The key takeaways from Hartlepool United's defeat to Newport County: Zero shots on target, full-back dilemmas - what next for Pools?

With back-to-back home games in the space of four days this felt like a significant period for Hartlepool in their battle for survival but, again, they would come up short after Mickey Demetriou’s 91st minute winner for County.

It was a result which leaves Hartlepool languishing above the drop zone in League Two by a single point with their rivals holding multiple games in hand over them as supporters began venting their frustrations at manager Keith Curle.

And here are some of the key takeaways from another Suit Direct Stadium disappointment.

Injury blow for Hartlepool United

The night started with disappointment after news of both Nicky Featherstone and, particularly, Dan Dodds' injuries which ruled them out of Curle’s match day squad.

Dodds’ injury, coupled with Jamie Sterry’s suspension, left the Hartlepool boss with a decision to make at right-back where he opted for left-back David Ferguson - more on that later.

Sterry still has one game to serve on his ban for picking up a red card in the 2-0 defeat at Crewe Alexandra but for Dodds there are concerns as to the severity of his injury.

The 22-year-old pulled up in the final training session before the fixture with Newport with a groin problem with Curle suggesting it is a case of ‘fingers crossed’ in relation to it not being a long-term problem.

The hope is Dodds will be missing for weeks as opposed to anything potentially season-ending but the defender may require a further scan on the issue to confirm a prognosis.

Featherstone’s situation appears less problematic, with the Hartlepool captain potentially back in contention for the visit of Walsall.

Featherstone was at the Suit Direct Stadium watching on as his team suffered defeat with Curle suggesting the 34-year-old has been dealing with a slight hip issue.

David Ferguson at right-back for Hartlepool United

As mentioned, Dodds’ absence meant Curle had to reshuffle his pack and he did so by moving left-back Ferguson into right-back.

Curle did have academy defender Louis Stephenson on the bench as well as midfielder Mouhamed Niang, who we have seen occupy a right-back position previously this season.

Niang, however, was deployed in midfield with Curle opting for a back four as Edon Pruti moved over to left-back in Ferguson’s place.

Asked about his selection, Curle told The Mail: “Before the last two minutes of training Fergie was playing left-back and Doddsy was playing right-back.

“Then within the last kicks of the training session, when we were doing attacking and defensive shape, Doddsy has a groin injury that sees him pull out. Then it’s a case of looking at the players you’ve got available.

“The lad [Cameron] Norman is a 6ft 3in right-sided wing-back for them so that’s going to be a decent match-up against Edon Pruti with Fergie, who I thought did well, defended well and used his right foot quite well, at right-back.

“Understanding the shape as a full-back, is there a lot of difference from left to right? The basic principles are the same and I thought Fergie did well and adjusted quite well.”

To his credit Ferguson did adjust well, and put in a decent display, but it will be interesting to see whether he remains there against Walsall.

Zero shots on target for Hartlepool United

If Hartlepool are going to get out of this mess they are going to have to win games. But to win games they are going to have to test opposition goalkeepers.

Here, Curle’s side failed to register a single shot on target throughout the entire game, with Newport having twice as many attempts at goal in general with 14 to Pools’ seven.

It’s a problem, and a big one at that.

In midfield Curle went with both Niang and Mouhamed Sylla who although offered some energy and, in Sylla, won plenty of aerial duels (5) and saw plenty of touches (72), it was a duo who were unlikely to be creative when Hartlepool needed it.

And that has been an issue throughout the campaign, not just here against Newport.

Leading scorer Josh Umerah touched the ball just 19 times in the game, only twice in the opposition box - adding to the one touch he had in AFC Wimbledon's penalty area at the weekend.

It is a concurrent problem in recent weeks in that Curle has been unable to get his attacking threats into areas where they can impact games. Hartlepool had just 13 touches in total in Newport’s penalty area compared to 27 for Graham Coughlan's side, as per Who Scored.

When addressing Hartlepool’s lack of impetus in the final third, Curle said: “I didn’t think there was a lot in the game in open play.

“Dan Kemp had a great chance in the first half but did we give our forward players enough to work with? No. Did our forward players do enough with the balls they were given? No.

“We knew we needed to be competitive. We needed to be physically challenging.

“The headlines change if we make first contact [from the corner]. Then it’s a case of we’ve defended well against the best goal scoring team from set pieces. But that’s football.

“We’ve had the elation of scoring late goals, it’s how we handle now the disappointment of conceding in the last two or three minutes.”

What can Keith Curle change?

The decision to replace Dan Kemp with midfielder Tayt Trusty was one which particularly angered supporters.

Kemp has been Hartlepool’s most influential player since joining on loan from MK Dons on transfer deadline day and although he had been nullified for part of the game, he still represented a threat heading into the final stages.

Likewise, Curle turned to striker Leon Clarke as his first substitution but things didn’t quite work out for the 38-year-old on this occasion with the striker completing just 10 of his 20 total actions in the game as per Wyscout.

With games running out, and points at a premium for Hartlepool, it seems easy to suggest now is the time for Curle to mix things up.

Despite a more pragmatic approach, Hartlepool continue to boast the worst defensive record in the division. So is it time for Curle to sacrifice another defender or midfielder in order to add another body in attack from the off and be more gung-ho?

Can Curle look to tap into the pace of the likes of Joe Grey, Brendan Kiernan and Wes McDonald?

Where Curle got some joy from his changes against AFC Wimbledon, here he didn’t. And these are decisions he will need to make quickly.

What next for Hartlepool United?

With supporters reaching the precipice, Curle has already placed a huge significance on Hartlepool’s next league game with Walsall.

Having dropped the ball against Newport, Curle has suggested this is pretty much a must-win for his side against the Saddlers.

And he’s right, it does feel that way.

“Ultimately the only way we get out of it is with results. We need to win on Saturday,” said Curle.

“We need to win five games and draw three which gives us an opportunity to be where we need to be.”