Hartlepool United 1-4 Bromley
The Good, The Bad & The Ugly
Bromley immediately returned to winning ways with a clinical victory over Hartlepool United on Saturday.
If there is anything Andy Woodman’s Ravens have stood out for this season it is their inability to go on losing runs. As things go, that is the best attribute any football team can have.
Against Hartlepool, Bromley went back to basics with a performance that was defensively resolute and offensively sharp. Or, in other words, they went back to the Bromley DNA.
As ever, I reflect on The Good, The Bad and The Ugly from Bromley’s 4-1 away win at Hartlepool United.
Have a read and let me know your thoughts in the comments below.
The team vs Hartlepool United
The Good
As expected, Bromley had to make changes after Tuesday night, but the most eye-catching change wasn’t one that people expected.
With injuries to central midfielders Sam Woods, James Vennings, and Lewis Leigh, Bromley were forced to play Jude Arthurs at the base of the midfield. Credit to Jude, he went about his business with aplomb.
Some have questioned whether the Ravens’ reliance on a sole defensive midfielder leaves them too open at times. True or not, Jude stuck doggedly to his task and was his usual terrier self, biting away in the middle of the park and covering a phenomenal amount of ground.
The perennially underrated Callum Reynolds took over from Byron Webster as the marshal of the defence. With the talented but inexperienced Chin Okoli and Deji Elerewe either side of him, Callum led in his typically understated way. There is more than one way to skin a cat.
Were the defenders perfect? No. Did they have to block a lot of shots? Yes. Were there some issues with free headers? Absolutely. But on the whole they dealt with a lot of Hartlepool possession and pressure and threw bodies on the line to ensure top scorer Emmanuel Dieseruvwe was largely kept quiet.
What I didn’t know until midway through the second half was that Bromley’s bus had broken down on the way to the game, forcing the squad and staff to carpool to the ground in Uber taxis. It may sound like a minor inconvenience, but preparation is key at the top level of this league.
Andy Woodman has prided himself on professionalising the football club since his arrival, so he would have been pissed about this pre-game confusion. However, credit to the players, you couldn’t tell that they might be the least bit under-prepared. In Andy’s words: “No excuses.”
If you remember back to my last G/B/U article, I stated that Michael Cheek bags goals in bursts. With a goal in his pocket from the Aldershot game on Tuesday night, Cheek scoring against Hartlepool seemed as inevitable as night turning to day. In fact, he went one better and bagged two. Repeat after me: Cheek scores in bursts.
That makes 10 goals for the frontman this season, which puts him halfway to a sensible target of 20.
The Bad
Is Hartlepool the most desolate away game in the National League?
One of the beauties of the National League is the ability to visit parts of Britain you otherwise would have nothing to do with. Indeed, a lot of my geographical understanding of Britain comes courtesy of my extensive knowledge of the country’s football grounds.
The first time I went to Barrow, I crowned it the worst place I had been to on my football travels, with Blackpool and Fleetwood tied for second place.
I declare Hartlepool the new title holder. Admittedly, I didn’t make it down to the marina, so maybe I missed some hidden gems there, but a walk through the town is like walking through a ghost town.
Only when I ventured into the Middleton Grange shopping centre did I witness some kind of life. Even then, by shopping centre standards, it had the stench of long-forgotten glory days.
Is this an example of the ‘Broken Britain’ that has emerged after 13 years of Tory corruption and rampant austerity? Hartlepool feels forgotten and in desperate need of regeneration.
I’ve ticked this away day off on my list, but I won't be back to Hartlepool unless it’s a relegation or promotion six-pointer. Still, it’s another medal to add to my football ground tour of duty.
Which has been the worst you’ve visited?
The Ugly
I’m flogging a dead horse here but what is the path to the EFL agreeing 3 up 3 down between the National League and League Two?
At the halfway point of this National League season, Bromley are on course for their best-ever finish and points total. But, even if they finish second in the table, it won’t guarantee them promotion. This has been a pitfall of the National League for quite some time.
Fallen Football League giants like Notts County and Wrexham have taken up a LOT of National League column space complaining about the lack of automatic promotion places, but what about the smaller clubs? Let’s dare to imagine that Bromley finish second this season and don’t go up through the play-offs. How aggrieved would you feel?
Chasing Chesterfield down to take the play-off lottery out of the equation isn’t really an option as the Spireites’ 11-point lead and game-in-hand make the title as good as theirs. And if they suffer a wobble, they’ll just splash the cash in the transfer market to rectify the problem.
So where does that leave us?
For the first time since Bromley reached this level of football, we can consider ourselves genuine promotion contenders. In view of that, would you be disappointed if we didn’t go up this season?
The fact that I'm even contemplating this scenario is testament to how far Andy Woodman has taken Bromley and what they now represent in the National League.
I’ve always intimated that Andy Woodman will manage in the EFL with or without us. But, for the first time since he arrived at the club, I genuinely think he might actually do it with Bromley.
Anywho, let me know what you think about the above by getting at me in the comments below.
Match ratings
Grant Smith (8)
Josh Passley (7)
Chin Okoli (7)
Callum Reynolds (8)
Deji Elerewe (7)
Besart Topalloj (8)
Jude Arthurs (8)
Corey Whitely (7)
Ben Krauhaus (7)
Louis Dennis (7)
Michael Cheek (8)
Subs:
Olufela Olomola for Louis Dennis 79’ (7)
Thanks for taking the time to read the match synopsis above.
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Good write up as usual, Mach. I listened to a bit, and caught Woodman's post-match and he sounded much much happier (issue with the coach aside).
RE: your point about promotion, I would feel aggrieved if we finished second and didn't go up. It's why, selfishly, I wish Wrexham had finished second and *not* gone up last year - their media pull shone a much bigger spotlight on it, and now they and Notts are gone I wonder if the EFL will shrug their shoulders and move on.
Great article as always, many thanks, I have enjoyed my visits to Hartlepool to be honest, never seeing us lose there helps of course, I do tend to judge grounds rather than towns etc, also, as a disabled fan, the quality of stewards and Hartlepool stewards are really good, depressing grounds for me were Salford City, both Yeovil grounds and Barnet grounds and going back to the late 70's and 80's, Croydon Athletic, Harlow Town, Heybridge Swifts, Leyton Wingate and Harwich & Parkeston.