Barnet head coach relishing 'big test' with Hartlepool United in National League season opener

John Askey takes his Hartlepool team to the Hive on Saturday, August 5 for their first game back in the National League following last season’s relegation.

It represents what will likely be a tough examination for Pools upon their return to non-league against the side who finished fifth in the league table last season – winning 12 of their 23 home fixtures.

Brennan’s men were edged out of their play-off eliminator tie against Boreham Wood having also narrowly missed out on a Wembley final in the FA Trophy, losing out on penalties to Gateshead in the semi-final despite coming from 3-0 down in the tie.

The Bees are, surprisingly, not considered one of the early favourites for automatic promotion with the bookmakers, but Brennan’s side are sure to be involved in the play-off picture at the very least next season.

"It’s a big test [for us],” Brennan, who has been in the head coach role for almost two years following Harry Kewell’s exit, said following the release of the 2023-24 fixtures.

"They’ve just come down, but there’s no easy games in the division – I sound like a broken record when I say that but there just isn’t.

“Last year I think we played Halifax first game and we weren’t the favourites to win that game – nobody knew that we were going to do what we did last year, but people expect a little bit more from us this year.

“We've raised the bar so expectation levels have risen and we’ve got to be able to cope with that and manage that – me as a manager, and the coaching staff and the players.

“But we’re looking forward to it – it’s a good game for us actually. It’s great that the fixtures are out, I know the supporters really look forward to that.

“It’s great to be at home for the first game, that’s exciting. But the first few games are tough. It’s not easy.

“Like we always do, we’ll take it one game at a time. We’ll look at that in another few weeks time but overall it’s a great game for our first home game.”

Pools’ most recent visit to the Hive came early in their promotion winning campaign of 2020-21 in a low-key affair which ended goalless – just two of Hartlepool’s starting line-up that night remain with the club in midfielder Tom Crawford and full-back David Ferguson.

Pools would claim all three points in the return fixture at the Suit Direct Stadium that season thanks to a Luke Armstrong goal.

The Bees would actually end the 2020-21 campaign in the bottom three but avoided relegation due to the COVID-19 pandemic impacting the leagues below the National League.

Following their trip to the Hive, Askey’s side will host Gateshead in their first fixture at the Suit Direct Stadium.

The Pools boss said: “We will travel to Barnet prepped and ready and then, with your support, we can get the Suit Direct bouncing the following week as we welcome Gateshead.”