What did we learn from Hartlepool United's pre-season win over Marske United including pick of the goals by ex-Ross County man

Paul Hartley’s side made the trip to Mount Pleasant on the back of a comfortable afternoon against Billingham Synthonia and after a much more competitive first half, Pools were able to show their quality after the break.

Joe Grey headed Pools into the lead on the hour before Mouhamed Niang capped a solid performance with the second.

As the home side tired, Pools began to dictate things and added a third 20 minutes from time when substitute Reghan Tumilty scored the goal of the night from distance.

Hartley will be slightly concerned with an injury picked up by Niang however, who limped off after scoring his first goal for the club.

And here is what we learned from Pools’ latest pre-season outing.

Full-back strength in depth

It was encouraging to see Jamie Sterry being put through his paces ahead of Pools’ fixture at Mount Pleasant, but when it came to the team news it was clear precautions were being taken with the former Newcastle United defender not involved in Hartley’s squad.

Sterry suffered a knock in the pre-season camp in Portugal and has been dealing with the issue since which kept him out of the 6-0 win over Billingham Synthonia at the weekend.

Hartley suggested Sterry had taken part in running exercises with the squad on Friday with his return to full training at the beginning of the week.

And Sterry could be seen long before the two teams emerged being put through his paces with head of sports science Keith McGrath out on the pitch, but Hartley made the decision not to field him against the non-league side.

But in Sterry’s second successive absence, Pools’ strength in depth at full-back once again shone through as former Celtic youngster Brody Paterson started in place of David Ferguson on the left with Reagan Ogle at right back.

Both Ferguson and Reghan Tumilty, who started in the win over Billingham Synthonia three days ago were on the bench with both featuring in the second half to emphasise the options Hartley has available to him in that position.

The need for another central defender

As with Sterry’s absence, Scotsman Euan Murray was also forced to miss out with the ex-Kilmarnock defender a spectator as he continues to recover from a slight hamstring issue.

Murray gave a solid showing in the defeat to Hibernian out in Portugal but picked up the injury on his return to training with Hartley once again erring on the side of caution over the defender.

Unlike Sterry however, Murray took no part in any fitness testing ahead of the game.

It meant that Alex Lacey and Niang were named as Hartley’s starting central defensive pairing once more with Lacey then being replaced by Tumilty at the break.

Lacey and Niang were both fairly comfortable once more in keeping a clean sheet, with both content at bringing the ball out from the back and searching for a progressive forward pass, but in Murray’s absence it was Ogle who filled in at centre back in the second half which perhaps highlights the need for further reinforcements in the defensive department.

Niang would grab the second of the evening but more worryingly for Pools the midfielder, who has been featuring in defence, hobbled off after that goal with Lacey brought back into the action.

Boyes future

It was certainly a positive move by Pools to agree terms over an extension with young goalkeeper Patrick Boyes’ deal, with many inside the club high on the teenager’s potential.

But with two games against non-league opposition now having been and gone, with Boyes unlisted in either squad, it perhaps suggests his future, for this season at least, will be on loan somewhere.

And while that my not be a shock given the stage of his development, it was a little surprising not to see the youngster involved at some stage of the previous 180 minutes.

Instead Hartley handed two lots of 45 minutes to No.1 Ben Killip and the experienced Kyle Letheren for both fixtures.

Given the impact of Letheren’s presence with Killip prior to each pre-season game so far, it would be easy to suggest his immediate focus will be on the coaching side as opposed to challenging Killip for his position.

But with over 15 years of experience, and still only 34-years-old, he may represent more than suitable cover should it be required as shown with a smart save in the second half.

Crawford promise

Pools were given a bit more of a run for their money here, particularly in the first half, before their fitness and quality told in the second half.

And much of that was down to the introduction of Tom Crawford who was able to control things in midfield and bring a little bit more of a creative presence in the final third.

While the assists may have gone elsewhere, Crawford’s impact certainly allowed Pools to get further up the pitch.

After an injury scare against Hibernian in Pools’ pre-season opener, Crawford grabbed a goal against Billingham Synthonia before this encouraging cameo to represent a decent start to pre-season from the midfielder.

Trialist Tollitt

After a solid 90 minutes against Billingham Synthonia, Pools’ trialist Ben Tollitt was given another 45 minutes to impress against Marske with the former Portsmouth and Tranmere Rovers winger going close to grabbing the opener when hitting the foot of the post midway through the first half.

With three fixtures coming up against higher level opposition, Tollitt has done enough to be considered in the run up to the season.