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| MATCH REPORTS |
Report courtesy of John Burgum - Evening Post
THERE was no place to hide for distraught Roger Freestone after he fell victim to an astonishing goal David Beckham would have been proud of.
The Swansea goalkeeper, who enjoyed a slice of good fortune at Cardiff, ran out of it last night when he left his goal 14 minutes from time and planted the ball at the feet of Jon Cullen.
Hartlepool's top marksman returned it with interest from 40 yards - and it sent Swansea crashing to their fourth home defeat of the season.
Until Freestone's clanger Swansea would gladly have settled for a point against the draw specialists of the division.
Neither side really looked capable of scoring, with defences on top until the goalkeeper was stranded by his own clearance.
Even Hartlepool manager Mick Tait admitted that it took a bit of good fortune to turn the game his way.
"It all stemmed from one mistake, but it was a great finish. Jon knew where the goalkeeper was and still managed to get the ball over three Swansea defenders who tried to stop it going into the net," he said.
Cullen's eighth strike of the season came at a time when Hartlepool were gradually gaining the upper hand because they started to pass the ball with greater accuracy in the Swansea half. Paul Baker's last-minute breakaway strike as Swansea pushed forward merely rubbed salt into deepening wounds and left Alan Cork in no mood to mince his words after suffering his first defeat as a manager.
"It was a very inept performance. If we had played with the same enthusiasm as we did at Cardiff we might have won. But we made bad decisions and it cost us," he said.
Apart from singling out hard-working newcomer Nick Cusack, the manager refused to shield the rest from criticism.
"They were poor," he insisted.
Cork added: "I told the players at half time that if they raised their game 20 per cent they could win. But we kept giving away free-kicks and corners and that was very disappointing.
"It's always the same when you have big games like Cardiff. We could not follow it through. It's obvious we were unable to raise our game again. You expect that with younger players, but the older ones were just as bad."
Swansea gambled on giving Aidan Newhouse his first start in the hope that his hard-running and physical presence would unsettle one of the meanest defences in the Third Division.
But even though the new striker threatened once or twice it was obvious that the former Fulham player is some way off being fully match fit and it was no surprise when he made way for Steve Watkin.
The former Wrexham striker fared little better, although he did force one save from Steven Harper and had another effort cleared off the line as Swansea chased the game.
It was all too little, too late for a team short on craft and composure up front and in need of further strengthening both in midfield and defence to give younger players a rest.
Winning at Cardiff is all very well but unless Swansea can find a cure for their Vetch Field ills it could prove a long, hard winter.
Four home defeats in five games is a miserable record Cork is determined to put right, but it may take him a little time to revive a team which is back on the ropes after those heartening wins at Doncaster and Ninian Park.
| Result | SWANSEA (0) 0 | HARLEPOOL (0) 2 |
| Scorers | - | Cullen 76, Baker 89. |
| Teams | Freestone, Price, Clode, Walker, Edwards, Coates, Cusack, Newhouse (Watkin 60), Bird, O'Leary, Appleby (Lacey 67). | Harper, Knowles, Lucas, Ingram, Lee, Bradley, Davies, Cullen, Baker, Howard, Pedersen. |
| Subs Not Used: | Agnew | Clark, Halliday, Barron. |
| Booked: | Price, Appleby | Howard. |
| Att: | 2,949 | Ref: M.R. Halsey (Watford). |
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