Hartlepool United caretaker Antony Sweeney has been asked to bide the club time as the search for a new manager continues following Dave Challinor's exit to Stockport County

Sweeney has been placed in caretaker charge of Pools following Dave Challinor's decision to leave the club and join National League side Stockport County earlier this week and chairman Raj Singh is hoping Sweeney can steady the ship until a replacement is found.

It’s the second time the former Pools midfielder has been requested to take charge of the team having done so back in 2019 before Challinor’s appointment in which Sweeney performed a more than satisfactory job that ultimately led to him being part of Challinor’s backroom staff.

But now the reins have been handed back to Sweeney in unwanted circumstances after Challinor’s shock exit from Victoria Park despite the club performing well in League Two.

And while Pools chairman Singh has placed faith in Sweeney in the interim, the 38-year-old knows results will dictate how long he remains in charge.

“He’s just said to bide some time,” Sweeney told BBC Tees.

“It’s taken everyone by surprise so it’s just about me coming in and hopefully doing a similar job to what I did last time. The club needs time to assess all the options and get through a sloppy period really.

“How long that is remains to be seen, but that will be dictated by results and results being positive. It will buy the club the right amount of time to make the right decision.”

And making the right decision is crucial to Pools who know Challinor’s exit could cause the wave of momentum the club has built up since earning promotion back to the Football League to come crashing back down.

Despite Sweeney’s relative experience in the short-term, he knows Singh has to get Challinor’s replacement right in order to retain the clubs league status.

“It’s a massive appointment and that’s why emotion and loyalty has to be taken out of the equation,” he said.

“This football club has to remain an EFL football club for loads of reasons. Whether that’s the reinstatement of the academy, the financial rewards that we have, all of those things with the fan base, the attendances, all that, they all come into it so it’s vitally important we remain an EFL club and the club makes the right decision to do that.”

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