Have Hartlepool United made enough progress in the last 12 months?

A young, exciting, up-and-coming manager. An underperforming squad. A frustrated fanbase. Signings failing to live up to expectations. A humbling exit from the FA Cup at the fourth qualifying round stage. Three changes in the dugout. Mid-table mediocrity. Sound familiar?

Pools vowed to make progress last summer, but the parallels between this season and last are hard to ignore. In the 2023/24 campaign, Pools began the season with John Askey at the helm, Lennie Lawrence had a spell in charge as caretaker before Kevin Phillips took the reins for the final four months. Pools started the season well, winning four of their first five games, but it wasn't long before the wheels started to fall off. A host of summer signings such as Kieran Wallace, Manny Onariase, Kieran Burton, Chris Wreh and Pete Jameson proved disappointing, albeit the arrival of Mani Dieseruvwe turned out to be one of the best bits of business in recent years. Pools were dumped out of the FA Cup by National League North side Chester and finished the season in 12th, with lowlights including an abysmal run over the festive period, a 5-2 defeat at part-time Oxford City and a 7-1 mauling at local rivals Gatshead. Even so, the end to the season under Kevin Phillips, not discounting the former Sunderland striker's ill-fated experiment with three at the back during the trip to Gateshead, meant fans were cautiously optimistic about the future at the conclusion of the campaign.

The club sprung a real surprise when they replaced Phillips, who left with the best win percentage of any Pools boss since Dave Challinor, with Darren Sarll. Even so, Sarll's reputation for being a straight-talker, his no-nonsense approach and National League experience had some fans believing he could be the right man to lead the club back to the Football League.

Fast forward a little under 10 months, and Pools are ninth in the National League. Once again, there have been three different men brave enough to sit in the dugout, with Sarll followed by veteran Lennie Lawrence, who took charge on a permanent basis this time, before head coach Anthony Limbrick was promoted to the top job earlier in February. Once again, Pools failed to make it to the first round proper of the FA Cup following an ignominious defeat to National League North opposition. Once again, a number of their summer signings - Greg Sloggett, Jack Hunter and Adam Campbell - have failed to live up to expectations, although the likes of Nathan Sheron, Adam Smith and Luke Charman have proved decent bits of business. And once again, Pools have a promising manager at the helm. Pools must provide Limbrick with the support and stability he needs to avoid the 2025/26 season ending up feeling like deja-vu once more.

As Limbrick would be quick to point out, Pools haven't given up hope of sneaking into the National League play-off places just yet. A disappointing run of recent results has come at the worst possible time, although in fairness to both Lawrence, who oversaw 16 league games before stepping down in Limbrick's favour, and the Australian, Pools have been playing catch-up ever since the departure of Sarll. Their failure to beat Tamworth and Maidenhead in the last week, both sides below them in the National League table, might well have dealt their fading hopes of finishing in the top seven a fatal blow. Although Pools are just five points adrift of the play-off places, most of their rivals have at least one game in hand while Rochdale have five and Altrincham, who visit the Prestige Group Stadium on Tuesday night, have two. In all likelihood, a Pools side who have won just one of their last seven games will need to win nine of their final 14 to have any chance of a play-off place.

Yet despite what some fans might think, it is not all doom and gloom. While there hasn't been nearly as much progress as supporters might have hoped for, there have been some steps in the right direction. As it stands, Pools are ninth with 44 points and are on course to better last term's total of 60, which led to a 12th placed finish. Pools have already kept 11 clean sheets compared to last season's dismal total of five, while their 38 goals conceded so far leaves them well placed to finish with a much better defensive record than last term, when they shipped a staggering 82 goals. Although Pools have been far less impressive as an attacking force this season - they'd need to score 32 goals in the final 14 games to match last term's tally of 70 - they've been more competitive and much harder to beat.

On balance, more of last summer's signings can be considered a success than those who arrived under John Askey and Darren Kelly, while a number of those who have endured mixed debut campaigns in the North East, such as Jack Hunter, look as though they still could come good. This season's loan signings have, with one or two exceptions, been more effective, with Nathan Asiimwe doing well under Lawrence and Reyes Cleary beginning to shine under Limbrick, while Pools have worked hard to strengthen their squad throughout the campaign. The arrivals of Jamie Miley, Sam Folarin, Gary Madine and Jack Robinson, all recruited after the season kicked off, look to be far better bits of business than the likes of Osazee Aghatise, Courtney Duffus and Mitch Hancox.

Pleasingly, Pools do seem to have a clearer direction of travel, even if the changes in the dugout have resulted in one or two unwelcome detours. Even under Sarll, who focused on signing players with links to the local area and reputations for reliability and robustness, it was refreshing to see Pools recruit with a plan, as opposed to some of the more haphazard and slapdash signings under previous regimes. While the appointment of Sarll felt doomed to fail almost from the moment he arrived following the controversial departure of Kevin Phillips, not to mention the club's decision to raise season ticket prices, Pools have got some things right this season. Recruitment - not perfect, though especially at National League level it never is - has been more purposeful, the club have shown a willingness to add to the squad throughput the season, while in Limbrick Pools will be hoping to have appointed the man to provide them with some much-needed stability, which in turn could well lead to success.

Therein lies the challenge. For Pools to make genuine progress, the club will have to stop taking one step forward and two steps back. The constant turnover of managers - Pools have made 16 permanent appointments in the last decade, while veteran midfielder Nicky Featherstone has played under 26 different regimes since his 2014 arrival - means coaches are often lumbered with a squad assembled by the previous incumbent. While the last of Paul Hartley's ill-fated Scottish signings departed last summer, Pools will likely say goodbye to the likes of Manny Onariase and Kieran Wallace, who were given two-year contracts under Askey and sporting director Darren Kelly, in a few months time. That should give the club some room for manoeuvre in the transfer market, but Pools must stick with Limbrick to avoid a repeat of previous failings.

Of course, this summer could also prove to be a challenging one, not least because both Joe Grey and Mani Dieseruvwe are out of contract and have yet to sign new deals. Although Tom Parkes and Adam Smith have penned new contracts, Pools will also be eager to agree terms with Nathan Sheron.

Barring a remarkable turnaround, few fans will remember this season too fondly. Yet Pools must make sure to act to ensure next term is not another forgettable one. In Limbrick, Pools have an ambitious, energetic and charismatic head coach, while Gavin Skelton has made a positive impression since his appointment as first team coach and Lennie Lawrence remains at the club to offer his insight and expertise. Pools have shown signs they are willing to learn from their mistakes, even if a disconnect between the fans and the board remains a real issue. After a disappointing week, this campaign looks set to fizzle out. With supporters running out of patience, Pools will need next season to spark into life.