Pemberton praises familar faces as Chesterfield battle back to draw with Hartlepool United

John Pemberton praised a pair of his academy teenagers for their 'game-changing' contributions in Chesterfield's second half fightback against Hartlepool.
John Pemberton is pictured ahead of Saturday's game.John Pemberton is pictured ahead of Saturday's game.
John Pemberton is pictured ahead of Saturday's game.

The caretaker boss got a point from his first game in charge, a 1-1 draw, thanks to Brad Barry's 75th minute leveller.

READ THE REPORT HEREFor around 70 minutes Pools were the better side, but Pemberton switched to the formation he had considered starting with and that 3-5-2 system brought Town back into it.

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Substitutes Jamie Sharman, who was solid in what became a three-man defence, and Luke Rawson, who was a handful for Hartlepool up front, delighted their boss.

"I wanted to make a difference with regards to how we played, because I think we needed to," said Pemberton.

"I toyed with starting like we did when we changed it, but that means me throwing two young kids on.

"I wasn't sure what the atmosphere would be like, that's why I didn't do it.

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"I thought they were excellent when they came on and changed the game for us.

"Jamie Sharman showed a lot of composure.

"I thought two home grown players might give the fans a bit of a lift.

"I think the first chance came too early for Luke, the second one he should have scored, it was a brilliant touch."

Pemberton rued the 'game management' that was lacking in first half stoppage time, when Pools took the lead.

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But the second half display, particularly in the final 20 minutes, delighted him.

"There's work to be done, you can see that.

"The goal was a bit of a killer, that's just game management. A minute to go and we're a little bit dopey with the pass, which exposed us.

"When they get a kick in the backside, it's how they recover. We had a little rally round and they recovered really well.

"The changes made a difference to us.

"I'm glad we got the goal, I think we deserved it."

Pemberton has had just one training session with the team before the game and still isn't sure how long he'll be in charge.

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He relished the occasion, with an announced attendance of over 4,700, but reiterated that his heart lies in producing young talent for the club.

"I've worked with first teams for a long time and I love the atmosphere of a match day, I don't think you can beat that.

"But I get a lot of pride out of seeing Jamie Sharman and Luke play today.

"I want to produce some more of those.

"I want to be part of this club long term.

If you end up the manager you probably don't end up long-term.

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"I'll speak to Ashley (Carson, company secretary) when I leave here. I've said just make sure you get the right person you need.

"If I can nick a couple of results so we don't have to panic into the situation, we're okay.

"If it takes a week, a month, I'm okay with that."