Hartlepool United manager calls on Pools to stick together following heaviest defeat since 1994

Pools came into the game bidding to record a fourth successive win for the first time since August 2023 - since then, Pools have had five different permanent managers, Kevin Phillips, Darren Sarll, Lennie Lawrence, Anthony Limbrick and Featherstone himself - and knowing that three points at Grosvenor Vale could have seen them climb into the National League play-off places.

Indeed, Featherstone's side made the long trip to Ruislip full of confidence having won all of their last three matches, edging past bottom club Truro City as well as strugglers Eastleigh before twice coming from behind to beat relegation-threatened Morecambe.

For their part, Wealdstone scored a 90th minute winner to get the better of National League North outfit Marine and book their place in the FA Trophy final at Wembley on Saturday but had lost all of their last three league games without scoring.

Yet any hopes Pools had been harbouring that the Stones might have been nursing a hangover - either literal or metaphorical - from the weekend were soon banished as the home side put five past them in a humiliating first half.

Pools, who were unchanged from last week's dramatic win over Morecambe, were slow out of the blocks and never really managed to respond against a Wealdstone outfit who looked sharper, stronger and much more determined than their visitors.

Pools went behind inside five minutes when Micah Obiero, who scored the all-important winning goal on Saturday, latched onto goalkeeper Dante Baptiste's long ball forward - the 24-year-old's distribution was outstanding all evening - breezed past the retreating Jay Benn and blasted an effort beyond Nick Hayes.

The visitors were punished for more statuesque defending three minutes later when the excellent Anthony Georgiou crossed for Dylan Kadji to turn home his second goal of the season; frustratingly for Pools, the danger seemed to have passed after an initial error by Cameron John but rather than clearing their lines, the visitors switched off and allowed Georgiou far too much time and space to pick out his man, who was left unmarked inside the area.

After Alex Reid had an effort ruled out for offside - the frontman, who scored 16 times in 30 league games during a productive spell on loan at Grosvenor Vale last term, was a little unfortunate after his goalbound effort appeared to deflect off Charlie Caton - Wealdstone added a third in the 22nd minute when Obiero was on hand to capitalise on a mistake by Hayes, who palmed the influential Nathan Tshikuna's effort straight into his path.

With the visitors looking shell shocked and their hopes of sneaking into the top seven slipping through their fingers, Obiero completed his hat-trick three minutes later, rounding Hayes after the out of sorts goalkeeper was left stranded in no man's land while attempting to deal with Tshikuna's incisive through ball; the frontman, who menaced Pools with his pace and running power all night, has now scored nine goals in his last nine games.

The hosts added a fifth 12 minutes before half time thanks to Georgiou, who was allowed to run untracked from deep and tap home Tshikuna's low cross, piling more misery on a Pools side who were outplayed, outclassed and outfought throughout.

In an unusual move, Featherstone made all five changes at the break - true, the Pools boss was keen to send a message that his side's first half showing was unacceptable, but his wholesale substitutions also left his team vulnerable to any injuries in the second period, which would have risked reducing them to 10 men - but it made next to no difference and the Stones continue to dominate.

With the game increasingly starting to feel like a training ground exercise, skipper Enzio Boldewijn added a sixth with 20 minutes of normal time remaining before Olufela Olomola, who failed to score in 12 league games for Pools, completed the rout late on.

A lot was made of the fact that Featherstone's win record prior to Tuesday night's mauling was better than any permanent Hartlepool United manager in history but the Pools boss is now under big pressure from large sections of the fanbase.

It's no secret that Featherstone is, in effect, auditioning to be given the manager's job on a longer term basis by new owner Landon Smith and, while it's unclear quite how much damage overseeing the club's heaviest defeat since 1994 will have done to his cause, it is unlikely to have done him much good.

Although there have been plenty of positives during Featherstone's tenure so far, the 37-year-old has also overseen two humiliating cup exits at the hands of Northern Premier League opponents, humbling defeats against the likes of Woking and Aldershot Town and, now, one of the worst results in the club's entire history.

Pools, who were dealt a further blow as Southend United beat Yeovil Town to tighten their grip on the final play-off place, now face a daunting run of fixtures to end the season as Featherstone's side prepare to take on Scunthorpe United, who are fifth, on Good Friday before entertaining league leaders Rochdale on Easter Monday.

Featherstone will be hoping to emulate former boss Phillips, who led his side to a battling win over Halifax over the Easter weekend just 72 hours after they were on the wrong end of a 7-1 mauling at the hands of rivals Gateshead; if he is unable to galvanise his side, then Pools will be condemned to another season of mid-table mediocrity.

"Firstly, we've got to apologise to the fans and the football club - they've witnessed a really, really poor night tonight," Featherstone told BBC Radio Tees Sport.

"It's one I can't explain, we've been in really good form recently - I didn't see that coming at all.

"We've given them the best opportunity in terms of coming down yesterday (Monday) and we've tried to prepare them as best as we can.

"We've come up short today by a long, long way by the standards that this group of players have set recently.

"They (Wealdstone) were obviously very good on the night, but that's on us tonight; it's on me and it's on the group of players that went out there tonight.

"We're going to come under a lot of scrutiny, negative press and reaction from the fans, we're going to have to double down and stick together as a group; we're going to get a lot of stick in the next few days, and rightfully so after that performance. We need to stick together at the minute.

"It's hard to work out, I didn't see that coming with the form we've been in. Before tonight, I think we'd won five out of the last seven; I didn't see it coming at all, it's a difficult one for me to get my head around.

"Ultimately, I chose that XI and that team is supposed to represent me, so I'll take the responsibility for that; it's important that, as a staff and a group of players, we stick together now because we will come in for a bit of stick over the next few days."

Your next Hartlepool United read: Player ratings as Pools humiliated by Wealdstone