Hignett rules out loans as he looks to keep Pools away from League Two trouble

Two out of three is not a bad ratio for Craig Hignett to start his first full week in charge of Pools.

The new Victoria Park boss tasted instant success on Saturday with a 2-1 win over Yeovil Town in the crucial 22nd v 21st showdown at the wrong end of League Two.

Hignett said he will be looking to get his team moving – but he will be doing it with the existing squad.

Previous boss Ronnie Moore worked the loan mark extensively, but Hignett says his intention will be to give the players at Victoria Park now the chance to shine.

“I am not interested (in loans),” he said. “I’m happy with what I have got, I think the lads here deserve a chance.

“I am going to give them all a chance and we’ll assess what we need at a later date.

“If we had lost three or four on the spin I might have thought different, but I have every confidence in what I have got here.”

Second-half goals from Billy Paynter, from the penalty spot, and Adam Jackson defeated the Glovers.

It sets up Pools nicely for tomorrow night’s home match against Notts County.

Pools have between two and five games in hand against clubs at the bottom of the table and the match against a inconsitent Magpies is one of them.

A victory tomorrow would NOT move them higher in the table, but it could put them six or seven points above the drop zone.

“I’m not happy at us being 21st,” said Hignett, who has confirmed Curtis Fleming as his assistant. “I want us to be as high and as far away from the bottom as far as we can.

“Saturday was a good start, but there’s a lot of work to be done. That win can lift us,

“Yeovil have been on a good run, they have been to some hard places and had half-decent results,

“They are not a bad footballing side – they probably feel, like us, that are in a false position – but we could have won by more Their keeper has made three good saves and we’ve got in some great positions only for our finishing to let us down at times,

“Nathan [Thomas] has had some great chances, Luke [James] has had a couple of openings too, Jake Gray’s skimmed the bar.

“But it’s a confidence thing, we have win and we have a happy dressing room.”

Hignett joked how he had expected a “6-0 win” and to “play like Barcelona” on his managerial debut but admitted he now knows the pressure the squad had been feeling after a run of just one win in five fixtures.

“I didn’t realise how much pressure they were under so I now understand the anxiety but I was really proud of them and we will get better,” said the 46-year-old.

“At times it was all right, at times you can see there’s work to be done but I knew that anyway, but I’m massively proud of everyone and what we did.”

Hartlepool: Carson, Richards, Bates, Jackson, Jones, Featherstone (Magnay 62), Thomas (Bingham 63), Woods, Gray, Paynter (Fenwick 81), James. Subs not used: Carroll, Scott Harrison, Bartlett, Hawkins. Booked: Thomas, Paynter. Goals: Paynter 58 pen, Jackson 71

Yeovil: Krysiak, Roberts, Sokolik, Smith, Dickson, Walsh, Tozer, Dolan (Gillett 73), Compton (Cornick 26), Bird (Campbell 72), Zoko. Subs not used: Laird, Weale, Lacey, Ward. Sent Off: Smith (79). Booked: Zoko, Tozer. Goal: Zoko 90

Att: 3,923. Ref: Kevin Wright (Cambridgeshire)