Watson out with broken leg

The 31-year-old suffered the injury during The Pool's 4-1 thrashing of North East rivals Darlington on Saturday at The Victoria Ground.

Watson was stretchered off during the derby victory and taken to hospital where X-rays confirmed that the hit-man had broken his fibula and will be out for six to seven weeks.

On the injury to the former Bradford City (pictured) and Bournemouth man, Hartlepool manager Chris Turner told the club's official website: "He will be out for 6-7 weeks, which is obviously a blow.

"On the positive side, it is not the leg he broke a few years ago, which would have been really serious.

"He will see the country's leading specialist in leg injuries on Monday and will receive the best possible treatment.

"He said he heard the crack when he went down, which is always a bad sign."