Paul Hartley gives update on Hartlepool United's pursuit of Newcastle United midfielder following Leyton Orient defeat

Pools, as revealed by The Mail, are interested in bringing the 19-year-old back to the Suit Direct Stadium on loan this season with Hartley still intent on adding to his squad before Thursday’s transfer deadline.

And Hartley’s stance on that front will have only been strengthened after watching his side fall to their fourth defeat in six League Two games at Leyton Orient.

Pools conceded four times for the third game, in all competitions, this season as they remain without a win in the opening month of the campaign.

Hartley’s side did find the back of the net twice against the league leaders, with Wes McDonald’s fine solo strike and Josh Umerah’s penalty, but the intention is still to add to the squad this week - with White one of those players being considered.

“There’s nothing yet,” Hartley told The Mail on White.

“We’ve got until Thursday. We’ve had a lot of names thrown at us and we’ve made enquiries about players.

“We’ll try our best, and we hope it’s a busy next few days for us to try and get more players in. We need it.

“When we came in we knew this job was going to be tough, but it’s been tougher than what has panned out so far.”

White made his first appearance of the season for Newcastle’s under-21 side during their 4-0 win over Derby County on Friday, featuring for 45 minutes against the Rams.

The intention, it is understood, was for White to get some minutes under his belt before a decision is made over his future for the season in the coming days.

Pools have missed out on several of their targets so far this summer, with the likes of Leeds United’s Stuart McKinstry, Crystal Palace’s Scott Banks and former Hibernian and Celtic man Scott Allan all moving elsewhere in the window, with the hope now being the same does not happen with White.

The young Magpie’s midfielder spent the second half of last season on loan at the Suit Direct Stadium under former boss Graeme Lee, and is believed to be assessing his options ahead of Thursday’s deadline.

And in the wake of another difficult afternoon defensively for Pools, Hartley has again reiterated his desire to bring in another defender, with Pools having now conceded 17 goals in seven games in all competitions following their defeat at the Breyer Group Stadium.

Ahead of their trip to Leyton Orient, Hartley told The Mail he was considering cover at centre-back after being forced into playing midfielder Mouhamed Niang there on occasion, with Saturday’s defeat doing little to change his mind.

Hartley said: “We were still going to try and recruit at that end of the pitch because we’re conceding too many goals, and too many soft goals for my liking.”