I’M not a stats man.

They mean little to me, but even I can see that three home wins out of four in February has kept us encamped at the tail-end of the play-off chasers. It’s not a bad place to be going into March, with everything to play for.

The injury crisis has opened the door for young central defender Cameron James and he is excelling.

Hopefully it will be six or eight games before he needs a rest, as that might be long enough to get a more experienced defender, perhaps quick-healer Tom Eastman, back in harness.

Against Hartlepool we lost the player we could least afford to lose. All afternoon, Kurtis Guthrie had been baffling his markers by twisting and swivelling away from them with his first touch.

It’s something which he is adding to his game as his confidence at this level increases and he had made a fool of his marker more than once.

On this occasion, Scott Harrison caught Kurtis in a crunching challenge and he hit the deck in agony.

John McGreal generously exonerated the defender from blame after the game and that’s good enough for me.

McGreal was much nearer and must have had a good view of the clash. Rookie referee Ben Toner must have shared that view.

There was doubt in my mind at the time because it was the most aggressive challenge of the afternoon.

It was a sickening collision; one of those occasions when I didn’t want to watch too closely as Tony Flynn assessed the damage, for fear of seeing a horrible fracture which Kurtis’ obvious pain suggested.

It was a relief to see no visible damage as a support splint was applied and by the time you read this we should know if it is a fracture, a dislocation, or ligament damage.

It’s a heavy blow to our play-off hopes as Guthrie has been increasingly outstanding, not least against Hartlepool when he did more than anyone to win us he game, scoring a goal and winning a penalty in the 2-1 victory.

Outstanding players make average sides good.

Unfortunately, we can’t pretend that the turgid first half didn’t happen, nice though that would be. It served as a reminder that football can always surprise us and things can go wrong for no apparent reason.

The second half was so much better, thankfully. The highlight of the afternoon was the quality of the cross by Richard Brindley which Guthrie made even better by making the right run and heading the ball home.

It was a top-quality goal and it was later followed by a couple of flowing moves which would have graced a higher level of football and show what this side could achieve under McGreal.

Sean Murray made his home debut, having served a three-match suspension for his dismissal at Blackpool.

He showed a great work ethic, good all-round ability, and he could definitely be an asset in League Two. He was bursting to do well, which was just what the manager needed.

Hartlepool appear to be sticking with a passing game, but as we have learned in the past you are only as good as your ability to create and convert chances. It will be interesting to see how they evolve.

Against a passing side we were always likely to prevail. It is the sides who focus on physicality – Newport, Mansfield, Cheltenham, Blackpool and Accrington top the list – that give us bigger problems.

Grimsby can be added to the end of that list. On Tuesday night we lost to the Mariners by the only goal of the game. It was an energy-sapping game for no reward.

With Guthrie injured, the thought of a return to the dismal days of Porter toiling away up front on his own could ruin our season, but we can be confident that the current management won’t allow that to happen.

Sammie Szmodics should soon come back into contention and his energy is a worthy substitute for Kurtis’ athleticism, plus Sammie understands how to support a lone striker. Maybe the door will open just a crack for Tariq Issa, although this season is a year too soon for him.

And so into March and the business end of the season. Please let it be the month when our injury list shrinks.