When Spartans midfielder Damen Mullen takes to the Victoria Park pitch on Friday evening he will return to the club that handed him his first chance in football. The twenty five year old joined Hartlepool United’s academy as a teenager before leaving for Northern League side Morpeth Town and despite his release from Pools he still looks back on his time at the club fondly, although he joked that one current team mate almost put on downer on the experience.
“My main memories were thinking ‘I love this job’ getting up and going to play football everyday, which young lad doesn’t dream of doing that? Having a coach like Paul Stephenson was great, I learnt so much from him and he helped me progress as a player. Also training with Craig Hignett near to the end of his career was something which has stuck with me, I’m yet to come across a stronger player. Not forgetting my time spent with Stephen Turnbull at the club, this was obviously a major low point”
An impressive band of the Green Army will make the short trip to Victoria Park with Spartans selling out the initial allocation of just under 1,100 tickets, with another 250 going on sale on Wednesday morning. Mullen stressed the importance of the Spartans faithful’s support, describing them as “tremendous”.
“The supporters are massive, the fact they come from around the country is tremendous and all the lads appreciate their turnouts week in week out home and away. There’s nothing better than hearing them cheering the team on, it gives everyone a lift and makes you want to push that bit further. They make away games feel more like home games, the Leek game especially comes to mind and I’m sure by kick off on Friday night that is the atmosphere we will all anticipate”
With three defeats in the last nineteen games Spartans go into the cup tie in good form, with three of those wins coming in a row last week. League wins over King’s Lynn Town and Witton Albion sandwiched a Northumberland Senior Cup win over Ashington, a game that Mullen scored in. The midfielder revealed that confidence is high in the changing room and that the players are “buzzing”
“The atmosphere around the dressing room is nothing but optimism, everyone is buzzing and can’t wait for Friday. It’s the biggest game a lot of us will ever be a part of and it’s a winnable game. We all know if we do things right and everyone is on their game we can cause an upset. Yes there will be nerves but all the pressure is on Hartlepool and with a bit luck we will be in the hat for the third round”