Antony Sweeney has revealed that there has been a bubbly
atmosphere in training following back-to-back wins and he has urged the players
Pools enjoyed their biggest win of the season last time out
in the National League at Aldershot Town a fortnight ago before seeing off
Brackley Town in the FA Cup and keeping a second consecutive clean sheet last
week.Caretaker boss Sweeney has seen first-hand how that has
impacted on the demeanour of his squad on the training ground and is hoping that
the winning feeling is something they can get used to.“You've got to enjoy it when you win but you have to thriveon it as well,” Sweeney told Pools TV.
“I am pretty sure the reason training has been decent is on
the back of two good results – would it have been as intense and lively if it
was on the back of two not so good results?“That's what winning breeds and hopefully the players have
got a taste for it because I keep looking at the league table and thinking that
if we can get on a little run it will quickly look a whole lot better for us.“I believe we have some good players in this squad, it's as
strong as it's been for a number of years and every week it's difficult to pick
an eleven and even more difficult to pick five for the bench.“We're strong but that has to be shown in consistent results,
and consistency is probably the key word for us now – we can say it, we can
believe it but only performances and results will back that up.”Pools return to National League action at The Vic on
Saturday when they host Barnet, who will have been boosted by their midweek FA
Cup replay win over Potters Bar.The Bees have struggled for regular victories over recent
weeks but Sweeney has seen enough of them in action this season to know that
Pools can't afford to take them lightly.“When they're good, they're very good,” Sweeney admitted.
“I have watched a couple of their games and we've had the
scouting reports on them so we know they play an expansive brand of football and
they pass the ball really well.“They have their deficiencies like any team at this level so
it's up to us to match what they bring to the party but also stamp our
authority on the game.“I believe I've picked a side and formation that can do that so it just needs putting it in to practice on Saturday now.”