Halifax Town 1-0 Hartlepool United: Pools suffer third straight defeat on difficult night in West Yorkshire

After an even and entertaining first half, Halifax went ahead when Will Hugill lashed home in the 53rd minute following an incisive counter-attack.

Pools huffed and puffed in the second half, changing shape several times, but struggled to create too much in the way of clear-cut opportunities as their underwhelming start to the new National League campaign continued.

Pools started the game with plenty of intensity but the first chance of the evening fell to the hosts when Hugill fired over following a purposeful Halifax move after two minutes.