‘It’s cost us the game’ – Dave Challinor reflects on the decisive moment that cost Hartlepool United at Weymouth

Josh McQuoid’s 40th minute header from Ollie Harfield’s cross was enough to separate the sides and end Pools’ four game winning run in the National League.

Hartlepool were reduced to 10 men in the second half after substitute Luke Molyneux was shown a straight red card for a high challenge but Challinor had no real complaints over the decision.

But the Pools boss was disappointed with the free-kick that was awarded in the build-up to The Terras’ decisive goal.

"It was their first real chance in the game,” Challinor told The Mail.

"I always felt they’d get men behind the ball but they did that more than I thought to be honest and played like an away team on the counter attack if you like with four centre-halves. But they were always going to be a threat from set-pieces.

"I can argue that we were in possession of the ball and didn’t play it forward quickly enough and ended up getting turned over.

"Timi [Odusina] has poked the ball away which isn’t a foul but the referee gives a free-kick and we’ve got to defend it but we haven’t and it’s cost us the game.

"We spoke about it and showed clips of their set-pieces like we do with all teams but we’ve not defended it and paid the price.”

The result was Pools' first defeat in the National League in over a month as they dropped to third in the table on goal difference.

And after beating National League heavyweights such as Stockport County and Notts County over the past month, Saturday’s defeat against a newly promoted side who hadn’t won a league match since October certainly stung.

“We’re obviously frustrated, we did more than enough to get something from the game but it was never going to be pretty,” Challinor added.

“The way things were, the pitch was tough as the game went on and they got men behind the ball. It just wouldn’t drop for us and I’d have been frustrated had the game finished 0-0 but that wasn’t the case and we’re going home with nothing.”

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