Rochdale 1-2 Hartlepool United: Keith Curle's tactical switch, an unchanged XI and finding a way to win - the key takeaways from Pools win

Hartlepool United had braved the elements and earned themselves a crucial three points over Rochdale and, by that stage, it didn’t matter what was being poured on them from the skies above, whether it be hail, rain, sleet or snow, they were going to enjoy this moment with their supporters.

Over 600 had made the festive trip across the moors as Pools claimed back-to-back victories for the first time since February to maybe, just maybe, provide a sense of hope as we head towards the New Year.

Rollin Menayese scored his second goal in as many games to open the scoring before Pools had to deal with adversity in the second half after Ian Henderson’s smart equaliser.

But where Hartlepool may have surrendered their lead completely earlier in the season, here they found the resilience to get themselves back in front thanks to a wonderful free kick from the rejuvenated Callum Cooke.

And here are some of the key talking points from Hartlepool’s Boxing Day success.

Jamie Sterry continues his return for Hartlepool United

Jamie Sterry made his full return in the win over Crawley Town and demonstrated what Hartlepool have been missing for large parts of the season with the full-back struggling with a number of injuries so far this campaign.

The 27-year-old put in an excellent display as Pools claimed a vital 2-0 success on the road and, almost as important, he showed no signs of the calf injury troubling him.

It led to Sterry completing back-to-back 90 minutes for the first time since August with, perhaps, no coincidence Pools securing victory in each of those matches.

And while Curle will have a decision to make over Sterry’s involvement, with a further two games in quick succession, having the defender available for selection again is a huge plus for Hartlepool.

“It’s building up that trust and that relationship with Jamie,” said Curle.

“There’s so much we can do medically and physically with Jamie but, ultimately, we have to listen to Jamie and what Jamie is telling us.

“I’ve got no problem with Jamie Sterry telling us he needs to lessen one day a week but give me more game time. It’s a good trade off.”

Keith Curle names unchanged Hartlepool United starting XI

Curle has been in charge at the Suit Direct Stadium for little over three months after replacing Paul Hartley in September.

In that time, however, Curle has been unable to name the same starting line-up in the league, whether that be due to injuries or preference, until Boxing Day’s trip to Rochdale.

Having secured their first away win of the season at Crawley, and had 17 days break owing to the fixture with Newport County being postponed, Curle stuck with the same line-up, despite having to deal with several illnesses ahead of the fixture, and got his rewards.

Curle said: “We’ve had some illness within the camp, we’ve had a few people carrying knocks that have managed to get through, we’ve had people missing training but ultimately the decision was that there were things in that Crawley game that I liked.”

Keith Curle’s tactical change

Having enjoyed a hugely successful first 45 minutes, Hartlepool came under the cosh after the break as Jim Bentley managed to provoke a response from his Rochdale players at half-time.

Menayese was on hand to make a critical block to deny Danny Lloyd before Henderson saw a brilliantly cushioned finish ruled out for offside.

The warning signs were there for Hartlepool - who weren’t necessarily bad, but were struggling to deal with a much-improved Dale side.

Eventually that pressure told as Henderson produced an audacious back-heel to beat Ben Killip at his near post to signal the tide had very much turned.

But rather than attempt to soak up the pressure which would inevitably come following that equaliser, Curle made an instinctive change in bringing off Reghan Tumilty for Joe Grey and switched to a back four.

Although Grey was relieved when his first touch of the game presented defender Ethan Ebanks-Landell with a goal scoring opportunity, the youngster would eventually provide an important outlet in an attacking sense.

Alongside Josh Umerah and Jack Hamilton, Curle had ensured Rochdale still had something to think about defensively rather than Pools trying to contain and see out a draw - something which, ultimately, would work thanks to Cooke's winner.

Hartlepool United finding a different way to win

And with that winner it demonstrated Pools can win in different ways.

At Crawley, Curle’s side were good value for their win throughout the contest as they limited Crawley to very little - with only one shot on target coming in second half stoppage time.

For 45 minutes at the Crown Oil Arena it looked as though Pools would have a similarly comfortable afternoon having bossed things in the first half with the likes of Mohamad Sylla particularly impressive.

But with Rochdale coming out firing after the break and getting that equaliser, you would have been forgiven for thinking Pools would crumble and go on to lose this game.

Instead, they dug in and showed the sort of resilience which has been missing this season to grind out an excellent win.

“The Crawley game was a bit more controlled and this was a little more in the balance,” match winner Cooke told The Mail.

“It comes down to game management. We know that if we brush up on that, we'll be absolutely fine, but we’re finding different ways to win now.

“We could have folded and they could have kicked on, or we could have drawn the game 1-1, but we haven’t.”

Hartlepool United have what it takes to beat relegation rivals

Back-to-back wins are welcome at any stage in a season but, given the circumstances Hartlepool found themselves in following their 5-0 hammering at home to Stockport County, to go out and claim six points from six deserves credit.

Not just that, those six points came against direct relegation rivals at the absolute opportune moment. Hartlepool needed a result, regardless, but for them to come against their nearest league rivals is ideal.

What’s more, it suggests Hartlepool can go to teams in and around them and cause them problems and, for three out of four halves of football, control and dominate games.

It bodes well for the next month of fixtures where Pools take on Harrogate Town, Gillingham, Rochdale and Colchester United.

And while it is only two wins, and we are very much at the ‘baby steps’ stage, suddenly there should be no fear heading into any of those games.

Instead, there should be quiet optimism that this could be a huge opportunity to get a decent haul of points on the board to try and distance themselves from the foot of the table.