Hartlepool United manager Darren Sarll relishing high level of expectation among supporters as new National League season draws nearer

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Hartlepool United manager Darren Sarll admitted that the weight of expectation at his new side is heavier than at any of his previous clubs.

Sarll, who took charge of his first game since taking over as Pools manager at the weekend, a comfortable 3-0 win over Northern League Division One outfit West Auckland Town, has been at the helm of Stevenage, Yeovil and Woking prior to arriving in the North East.

Right from the moment of his appointment at the end of April, the new boss appears to have been well aware of the unique footballing culture in the North East and has focused on signing players with links to the local area; indeed, three of his first four new recruits have strong ties to the region.

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Sarll is no stranger to expectant supporters and might be able to take some lessons from his time at Yeovil who, like Pools, have a proud history of competing in the Football League but have fallen on hard times in recent years.

Sarll has made a positive start to life at Pools, impressing fans with his straight-talking, no-nonsense attitude and focused approach to recruitment.Sarll has made a positive start to life at Pools, impressing fans with his straight-talking, no-nonsense attitude and focused approach to recruitment.
Sarll has made a positive start to life at Pools, impressing fans with his straight-talking, no-nonsense attitude and focused approach to recruitment.

Just as Sarll found out in Somerset, boasting a big fanbase and Football League heritage does not guarantee success at National League level.

However, one thing it does pretty much guarantee is that supporters will not be too inclined towards patience with Pools fans, like Yeovil, believing that their side belongs back in the Football League.

Coupled with having one of the National League's highest attendances - Pools ranked fifth last term and could be set to rise one place with champions Chesterfield, who topped the charts last season, now out of the equation - the sense that the Football League is Hartlepool's rightful home means there is immense pressure on Sarll to, at least, have a good crack at getting them back there.

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And the new boss admits he is well aware of the level of expectations with the new National league season now less than a month away.

"The expectation here is higher," he said.

"When I took over at Yeovil, it was going through a purchase and there was a new owner waiting to come in.

"There was a little bit less expectation because of that kind of no man's land, transitional period that the club was in.

"Here it's a very, very stable football club right now and the expectation is - come on Darren, let's have a successful, winning season.

"The hardest thing to do is to deliver that.

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"We've got to try and prepare ourselves mentally and physically for that level of expectation.

"What a Hartlepool United fan wants to see more than anything else, especially right here and now, is a level of commitment and a level of investment into a 90 minute game, to try and win it.

"What we've got to do in this pre-season period is to try and give them, where we can, an insight into how things are going to look and feel.

"I don't want to be at clubs that are battling to stay up, I want to work at clubs that want to win the league.

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"The important thing for us is, can we prepare ourselves, mentally and physically, for what is ahead?

"Can we try and get that connection between the supporters and players where they see, win, lose or draw, that this group will give their life and limb to try and win.

"In the moments where we can't win, for whatever reasons, they're seeing a level of commitment to that cause.

"That's what we're trying to build now, we're trying to build those foundations.

"The most important thing is the football club, not a player's next move or their next contract.

"The most important thing is that Hartlepool United win."

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