HARTLEPOOL United striker Jon Daly knows better than most that football can be an unforgiving business, especially when nothing seems to go to plan and the fans are constantly on your back.
The 23-year old Irishman, who scored a hat-trick to condemn Wrexham to their third league defeat in four matches at Victoria Park on Saturday and took his tally of goals to seven from his last three outings, has seen his fortunes transformed in the space of a month
Interviewed in the match programme, Daly admitted he believed his Hartlepool days were numbered after a less than impressive start to the season, and even though he scored twice in both his side's away matches last week, fans in the supporters' club before Saturday's game were still divided in their opinions as to whether the former Stockport County man was worth his place in the team ahead of Bangor-born Eifion Williams.
But any lingering doubts must surely have been dispelled by Daly's performance against Denis Smith's out-of-sorts Dragons who, it must be said, never looked like scoring a goal, despite the fact they otherwise competed on fairly equal terms for long spells of the game.
The United striker's display contrasted sharply with that of Wrexham's loan signing John McAliskey, who had the proverbial nightmare.
The 23-year old Huddersfield Town man undoubtedly has all the physical attributes necessary to terrorise and bully defenders, yet he was all too frequently easily knocked off the ball by United's no-nonsense pairing of Michael Nelson and Ben Clark and, unfortunately, looked completely out of his depth.
As a result, Wrexham rarely had the time or the opportunity to get forward in numbers and the ball kept coming back with monotonous regularity towards Mike Ingham's goal to ensure another busy afternoon for adefence in which Steve Evans again was an outstanding and commanding presence.
The big centre half was perhaps a mite fortunate to complete the game after catching Daly with an elbow 17 minutes from the end in aclash which ended the United player's involvement in the game and required five stitches in a head wound, but referee GarySutton judged a caution was all that was required, a view not shared by Hartlepool boss Danny Wilson "If anyone had any doubts about Jon Daly they were settled today," he said. "He's playing like an old-fashioned centre forward at his best because he dominated everything, he was veryphysical and he
worked very hard. "I felt the challenge on him was very unfair and he was caught by the elbow. Accidental or not, that's what happened and their lad got away with not being sent off."
A red card for Evans would have been one misfortune too many for the Wrexham boss, who with only 16 fit players available for the match once more saw what was essentially a rearguard action undone by individual mistakes.
And the outcome might have been very different had the Dragons made the most of what was the first chance of the game after 12 minutes when Ryan Valentine's
long clearance from a corner was collected by Matty Done in the centre circle and the winger's pace took him beyond Nelson. But as the youngster bore down on the United goal, Darren Williams made up the ground to produce a last-ditch tackle.
In the absence of the injured Darren Ferguson, Lee Roche was given a midfield role with Simon Spender brought in at right back and the Wales under-21 international was given a hard time by his opposite number John Brackstone, who was always looking to get forward on the left flank and went close to opening the scoring after 16 minutes with ashot from the edge of the penalty area.
And it was from the defender's corner that the home side went ahead four minutes later, an unchallenged Daly meeting the cross with a firm header that gave Ingham no chance.
Within two minutes the lead was doubled, although there was more than a hint of offside in the build-up when Joel Porter broke into the box and picked out his fellow-striker for an easy side-footed finish.
It wasn't looking good for Wrexham, who survived another quick attack as Ingham saved from Porter, but they slowly regained their composure and Evans was unlucky when his towering header from a Matt Crowell corner was blocked on the goal-line.
There was little momentum though, with both Mark Jones and Done drifting in and regularly giving the ball away cheaply. Chris Llewellyn, as ever, never stopped running but there was little evidence of any understanding with McAliskey, who was frequently isolated, and the United defence was hardly stretched at any stage.
The home side failed to capitalise on Spender's error ten minutes before the break, with Porter miscuing his shot from eight yards, and it was no surprise to see Mike Williams on the field for the second half, Valentine switching to right back.
Within aminute the home side were on the back foot as Crowell's quickly-taken free kick was headed into the goal-mouth by Evans and Brackstone"s sliced clearance was superbly turned away for a corner by Dimitrios Konstantopoulos --tellingly the keeper's first save of the afternoon.
As amatter of record, he was tested just once more, diving to his left to hold a Jones free kick on 66 minutes and Daly, who had missed a sitter seconds earlier, punished another defensive
lapse when he completed his hat-trick in the 69th minute again with an uncontested header that crept in off the post.
Wrexham could do little but to play for pride, although they had little more to give by that stage, and Smith will be relieved that he now has afortnight's grace in which to stop the rot.
And he was stating the obvious afterwards when he said: "Whether it's confidence or what I don't know, but it is silly mistakes which are costing us at the moment."
Mand of the Match: Steve Evans, Could not have done more for the cause
Magic Moment: The United keeper Konstantopoulos' save to prevent an own goal
HARTLEPOOL: Konstantopoulos; Darren Williams, Nelson, Clark, Brackstone; Robson, Liddle (Bullock 31), Boland, Gibb; Daly (E Williams 73), Porter (Brown 84). Subs: Provett, Strachan.
WREXHAM: Ingham; Spender (Mike Williams 45); Evans, Danny Williams, Valentine; Mark Jones, Roche, Crowell, Done (Newby 73); McAliskey, Llewellyn. Subs: Michael Jones, Marc Williams, Johnson.
BOOKED: Ingham, Evans
REFEREE: Gary Sutton (Lincs) ATT: 4,452 NEXT MATCH: MK Dons (h), Sat, Oct 14
