Hartlepool United's Paul Hartley intends to 'dip into' Scottish market

Paul Hartley intends to recruit from the Scottish leagues after moving to Hartlepool United.

The Scot, 45, left Cove Rangers after winning promotion to the Scottish Championship while Hartlepool finished 17th in England's League Two last term.

Hartley has been replaced at Cove by former Dundee and Ross County boss Jim McIntyre.

"I do think that we'll have to dip into the market in Scotland," Hartley told BBC Radio Scotland's Sportsound.

"It's really important that you take people that you know can do a good job for you. I want to try and make my own stamp on the team in how we play.

"There are so many players that have been made available to us, so many agents have been on the phone. We're short of numbers. I've got 12 outfield players.

"For Scottish players it's a good opportunity for them to get to England. Maybe a younger player who has got real ambition.

"We're not just building a team, I think we need to build a club at Hartlepool."

'Why not aim for the top end of the table?'

All of Hartley's previous managerial jobs have been in his homeland but he did have playing spells with Millwall and Bristol City.

"I'm still hungry, I still love football and I think I just wanted to try something different," he explained. "It's something new to me.

"You would sum Hartlepool up as, potentially, a sleeping giant. There's a lot of potential. We average 5,500-6,000 fans. Very loyal fans, very passionate. They just live for football on a Saturday.

"I'm really looking forward to the challenge in front of us. There's a lot of work in front of us.

"Why not aim for the top end of the table? It's up to myself, staff, players to try and create the right culture at the club."