The Poolie Bunker

The worst case is HUFC go into adminstration at the end of the season because a new buyer isn't found.

Even if one is, they better get their bloody skates on. The team is already underperforming under Limbrick's directionless leadership. It's hard to see Pools winning another game while so much uncertainty hangs over the the club.

Lose the next 3 games and we're as good as down - the last 4 fixtures of the season (Oldham away, Gateshead at home, Rochdale away, Forest Green at home) looked like a very tall order even before the roof fell in.

We wouldn’t start in the NLN, it would be a level or two below that. It’d be a fun ride though. The funding of 4000 fans paying through the gate for a part time club with no debts and a league ground on a peppercorn rent would allow Pools fly up those leagues.

It really isn’t anything to fear. Darlo are not far behind us now and they’ve never had a ground.

4000 fans turning out for tier 8 football? Can't see it myself, and we'd still need to find players, manager and coaches to do the business, it's not such an easy ride ask our Darlo neighbours how many years since they were at tier 5.

Give your specs a polish - I'm talking about what's likely to happen even if we DON'T go into administration

a lot might depend on how the players will be feeling now and how the uncerntanty that it affects them. doubt limbrick has the personality to rally his troups to get them to run through a brick wall for him or the future of the club.

If we don’t go into administration then we’ve got a shit season ahead. After that we could build with the right owner.

I don't think we'll go down, there are some poor teams in this division. As for starting over, comparisons with Darlo are unfair, as I'm sure we'd be still playing at the Vic as a Phoenix club.

We should be able to fly through the divisions and would be back in the NL in no time. Aldershot, Newport, Wimbledon, Maidstone did it, mind you, this is Pools, and if a club weren't able to do it, it would be us.

One thing I do know, is the club can't carry on as they are. It will eventually get to a 1984 situation where the fans were so fed up, they felt they could no longer go on, and didn't care whether the town had a club or not.

add on halifax and macclesfield also coming back from the dead. one thing is we have a bigger fanbase than any of them as the wimbledon one is a bit different. if it was nailed on we would hollow the likes of them, we,d be finncially be in a better place and at least be seen to be moving forward and not stagnating as we are. there is always only one way that stagnating clubs go and its never promotion.

Then you have the example of Bury who have stalled in their progress despite getting good crowds in their own ground.
There are quite a few clubs with money kicking around the lower levels and playing you lot would be like you v Liverpool for example.
Then you get the refs who are ones generally making their way back down the pyramid as they were that bad at higher levels, they don't like looking like they are swayed by the large support.
If it is a case of administration and you come out of it without agreeing a CVA then you can't compete in any National League divisions, it was one of their rules when it happened to us.

If you’re a true fan…you turn out….no ifs, no buts.

I agree Snowy but how many really true fans do Pools actually have, certainly nowhere near 4000 ?

That would mean there shouldn't have been a fall in attendances this season, no ifs no buts.

Are people who back Raj unconditionally the 'true fans?'

What’s the definition of ‘true fans’?

My feeling is that things will go on as they have been for years just mid table NL mediocrity. I dont see us going up or down and most will just turn up as its a habit and its fun to have a winge.

Season Ticket holders ?

Naw. What about someone who is on a low income, can’t afford the outlay of a season ticket but goes when they can afford it but has been fanatical about Pools all their lives. Are they not a true fan?

Does someone who puts feeding their kids over going to a football match get excluded too?

Very well said Mr.I

And that will always be the case.

Looks like division 7 then next season.
With a 5 year plan statedgy to the EFL.

Time to accept n move on.

We might only get 2000 to 2500 maybe even 1500 on a cold Tuesday evening but we will have our club back. Crowds would soon start coming back if it was affordable and we were winning week in week out.

We’ll they can’t have been true fans then, thank you for proving my point.

I couldn’t afford season tickets as all three of mine wanted to go…..pull out for season tickets or a holiday….got my call out bonus twice a year at Xmas and June….they still got to all the matches.
Eventually I could afford a season ticket, but family’s come first.

More or less the same had Sing decided to stay.

This fiasco had to end some time…..and the time has come.

The majority of players and LL have contributed a major part of this disaster season.
LL will finally retire n Joe Grey will get his pay rise move.

The rest are stuck in limbo.

Not sure how they Gunna react on Saturday n for the remainder of the season.

There are some who believe so.

Not sure HUST agree. They suspect, like Mr. I, that Raj is just playing to the gallery again:


"Most members will have seen the club’s lengthy statement explaining that Raj Singh has stepped down as Chairman. Many will feel excitement or relief hearing about an overdue fresh start for the club they love but it is probably mixed with fear about the prospect of funding ending at the close of the season.

These emotions are all understandable in the circumstances but we should all remember that we’ve been here before. Responding to justified criticism by “standing down…stepping back…appointing a board…ending funding” is sadly familiar stuff from our now ex-Chairman when we’re 15th in the National League, and falling. That’s an unacceptable position for Pools. Blaming supporters, trying to divide fans and claiming that there has been personal abuse are also recognisable trademarks. This time, the finger is pointed at one, unnamed group but it is hard to be sure who he means when so many supporters have voiced dissatisfaction.

As after previous dramatic statements, it seems likely that as long as Raj Singh owns the club he will continue to make the decisions, but let’s hope that this time there is real progress towards a sale. Although some members of the consortium we pulled together moved on once a deal looked impossible to achieve, others are still interested and we wish them well if they do embark on independent negotiations with the club. It is also possible that new prospective owners will come forward - Pools are a great club with passionate supporters in a town that is ready to work hard alongside investors.

If there is no buyer and Raj Singh carries out his threat to stop funding at the end of the season we firmly believe it would be possible to attract a group of local people who would work together to rescue our club. Nobody wants to end up in that position though, the consequences for our National League standing could be dire. We’d far rather work alongside new owners who want to unite the fans and make the club and town proud again."



Hard to see anything getting resolved by May. Even if a new consortium comes together and Raj is actually willing to sell up, how long will it take to go through the Fit and Proper Person rigmarole?

I said the time has come…..if it happens is the next chapter.
There’s never a convenient time.

Snowy, there might be many things we agreeably disagree on but when it comes to Pools and Raj, think I’ve agreed with every word! It was always going to come to an end. My fear has always been that the debt gets too big and there’s no way out. Just perhaps there’s a chance now.

If we do go down a couple of leagues & go part time,surely we’d be able to cherry pick all the best semi pro players?
There’s plenty of lads who could make it professionally,but don’t want to give up a good job & take the risk,but we should be able to offer better money than other teams,as I’m sure,we’d still get decent attendance’s.

my thoughts exactly and it would be a lot more fun than this slow lingering death.

Rather not find out.

So surely this is the end of Pearson.

Spot on Mr I, we might as well move on and resurrect the club asap. It's torture at the moment and hopefully Raj can't dictate to any buyers who if they had any sense would contain thrn. Why give him a crazy wedge of cash?

Let it go bust

It's looking like we Gunna end up in that division in 2 years anyway.
On the way down if nothing changes and ya can't write that off 100%.

Or on the way back up under the new fans owned community method.

Gunna be a shit load of speculation theory's rumours n bullshit between now n May.

What will be will be.

they,d be higher than the teams we will be playing against though. our big problem would be that our players would need to be a lot etter than our opponents as we,d be a bigger fish in that pond as we are at the moment. two cup finals very season against every team who get gates less than 500.

It would also depend on the new owners aspirations and capabilities, then finding the right manager and coaches, lots of unknowns and variables. And of course a decent dollop of good fortune which historically we've rarely had.

If you are relegated down the divisions the main thing is you get someone in who knows that league. When we ended up in the Northern League Martin Gray brought in Harry Dunn as chief scout as he knew the league like the back of his hand, as well as the leagues above and below. He knew all the good players and the ones with the wrong attitudes too.

good fortune is the big thing in football and life in general. i have always found that if you reach rock bottom something happens to revive your fortunes. nothing good happens before that position is reached like pools at the moment who would just end up hanging about lower mid table season after season with death by a thousand cuts until something comes along to change it.

What seems bad to us is often good in disguise."
"Out of the ashes, we rise."
"You may encounter many defeats, but you must not be defeated."
"Tough times never last, but tough people do."