Hartlepool United manager Simon Grayson call for "full, wholehearted performance" ahead of visit of Braintree Town
Hartlepool United manager Simon Grayson has called for a "full, wholehearted performance" as he prepares to take charge of his first competitive home game this weekend.
Pools, who kicked off their new National League campaign with a solid albeit unspectacular stalemate at Yeovil last week, are gearing up for their first home game of the season on Saturday. Pools are set to entertain a Braintree side who finished 17th last term, four points clear of the relegation zone, but will arrive in the North East as the division's early pace-setters following a statement win over Halifax, who finished in the play-offs last season, in the opening round of fixtures. Despite losing both Kyrell Lisbie, who scored 14 goals in 42 games last season, and Jermaine Francis, who joined Pools in July following a successful loan spell at Cressing Road, Steve Pitt's side made the perfect start to the new campaign thanks to a debut brace from Lewis Walker and a header from Colchester loanee Frankie Terry, who returned to Essex this summer having spent the first half of last season with the Iron.
For Grayson, Saturday's game also promises to be a momentous occasion as he prepares to manage in front of the Pools fans for the first time in a competitive game since his appointment in June. Following what appears to have been a strong summer of recruitment that's seen Pools welcome 12 new signings, strengthening all over the pitch, there is a renewed sense of optimism and expectation among long-suffering supporters even if off-field issues continue to make headlines. If Pools are serious about being successful this season - and, according to Grayson, success constitutes finishing in a play-off place - then they simply have to improve their record at Victoria Park. Once among the most hostile and intimidating atmospheres in the entire country, the Vic has become a difficult place for Pools to play in recent years, particularly since relegation back to the National League in 2023; in the last two seasons, Pools have won just 19 of their 46 home matches in the league.
"No matter where you are in the world, when you're managing a team and you're at home and you've got a good, strong fanbase, you're excited to get going," Grayson told BBC Radio Tees Sport.
"That'll be no different on Saturday. There will be nerves and apprehension because every coach and manager never knows what you're going to get from your team. You want to go out and give a full, wholehearted performance and get a positive result. I'm looking forward to it, and let's hope by five o'clock on Saturday afternoon we're all in a really positive mood and celebrating a victory. It won't be easy, but we feel we're in a good place ourselves."