Dave Challinor happy for Hartlepool United to keep grinding out results

Pools clinched a 1-0 win at Notts County on Monday to go second in the National League.

Three straight wins over the festive period have shot Pools up from the midtable positions with Luke Armstrong’s 19th-minute strike proving the difference at Meadow Lane.

Pools travel to FC Halifax Town on Saturday aiming to build on that victory and Challinor would be delighted if Pools were to secure another narrow, hardfought win.

Challinor told the Mail: “You have to learn to grind out wins and we’ve done that in the last two.

"When you’re playing in those big games that really matter, naturally there are some nerves and as much as you’d love them to be great games of football, they rarely are.

"Even looking at the very, very top level of football, there aren’t many Champions League finals that are particularly great watches.

"They tend to be nervy, horrible affairs because there’s so much on the line and that is sometimes how you have to play toward the back end of the season because players are going to get edgy and you’ve just got to be functional.

"And we’re at that stage a little bit now due to the amount of games as well as the weather and pitches.

"I’ve been critical of us being able to do it previously due to a lack of experience so for them learning to do that will be great to do that.”

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