Lee Clark hails the impact of Hartlepool United transfer business done early this summer
Hartlepool United boss Lee Clark hails the business done early.
There isn’t a summer transfer deadline day in the National League but Hartlepool United head coach Lee Clark was delighted to get his business done early amid a major squad revamp.
On the pitch it has been a mixed start after an impressive opening week with back-to-back victories and clean sheets over Barrow and Aldershot Town before defeats to Sutton United and Eastleigh. Pools, who faced Halifax Town away on Tuesday evening, are back at The Vic on Saturday when Woking visit.
Off the pitch, it was a remarkably busy summer at Pools with 13 players released and 14 brought in, a complete summer squad overhaul with Clark also replacing Nicky Featherstone in the dugout. The summer rebuild kicked off with the signing of experienced striker Jordan Hugill and further attacking additions followed in the shape of Will Harris, Chris Popov, Terry Bondo and Jack Nolan. The defensive ranks have been strengthened with a permanent deal for former loan signing Cameron John and the arrivals of Liam Gibson, Neo Eccleston and the highly-rated Charlie Penman and Owen Hampson - currently out injured - will hope to challenge for a place in Clark’s midfield. Other signings included former Spennymoor Town man Corey McKeown and Brooklyn Ilunga and goalkeeper Max Merrick.
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Getting the transfer business done early was a major boost for Pools this summer - and head coach Clark. He explained: “It's huge, and it's not something that usually happens like that, for me to have most of the squad in place for the first day pre-season was fantastic. Obviously one or two other deals took a little bit longer but because of the market we were in and the quality we were looking for that's to be expected.
“But to be able to get the work in pre-season, about what we wanted to do, what we wanted the identity of the team to look like, was really important and you can't underplay how important that is and I've been very lucky - I think me and the staff - that that was done really early,” he told Red Radio.
Clark added that he believes that has helped stamp a strong identity on the team early on, he added: “Terrific, they bought into it from the first day of pre-season, every game we played in pre-season, the identity got stronger, it got better and I think in the [first] two games you can see what we're trying to be about, with and without the ball.
“Sometimes it'll work, sometimes it won't, but you will always see, even when things go wrong, what we're trying to do and what we're about, so that's a pleasing thing for me.”