Neil Austin this afternoon put pen to paper on a deal bringing him to Victoria Park and then revealed he's determined to play his part in making Pools a League One force.

The 26-year-old defender sealed a move to Pools from local rivals Darlington after weeks of speculation and now it's a done deal he's already looking forward to the big kick-off.

"I think it will be a tough season because the league looks as hard as it's ever been," Austin told Pools World.

"But I will look forward to the big atmospheres and enjoy the big games and I'm delighted to be back in League One with Hartlepool and I'm sure we can do well.

"I'm a strong player and I like to get my defending right but also try and get forward to support the wide player whenever possible.

"I've played plenty of games at this level for Barnsley in the past so I'm pretty experienced too and I can't wait to get going."

Austin becomes the fourth signing since the end of last season following the arrivals of Adam Boyd, Leon McSweeney and Peter Hartley.

And the right-back, who was voted in to last term's PFA League Two Team of the Year, revealed it was Chris Turner's exciting plans for the future that clinched the deal.

"I've been speaking with Chris Turner for a couple of weeks; he's sold the Club well and I'm just happy to get it all sorted," he told Pools World.

"As soon as Chris phoned me the move appealed and I met with him in Newcastle to discuss it more and now I just want to get started."

See the exclusive video interview with Neil Austin right now only on Pools World.