Keith Nobbs has revealed his excitement ahead of Sunday's Northern Masters at the Telewest Arena.

The former Pools star is among the squad for this weekend's big tournament and he can't wait to get stuck in for the cause.

"I'm looking forward to it - it will be my first competitive game since retiring," he told the Official Website.

"It will be nice to see some old faces and to play against some local rivals live on Sky Sports."

Nobbs - famed for his robust challenges and no-nonsense style - says he'll be as uncompromising as ever on Sunday evening.

"I hope they have reinforcements on the panels because I'll be a different lad when I pull on the blue and white again!" he commented.

"I only got the phone call a few weeks ago so fitness-wise I could have done with a little more time but I'm raring to go."

It's expected that Pools fans will turn out in force once again for the tournament as they cheer their team on from 6pm against Newcastle United, Middlesbrough and Sunderland.

"Pools fans have always travelled in good numbers wherever the team were playing," Nobbs said.

"And I expect they'll be there in full voice again at the weekend so hopefully we can give them plenty to cheer about with our performances."

Pools Squad: Simon Bishop, Andy Saville, Paul Olsson, Brian Honour, Paul Dalton, Rob McKinnon, Paul Baker, John Tinkler, Keith Nobbs.

Click here to see ticket information for the Masters or you can pay on the gate on Sunday.