Our Hartlepool United writer has picked out 10 talking points ahead of this weekend's trip to Wealdstone.
5. Can Anthony Mancini maintain his impressive recent form?
Anthony Mancini produced his best performance of the season when Pools beat Oldham on New Year's Day, scoring the winning goal and running the Latics back line ragged in a spellbinding display that was reminiscent of the form that saw him fleetingly become one of the National League's hottest properties at the beginning of last season. The 23-year-old is set to start a fourth game in succession for the first time this season and the talented Frenchman looks to be growing in confidence all the time. Of course, question marks still remain over his capacity to cope with the rigorous schedule of the relentless National League, although in that sense the break will have done him no harm. It remains to be seen whether he'll continue on the right flank, where he has been so effective in recent weeks, or move into his favoured central role on Saturday. Photo: Frank Reid
6. Is this a game Pools have to win if they're serious play-off contenders?
Although Pools are just three points outside the National League play-off places, there are four teams between them and the top seven while Rochdale, who are the current occupants of the last remaining play-off place, have three games in hand on Lennie Lawrence's side. The competitive nature of the division, combined with the fact that Pools still have some catching up to do after their slow start to the campaign, means they cannot afford too many slip-ups between now and the end of the season. While Wealdstone are fighting for their lives at the wrong end of the division and need the points just as much as Pools, Saturday's fixture feels like a game Lawrence's team need to win. True, Pools are set to play a long way from home while the Stones produced some decent stuff and were unfortunate not to win in the reverse fixture back in August, but if Lawrence's side are serious play-off contenders then they'll need to beat most of the teams below them in the table. The veteran boss challenged Pools to turn draws into wins and supporters making the long trip this weekend can expect to see their side push for all three points. Photo: Frank Reid
7. Matthew Taylor talks up his side's home record
Pools are certainly not going to be in for an easy afternoon despite Wealdstone's lowly league position and threadbare squad. The Stones were the better side for large parts of the reverse fixture and Pools only rescued a point thanks to Mani Dieseruvwe's 98th minute strike. While Wealdstone have only won five times this term, four of those victories have come at their Grosvenor Vale home. The Stones are no pushovers and their -7 goal difference is the best - or, more appropriately, the least bad - in the bottom nine, suggesting they're competitive in almost every game. Indeed, Matthew Taylor's side have only lost two games by more than two goals, 3-0 defeats against leaders York and a Yeovil team who were in a rich vein of form at the time. Pools, meanwhile, have picked up a positive result in four of their last six matches on the road but have only won one of those, November's 4-3 thriller at Solihull Moors. For all Wealdstone have a decent enough home record, this feels like a game that Pools will be hoping for three points from. Photo: Dan Mullan
8. Will Pools be able to deal with in-form Kallum Ceesay?
There aren't too many changes or adjustments Matthew Taylor can make to his Stones side given their current injury crisis, meaning he'll have to rely on the players he has available to him unless Wealdstone look to the transfer market to strengthen. One of his team's outstanding performers of late has been Kallum Ceesay. The versatile 22-year-old can play in either defence or midfield and has been impressing in the engine room of late. Capped four times at international level by Sierra Leone, Ceesay came through the ranks at West Ham and Tottenham before signing for the Stones last February. After making nine appearances towards the end of last term, Ceesay has started to hit his stride and has featured in 24 of his side's matches this season, scoring four times in his last nine games. Pools have themselves been strong in midfield of late, with Nathan Sheron and Nicky Featherstone establishing a formidable partnership, but Lennie Lawrence will be mindful of the potential threat posed by the powerful Ceesay. Photo: Frank Reid