. Their style made it difficult in the wind, but we felt they couldn’t go that way in the second goal.

After conceding a soft goal to trail in a disappointment of a first-half, Pools soon turned the game around.

Niko Muir knocked in from close range to level, then Liam Noble’s free-kick diverted in (but he’s having it). Game on.

Pools wanted a third to finish Sutton off. But scoring is a difficulty in the main and too often this season already they have failed to really turn the screw on the opposition.

Again the strikers worked, toiled and linked up play and while Muir scored, James didn’t get much change from dominant centre-half Charlie Clough.

Sutton’s decisive third was particularly galling as Pools seemed to pass up a few chances to clear their lines properly and a couple of bobbles and bounces fell for Craig Eastmond to finish well.

“Defensively it cost us, I don’t want to lambast them as they have a good record this season and kept us in games,’’ said Bates.

“We are normally solid at the back and we weren’t. Maybe we went a bit gung-ho looking for a third to kill it off, but we couldn’t find it.

“At 2-1 everyone expected us – as I did – to go and win it. Defensively we were poor to concede the goals and it’s something we will look at.’’