Hartlepool United v Bromley
National League
Saturday 17th August 2019, 3pm
Victoria Park
In Opposition
Bromley have had an encouraging start to the new National League season played out to the backdrop of real optimism among supporters at Hayes Lane.
Having finished in the middle ground again last term, boss
Neil Smith has added wisely to his squad during the summer months to give them
a little more nous going in to the new campaign.Midfielder Billy Bingham will offer some fantastic
experience following his move from League One Gillingham, while the signing of
Michael Cheek should give The Ravens a genuine goal threat.They arrive at Victoria Park boasting an unbeaten record and
on the back of a battling 1-0 win at Aldershot Town on Tuesday night, which
moved them to fifth in the formative league table.This is Bromley's fifth season at National League level
since the won the National League South title in 2014/15 but it could yet be
their last as they look to become real contenders for a place in the EFL.One To Watch
The summer signing of Michael Cheek was one that really excited Bromley supporters and they will be hoping he can help score the goals to help proper the club towards the EFL.
The front man has been a regular scorer at pretty much every
club he's represented, hitting the net 16 times for Bromley's Kent rivals
Ebbsfleet United last season.Cheek - who fired an impressive 42 goals in 98 games for
Braintree Town – got off the mark for his new club when he scored against his
old one in Bromley's 3-1 victory over Ebbsfleet.Head To Head
Saturday's game will be the fifth competitive meeting between the two sides and Bromley have the edge having won three times in comparison to Pools' three triumphs.
Indeed, The Ravens completed a National League double over
Pools last term, following up their 4-0 win at Hayes Lane with a 2-1 success at
The Vic.Pools' only victory in the fixture came towards the end of
the 2017/18 campaign when goals from Josh Hawkes and Michael Woods ensured a
2-1 win at The Vic in March 2018.Last Meeting
Pools 1 Bromley 2
Saturday 23rd February 2019
Pools: Loach, Kioso, Anderson, Cunningham (Kitching 66), Amos (Molyneux 46), Noble, Donaldson, Hawkes, Featherstone, Muir (Hawkins 79), Kabamba.
Subs not used: Richardson, Scott.
Bromley: Gregory, Okoye, Goodman, Wood, Brindley, Raymond, Coulson, Sutherland, Bugiel (Higgs 71), Porter (Philpot 86), Hooper (Johnson 89).
Subs not used: Dunne, Sarpong-Wiredu.
On The Whistle
Andrew Kitchen will make his first competitive visit to Victoria Park this weekend when he's the man in the middle for our meeting with Bromley.
The official has been promoted to the National League's list
of referees this season and made his debut at Chesterfield on the opening day
when Dover Athletic defeated The Spireites 2-1.Whilst Kitchen hasn't refereed here in a league game
previously, he did take charge of our pre-season friendly against Sheffield
United Under-23s last month.Live Commentary
Mark Simpson and Brian Honour will once again be behind the microphones on Saturday to provide Pools fans all over the world with FREE live commentary of the game.
That's right, this season here on the Official Website our
audio commentary is completely free of charge, meaning it's even easier to keep
right up to date with the action.The lads will be on-air from 2.50pm on Saturday to bring youthe best build-up ahead of kick-off in the game against Bromley.
Click here now to access the live online commentary.
Buying Tickets
Tickets for Saturday's game are available in advance online or from the Club's Ticket Office, while there will also be availability on the day of the game.
Click here for all the information you need on buying tickets for Saturday.
Betting Odds
Pools 13/10
Bromley 15/8
Draw 5/2