Pool 'gems' beat Exeter

Hartlepool 3 Exeter City 0.

HARTLEPOOL 3
McPartland; White, Ashurst; Gill, Green, Lees; Harvey, Wright, Veart, Parry, Young,

EXETER CITY 0
Wilson; Crawford, Blain; Morris, Giles (Jim), Balson; Rowan, Banks, Giles(John), Wingate, Mitten,

Scorers
Hartlepool Wright 2, Veart,

Attendance 1,515

After a totally forgetable season, suddenly with this win Hartlepool find themselves unbeaten at home in seven games. Compared with the record of many teams that may sound like nothing, but for Hartlepool it is a significant improvement on the kind of home form which originally sent them plummeting to the depths of Division Four. And yesterday's victory, plus the one on Good Friday by the same score over Stockport, must set player manager Len Ashurst thinking. Exeter, like Stockport before them, offered no resistance to Hartlepool and they thoroughly deserved to make the long overnight journey home the longest trip in the Football League-without a point or a goal. Hartlepool had little to beat, but they still managed to turn on some entertainment in the blustering wind. The three goals were gems, especially the last two The first came in seven minutes through Ralph Wright, the striker who has broken his arm twice this season and only managed to score once before. He headed home unopposed after debutant David Harvey finished off a four-man move with a good cross. Then he made it two with the first of two goals in two minutes midway through the second half. An Ashurst cross was headed out to him and it was still a couple of feet off the ground when Wright volleyed home into the far side of the net. Then amateur international Bobby Veart came into it. He had been having a blinder in the first half without reward, then all of a sudden he found himself almost on the goal line five yards from the net. Instead of crossing he tried a shot from a difficult angle and the ball rocketed home.

BARRY ROWAN BECOMES A TORNADO.

Barry Rowan, Exeter City's 27 year old winger will be having a busman's holiday during the close season playing football 3,000 miles away from St James' Park, He is going on loan for three months to play for Dallas Tornado in the American Professional Soccer League, Rowan is to join Dallas in May, and his first game will be aganist a New York team, He should play in about 24 matches before returning to Exeter on 1st August, Rowan is no stranger to football in America. In 1967 he played for Oakland Clippers, before being transferred to Detroit Cougars. Whilst with Oakland they won both the league and cup, scoring 12 goals. Indeed he was the only non international player in their side, After leaving Detroit, Rowan signed for Colchester United, then moving to Plymouth Argyle

MONDY 19th APRIL 1971.

CITY SECRETARY MYSTERY AS TARR MOVES OUT.

Ian Tarr, 22, the secretary of Exeter City has been sacked, Tarr the youngest secretary in the Football League was given instant dismissal by the club's four man board of directors on Friday afternoon. He was told by a director that his employment at the club had been terminated on the closure of the office that afternoon, Exeter have made an immediate appointment to replace Tarr with Russell Thomas, 48, a retired Police Officer from the Essex County Police HQ at Chelmsford, He takes over at the Park on 3rd May, Tarr said today that he was completely surprised by the decision as no member of the board had even taken the trouble to discuss with him constructively any way of improving his efforts for the club, For the past six months he has been expected to perform by himself, a task which other Football League club secretaries have at least one assistant to work with. Repeated personal requests by Tarr for a reason for his dismissal have been met only by vague replies and as yet no adequate reason has been forthcoming to him, After 18 months in employment with Exeter it seemed to Tarr that the board of directors had come to the conclusion that he was not suited to the job. The board have in their usual reticent fashion preferred to leave the whole affair cloaked in mystery as far as Tarr is concerned, Walter Rice, City's Press relations Officer said the club felt that they needed someone older in the office and a more experienced man, The replacement Russell Thomas had been in Police adminsitration for 17 years and is a shareholder in Romford Football ClubTarr was appointed secretary of Exeter City in September 1969 having previously worked in a bank at Sherborne.

TUESDAY 20th APRIL 1971.

DERMOT CURTIS GIVING UP SOCCER.

Dermot Curtis, the former Eire International and Exeter City player now with Western League club, Bideford, has decided to hang up his boots at the end of the season, Curtis, 37, Joined Bideford at the start of last season from Exeter City on a two year contract, This season he has skippered the Bideford team to the Western League championship,

WEDNESDAY 21st APRIL 1971.

FRIENDLY
(Played at Wyvern Barracks, Exeter),

WESSEX DEPOT v EXETER CITY

Wilson; Crawford, Morris; Newman, Harvey, Wingate; Giles (John), Banks, Binney, Mitten, Rowe,

This friendly was suggested by Exeter City as a thank you to the barracks for allowing the club to use the impressive training facilities during the season.