Lee Clark offered a brutal verdict after Hartlepool United's 2-0 defeat at Kidderminster Harriers on Friday night. The manager said there were 'no positives to take' from a performance he labelled the worst of the season.
Hartlepool now sit 14th in the National League table with nine points from seven games. Their recent form shows just one win in the last five outings, a sequence that reads LLWLL.
How the game unfolded
Kidderminster took the lead after thirty-five minutes when a cross was deflected into his own net by Hartlepool wing-back Neo Eccleston. The visitors' night worsened early in the second half when Eccleston received a second yellow card, reducing them to ten men.
Despite being a player down, Clark said his side looked more solid in the second period. But any hope of a comeback was extounded five minutes from time when Callum Stewart scored Kidderminster's second, assisted by E. Moore.
Clark's blunt reaction
Speaking after the final whistle, the Hartlepool manager did not hold back. "Really poor, really disappointing, worst performance by a mile this season," Lee Clark told reporters. "No positives to take - but I accept responsibility, I’m the leader."
Clark said his team failed to carry any momentum from their 1-0 home win against Woking six days earlier. He pointed out that Kidderminster were better from the first minute and that his side were poor out of possession, failing to drop onto second balls or win first contacts. He also noted Hartlepool did not test the opposition goalkeeper in the first half.
What happens next
The manager said his own performance must improve dramatically. "Everything has to improve," Clark said. "My performance has to improve massively and everyone else off the back of that does." He added that the team's form has been inconsistent like a rollercoaster and that they may need to freshen up the squad with changes.
Attention now turns to a midweek trip to face Altrincham. Hartlepool will be looking to halt a run of two consecutive defeats and improve on their current league position, which sees them eight points behind leaders Boreham Wood.
The club's goal difference stands at minus one, having scored five and conceded six across the opening seven matches of the campaign.
