Harrogate Town to prioritise game-time for players who need it the most at Hartlepool United

Having won three and lost two of their five friendly matches to date this summer, the League Two Sulphurites travel to recently-relegated National League outfit Hartlepool United on Friday evening (7.30pm).

Weaver has rotated his squad fairly extensively in recent weeks, and says that he is not yet certain of the starting XI he will select for August 5’s 2023/24 curtain-raiser away at Doncaster Rovers.

And, while there are still decisions to be made on who gets the nod for the club’s opening League Two match, the priority at Pools is to give game-time to the squad members who are currently undercooked in terms of their preparation.

"It’s a good fixture on Friday, one we can really look forward to at Hartlepool because we always have good contests there and it will be just like a league game for us really,” Weaver told the Harrogate Advertiser.

"There will be nothing too much to read into the starting line-up in terms of the team I will pick against Doncaster. I’m not 100 percent decided on that yet, but I know that I will be a lot clearer after Friday.

"The priority is going to be getting minutes into the legs of Toby [Sims] and Rod [McDonald], who have had little strains and who we have had to look after and be careful with in the last few weeks.

"It’s also a chance for Thommo [George Thomson] to get a bit more game-time following his ankle injury.”