Can Hartlepool United beat in-form Solihull Moors?

Pools must have earmarked last Saturday's visit of out of sorts Eastleigh as a game they wanted to win.

However, Lawrence's plan went out the window 15 minutes into the contest when influential defender Dan Dodds was sent off following a reckless challenge on former Southampton man Jake Vokins.

In the end, Pools might have been surprised by just how easy it was to keep the unadventurous Spitfires out.

Goalkeeper Brad Young, who kept his second successive home clean sheet, produced a couple of smart saves at his near post, thwarting Vokins before the break and denying the marauding Niall Maher in the second half, but Pools were comfortable for the most part.

Luke Charman almost won the game for the hosts in added time but Joe McDonnell made himself big to preserve a point for Eastleigh.

A delighted Lennie Lawrence admitted the stalemate "felt like a win" after a resolute Pools were reduced to 10 men for the fifth time in 18 National League games.

It wasn't long before attention turned to the trip to Solihull with Pools knowing that a result in the Midlands would turn a decent point against Eastleigh into an excellent one.

Yet defeat at Damson Park would mean Lennie Lawrence's side have managed just a single point from their last three games and would leave Pools at risk of getting cut adrift from the top seven or, worse, looking over their shoulders towards the relegation zone.

It was perhaps not ideal, then, that Solihull hammered bottom club Ebbsfleet 6-0 last Saturday.

Optimistic fans might be at pains to point out that the Kent outfit have secured just eight points from 18 league games so far this season.

On the other hand, the Fleet's one win this term came against Pools and so more realistic supporters will be well aware of the size of the task facing Lennie Lawrence and his team.

Looking at Solihull's recent record might even be enough to make Pools fans wince - the Moors reached the National League play-off final last season, losing out on penalties, and will come into this weekend's game having only lost one of their last 10 games.

Forward Jack Stevens is one of the division's most in-form frontmen and has scored nine goals in his last 11 games, former Cardiff man Sam Bowen ranks among the league's most complete midfielders while towering striker Connor Wilkinson bagged a hat-trick last time out.

On paper, then, it looks to be a daunting task for Pools - but there are reasons for travelling fans to feel optimistic.

The Moors are set to be without suspended defender James Clarke, who has made almost 150 appearances in the Midlands and has been a regular in Andy Whing's side so far this season.

What's more, Solihull do not have the most imposing home record - of their nine games at Damson Park, the Moors have won just three and have failed to beat strugglers Braintree, Wealdstone and Southend on home turf.

It's also worth noting that there is still a sense at the Prestige Group Stadium that this Pools side should be doing much better than they currently are.

Pools are well-stocked in forward areas and Mani Dieseruvwe has scored seven goals in his last eight games while Luke Charman is beginning to hit top gear after returning from injury.

The squad is also starting to look much deeper, with Luke Waterfall and Jack Hunter making welcome returns to full fitness while new arrivals Kazenga LuaLua and Matthew Bondswell provide Lawrence with different options at both ends of the pitch.

If Pools are serious about making the play-offs, they'll have to prove they can beat some of the sides who look set to be in and around the promotion picture come the end of the campaign - perhaps, then, this is an opportunity as well as a challenge.

Pools will certainly be under no illusions as to the size of the task awaiting them in the Midlands but it feels like the perfect time for the players to begin realising some of their potential.

A win against one of the division's form sides would send a real message to the rest of the league and it could be the catalyst Pools need to spark their season into life.