After we are relegated in May, do we have any hope of a return? Personally I think we will join the York/Chester/Bury etc club. I still maintain that we should have gone bust and started again debt free. After all, all the additional revenue last year went to Sage. We could have pocketed that and built on a firm foundation.

Darlo are looking good for the National league next season and they’ve achieved that without a stadium. What could we have done with a £1500 a month league level stadium in comparison.

In answer to your question, in my opinion No.

No.
I just hope the NL becomes league 3.

We can’t afford to go up. If we do, and it’s a big if, I can see us being in the same predicament as Gateshead are this season.
We have a good team for our level but the budget is maxed out and we are stuck in a ground with two bus shelters and although there’s talk of a new ground, it’ll be two years away at least in my opinion.

Nobody is relegated after 19 games. That said, if Pools don't get some of the sick notes back during December we'll be 5 games deeper in the clarts before the transfer window even opens.

Which is a roundabout way of saying I'd rather Pools didn't go down than have to play National League roulette again. Can't see what possible benefit there is for Raj letting it happen either. His poor judgement (bad advice according to some, but we know where the buck stops) got us into this mess, so it's up to him to provide the wherewithal to get us out again.

More chance of one of the England players coming out at the world cup

I don't think Raj will be "letting it happen". More a case of Raj not being able to prevent it happening. By Christmas it is seems highly likely we will be a significant number of points adrift of safety and to obtain enough players of the right quality in the transfer window to drag us out of the mire will cost far more dosh than Raj has at his disposal. Thats the way I see it. Some may see this as negative or pessimistic, I see it as realistic.

I note Harry Kane is wearing a rainbow armband. Is that purely coincidence?

With absolutely no irony intended, isn’t is possible to share the white elephant?

Whats wrong with Grayfields?

It's a reasonable point of view. On the other hand, in season 2014/15 Pools were bottom before the end of October. They then went on a run of no wins, 3 draws, 7 defeats and were 10 points from safety on January 3rd. We all know what Ronnie did after that

Youse can all throw in the towel if you like. It isn't over till it's over - and it's nowhere near over.

As shit as our squad is I don't actually think we would be in the bottom 3 if we had a fully fit squad. Menayese and sterry back would be massive for pools, even Lacey would make a difference just now. Having more options would be a start at least.

I agree but the reality is we dont have a fully fit squad and there is no hint that will change any time soon or at least soon enough to make a difference.

Primacy of tenure issues, both teams need to have priority for their respective competitions.
Plus there the small matter of the elephants 20 year inspection which it’s rumored is likely to fail.
The rumour is we are more likely to share with Spenny whose ground meets the criteria and if Brads Great Annual Savings company can’t avoid the winding up order they have against them then Spenny could well need the extra income.

Was that the season we were no better but Kiddiminister imploded?

Best of luck either way Mr Star, you lot deserve it.

Nobody gets relegated in 19 games, but they do from gross mismanagement over a period of 12 months. Nobody wants to be a part of Hartlepool United, why is this?

Cheers

No, Tranmere and Cheltenham went down in the end. Pools finished 4 points clear of Cheltenham in 22nd place. Will take 22nd this season too.

Correction accepted. Cheltenham not Kidderminster. Same nondescript sort of places so easily confused.

ALL the xtra cash went to Sage.
Thats a statement a bit hard to believe.
I suppose we will never find out.
So expect divided opinions about that.

To be brutally honest I thought we'd never return the first time. Look how many old div 4 teams haven't ever returned.

I doubt I'd have believed anyone saying we'd get promoted until after we beat Torquay at Plainmoor...then things seemed to really heat up.

What a wave of momentum, back from covid, back in the EFL, and completely squandered.

As for Darlington who knows. The NL N is a tough league. Everyone was convinced Brackley had won it until the very second Gateshead did! As mad as It sounds, I really could see Scarborough as a dark horse champion.

It’s a bit like being a passenger on the Titanic but told there’s a good chance of being sunk by an iceberg a day after you sailed.

that was what happened to relegate oldham and scunthorpe last season. not unlucky with signings that did not come off. pools are not the only club with problems at the moment and they will all be trying to attract players in january. the answer is we,ll be ok if we do better than them in the transfer window and have some luck with injuries in the new year. as an ex pools manager said quite recently, it can be better being a lucky manager than a good one at times. if rats out then surely he,d get more for a league club than a non league one so needs to speculate in january for his own reasons.

Not sure if all the cash went to Sage but repayments were reported as being linked to on field success (getting back into FL, cup runs etc).

https://www.hartlepoolmail.co.uk/sport/ ... ngh-118381

Made the same point myself. Raj didn't back Graeme Lee last January (apart from the Bogle signing) when Pools appeared to be a comfortable mid-table side, but with relegation staring him in the face he's got to act.

The other thing people seem to ignore is the number of Pools games the chairman goes to. He was at Barrow on Saturday and can see for himself how bad things are on the pitch. When he starts staying away from games we should worry!

All very well him wanting to sell but what division were Bury in when they imploded? Just because he may want out and be prepared to sell, who's to say anyone will buy?
I think Burys debt situation was a lot worse that yours but even so, a league club in the Manchester area with quite a decent history still couldn't get a buyer.
Raj was the last chance saloon the other year. Have things improved enough since to tempt anyone to come in and make an offer?

But if we'd went bust & started again,it would have been further down the pyramid.
We wouldn't have had the cup runs & made no extra revenue.
And no i don't think we'd return to the EFL,not any time soon anyway,the heart & soul has been ripped out in less than a year.

For my first 30 years watching pools we got arse ripped out of us every season…… nowt new there, not that I’m advocating having one’s arse ripped out should be the norm.

I know we've been round this block before, and not that long ago either ( ), but back in the days the grumbling lasted from outside the Vic to a couple of pints in your pub of choice, then on with the rest of the week.

It all changed in the era of social media drama queens. It all seems so much MORE IMPORTANT now. Except that it really isn't. Club is skint? Check. Results are terrible? Check. Still, there's always another game just around the corner. Who knows, Pools might get a result...

Social media is shit.
Give me the face to face banter in the pub how it used to be all day long.

If we go back into the National league that's me finished, I'm not doing that shite again.

Trouble with social media is sometimes you end up getting the wrong message unintentionally and meeting someone face to face is a much better way of discussing things. Things can look completely different then, because you can get a wrong perception online.

Most probably only be for 1 season.
Then hello NL North Division.
At least a Council Owned ground should ensure a faster rebuild than Darlo.
Ive heard theres something organized for the Harrogate game. Surprised its took this long.

Suit Direct wanted to buy...raj refused. Same as with the yanks.

Takes me back to when Chip Fireball was a ringleader of a protest against Ken Hodcroft. It was going to be a mass walk out of the Millhouse Stand part way through a game. The appointed time came and went - the ripple of activity looked less like a mass protest than early leavers for the pie queue.

actually what is worse. this seasons squad and shite games as the original national league side and games under harrison which was the worst of our non league stay. a lot of it is in the mind where fans of an ex league club cannot get their heads around not being a league club. just because you are playing maidenhead and not mansfield its no guarentee you,ll get a good game.

Problem with these "buyers" is they also want to dictate the selling price. The owner has the right to refuse any bids that he deems not good enough. As a matter of interest how much did Suit Direct offer??? Then we can all judge the offer and whether it's a reasonable one or not.
If you know that Suit direct wanted to buy that's good news, Raj refused you say but on what grounds??
Personally I think Raj has hit the buffers and the club needs to attract new owners/investors in my opinion but I don't expect Raj to give it away and I don't expect his selling price to be extortionate either. Until we know where the gap lies between seller and buyer and the extent of that gap we can't really make a sound judgement.
Saying "Suit Direct wanted to buy....raj refused" may be 100% accurate but all it does is create questions and fuel more speculation.
What did these people offer???? and What does Raj want????? I'd like to see 100% accurate answers to those questions, so let's start there.

Rumour?….or fact. Don’t mind a rumour, but if it’s a fact what’s info…?

Apparently it was a wind up on Facebook

plus what is their future plans for the club if they owned it. thats more important than who the actual owner is. raj has been looking for investors in the club for years now but i have a feeling with no evidence of it that he wants to stay in charge but would love someone elses money coming into pools but he,d always want the final say in stuff.

The yanks? You don’t even know what nationality they are

Oops, Canadian and an American

Apparently one of Ben Houchens organisations The Mayoral Development Corporation is looking to seize control of various Hartlepool Councils assets and have them transferred into its unaccountable control.
No doubt the "jewel in the crown" is the Victoria Ground which will become a training pitch for the Boro.

You’re showing signs of HDS.

I keep thinking he is just stirring the shit but part of me is worried as to whether he is a full shilling or not.

Funny....Raj keeps blaming the council for ground related issues...

I seem to remember IOR didn't have much joy in their dealings with the council either.

Yep, I think it has been a reoccurring theme over the past few decades.

And long may it continue.