Hartlepool United 0 Northampton Town 0: Cobblers boss fires broadside at Pools players

The Cobblers boss praised Pools for their "excellent" display but then questioned why they had not performed like that under previous boss Ronnie Moore.

Wilder did not say the players got Moore the sack but he was not that far off, condemning the performance against Stevenage - Moore's last in charge of Pools before being sacked.

“I thought Hartlepool were excellent [today],” said Wilder. “If they ran around like they did today for the previous manager then he would still be here.

“I know there is always a reaction [to a new manager coming in] and I like Craig and [first-team coach] Curtis Fleming. I think they’re really good guys who try to play the right way.

“But I came to watch them against Stevenage and they never tried a leg and that is a bit of a joke to me.”

Wilder said he was not upset that the 10-match winning run failed to reach 11.

“To win 10 games of football in a row at any level is an outstanding achievement and it gets harder by the game,” he added.

“The players are more disappointed than me. I am not too disappointed. We have a had a great run and we will go again.

“Our aim at the start of the season was to get out of the division and we’re one point closer to that.”