Pool midfielder wants to be a Payne for opposition

The 25-year-old, who joined the Seasiders during the summer following his release from Peterborough, made the worst possible start after being sent off on his debut against Plymouth.

He has gone on to make 18 appearances in the centre of midfield, but says Pool are yet to see the best of him.

“I’ve still got more to come I think,” he said. “It’s a hard league to get out of and some of the style of football is hard, but I’m getting there.

“I didn’t really do a pre-season so I’ve come here and played straight away, but I feel fit now and hopefully I can show a bit more in the second half of the season.”

The Seasiders are looking to get back to winning ways after suffering disappointment last time out, with a 2-0 defeat at home to fellow promotion hopefuls Luton Town.

Payne said: “We’re in an OK position. We’re there or thereabouts in terms of the play-offs. Saturday was a low point but we’ve not had many of them – so it’s about bouncing back which is what all the good teams do.”

Preparations are underway for Pool’s Boxing Day trip to Hartlepool, which will see the squad and management team travel to the North East on Christmas Day and spend the night in the area.

The festive period brings three fixtures in eight days, with a trip to Grimsby on New Year’s Eve before hosting Mansfield Town.

“If we get three wins we’ll go straight up the table but we’re just concentrating on Boxing Day first,” Payne said.

“Get that out of the way, hopefully get the points, and then move on to the next one. That’s exactly what we do, we take it game by game.”