00:01There's no such thing as a quiet week at Hartlepool United and the beginning to the latest one has been no different as Simon Grayson's era gets underway.
00:13With a couple of weeks before the players return for pre-season, pools were handed a much-needed boost following the slightly surprising news that popular midfielder Nathan Sharon has committed his future to the club, signing a new two-year contract.
00:26Sharon was one of four high-profile players out of contract at the end of last season, along with Manny Desirouet, who's been heavily linked with a move to Rochdale in recent weeks, Joe Gray and David Ferguson.
00:39With all the chaos and uncertainty that has overshadowed the club for large parts of recent months, there were fears that pools could stand to lose all of their prize assets on a free over the coming weeks.
00:51However, Sharon has become the first to commit his future to Hartlepool United, signing a new two-year deal.
00:58That's good news also for young midfielder Jamie Minley. The pair certainly have the makings of a promising partnership in the engine room.
01:05And it's good news, of course, for new manager Simon Grayson, who worked with Sharon previously during a spell at Fleetwood.
01:11There was also one departure this week. Defender Dan Dodds, assigned for National League Northside South Shields, who have just appointed Ian Watson and former pool skipper Karl Magnate as their new management duo.
01:24Dodds, of course, had a fine start to life at Hartlepool after signing from rivals Darlington in January 2023, scoring twice in his first six appearances, including a stunning long-range strike against Doncaster.
01:36However, injuries and a lack of form and perhaps confidence seem to have dogged the energetic defender in the last couple of years.
01:44He suffered a dreaded anterior cruciate ligament injury just five games in to Hartlepool United's return to the National League after an impressing initially under John Askey.
01:54That saw him miss the entirety of that season. He returned last summer, featured in pre-season, and started on the opening day of the new campaign, playing 89 minutes of a win against Yeovil.
02:05However, a hamstring injury that would dog him throughout the season ruled him out for the next six or seven weeks, and from there he struggled really to recover.
02:13He was sent off against Eastleigh in November. He was hooked at half-time following a nightmarish evening against Tamworth in February, and he suffered another hamstring issue in March against Eastleigh that saw him miss the remainder of the campaign.
02:27It's understood that Pools did offer him a new deal. However, Dodds has opted to make a move to South Shields.
02:35Certainly, there's still a player with plenty of potential. Many Pools fans were sad to see him leave Victoria Park.
02:40Pools currently have teenage duo Louis Stevenson and Campbell Darcy available to them at right-back.
02:46While, of course, Nathan Sharon has proven his versatility by fulfilling the role pretty effectively in recent months,
02:52it remains to be seen where weather pools will work to strengthen in that area this summer.
