Hartlepool United transfer update: Paul Hartley discusses the latest transfer activity including Kilmarnock striker

Pools are short on numbers at present following the recent exits of Luke Molyneux, Timi Odusina, Omar Bogle and Neill Byrne with manager Hartley keen to add reinforcements to his squad ahead of the start of the season at Walsall.

Hartley remains hopeful he can bolster his ranks over the coming days and weeks and has even suggested there may be a breakthrough in Pools’ search to bring in a new striker ahead of Saturday’s trip to neighbours Billingham Synthonia for their second pre-season friendly.

Hartley’s side face five fixtures before their trip to the Banks’s Stadium at the end of the month with the Pools boss assured his squad will be ready in terms of its strength and depth for the League Two opener.

And here is everything Hartley had to say to The Mail on the latest transfer news at the Suit Direct Stadium.

How are things looking on the transfer front?

We’ve made a lot of offers for three or four players so we’re quite hopeful by the end of the week we’ve got some more good players in the building and players coming in at the top end of the pitch.

But it takes time. If you want to get good players in it takes a little bit longer than you’d think sometimes, especially at this stage of the season.

There’s a lot of clubs fighting over players. A lot of clubs are short on numbers now and it’s that time of the season when players are just holding off a little bit, but we do think we can get some more in by the end of the week, we’re really hopeful on that.

Is that what you expect, to have those in for the Billingham Synthonia game this weekend?

We’d like to think so. We’d like to get the additions in by the end of the week and I’m pretty hopeful we can get them in if we can all work together and just push a little bit. Then at the other end it’s just getting players to agree stuff.

It’s negotiations, that’s how it happens. It doesn’t take one day. It can take a couple of weeks sometimes. But we’re working really hard.

We’ve been speaking to a lot of players and over the coming days and weeks we’ll have enough players in the squad to be ready for the game against Walsall that’s for sure.

What can you tell us about Kilmarnock striker Oli Shaw? Is he somebody you are interested in?

I’ve never heard that one. I know Oli Shaw well. I’m interested in strikers, I’m not interested in specific names but I’m interested in bringing players in at the top end of the pitch because that’s where we need to bring in so it’s really vital we bring them in.

Oli Shaw is a Kilmarnock player and has never been mentioned to me. It’s not a name that I’ve ever even thought about.