Newcastle United midfielder in contention for Hartlepool United return as Graeme Lee's side host Mansfield Town while Pools boss confirms season ending injury for ex-Sunderland man

Joe White could return for Hartlepool United against Mansfield Town while Graeme Lee waits on the condition of goalkeeper Ben Killip.
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White missed Pools’ trip to Newport County after picking up an ankle injury in the defeat to Bradford City recently while the Newcastle United loanee has also been dealing with an illness.

White returned to training late last week and made the trip to Northampton Town to complete the warm-up but did not feature in the matchday squad as Pools were beaten 2-0 at Sixfields.

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White has made 10 appearances for Pools since joining on-loan from the Magpies in January, and has generally impressed in that time, and could provide another boost for Graeme Lee after both Bryn Morris and Mark Shelton returned to the squad at the weekend.

Joe White has missed Hartlepool United's last two games through injury and illness. (Credit: Michael Driver | MI News)Joe White has missed Hartlepool United's last two games through injury and illness. (Credit: Michael Driver | MI News)
Joe White has missed Hartlepool United's last two games through injury and illness. (Credit: Michael Driver | MI News)

Morris had been out of action for over a month after picking up an ankle injury in the draw with Sutton United and completed just over 60 minutes on his return to the starting XI.

Meanwhile Shelton, who missed the games with Bradford and Newport due to a hamstring injury, was an unused substitute at Northampton.

“The other lads had been back in training early in the week and Joe had come back in part of Thursday and joined in Friday,” Lee told The Mail.

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“He’d also been ill on the back of that so I just thought, like we did with Bryn the week before, to get him involved and get him in the squad [beforehand].

Graeme Lee will assess Hartlepool United goalkeeper Ben Killip after missing the Northampton Town defeat through illness. (Credit: Mark Fletcher | MI News)Graeme Lee will assess Hartlepool United goalkeeper Ben Killip after missing the Northampton Town defeat through illness. (Credit: Mark Fletcher | MI News)
Graeme Lee will assess Hartlepool United goalkeeper Ben Killip after missing the Northampton Town defeat through illness. (Credit: Mark Fletcher | MI News)

Lee added: “Bryn looked like it showed in the second half. He was getting a little bit tired. I just hope his ankle responds alright after the game.

“He had a good week of training. Bryn has come in to play football games and he showed when he first came in what he adds to the team and the result [against Northampton] won’t take away from my mindset. I know what Bryn can offer.”

Meanwhile, Lee will face a wait on the condition of goalkeeper Killip after the Pools No.1 missed the defeat at Northampton through illness.

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Killip’s absence meant a debut for Huddersfield Town loanee Nicholas Bilokapic, despite the teenager being on international duty less than 24 hours before kick-off at Sixfields.

Hartlepool united striker Jordan Cook will miss the remainder of the season after picking up a thigh injury in the goalless draw with Oldham Athletic. Picture by FRANK REIDHartlepool united striker Jordan Cook will miss the remainder of the season after picking up a thigh injury in the goalless draw with Oldham Athletic. Picture by FRANK REID
Hartlepool united striker Jordan Cook will miss the remainder of the season after picking up a thigh injury in the goalless draw with Oldham Athletic. Picture by FRANK REID

Bilokapic gave a solid account of himself in his first start for Pools, despite the defeat, and could continue to deputise should Killip’s illness remain.

“Hopefully it’s one of those 24-hour bugs. We’ll just have to see how he is,” Lee told The Mail on Killip.

“It was hot and cold sweats through the night and he was up all night with no sleep. We just told him to get home and get plenty of rest and plenty of water and hopefully he’ll be ok for Tuesday.”

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And Lee has also revealed striker Jordan Cook will miss the rest of the campaign with a thigh injury picked up in the draw with Oldham Athletic as he insists this is his squad for the final eight games of the season.

“There’s 20 players travelled and that’s us apart from Ben and Cooky, who is injured now for the rest of the season.

“This is us, this is the squad. So we’ve got to be all together because everyone is going to play a big part in this season going forward.”

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