Hartlepool United relegation run-in: What Crawley Town and Colchester United writers predict for Pools

John Askey’s side remain adrift in the League Two relegation zone heading into the final month of the season as they look to chase down the likes of Crawley Town, Colchester United and Harrogate Town.

Crawley recently completed their fourth, and final, game in hand over Pools as both they and Colchester hold a five point cushion over Askey’s men.

Below Hartlepool, Rochdale’s stay in the Football League appears to be coming to an end as they currently sit 11 points adrift of safety.

And with that in mind, we are going to focus on those two teams directly above Hartlepool in their bid for survival and ask the experts what they think for the remainder of the season.

Mark Dunford (MD) of the Sussex Express and Jonathan Waldron (JW) of Colchester’s Daily Gazette share their thoughts on Crawley and Colchester, respectively, with Pools writer Joe Ramage (JR) on how they see the final few weeks of the season.

The Mail has approached for a view from Harrogate, too, and will update in accordance.

We're heading into the final stretch of the season, talk us through the situation at your club and the mood in camp?

JW: The mood is actually pretty good, at the moment. Colchester found themselves looking for a new head coach for the second time this season after Matt Bloomfield quit last month but the arrival of Ben Garner seems to have focused the minds, even though the results haven’t yet shown it.

There’s a feeling that the players want to impress their new head coach and now have a clean slate from which to do so, which is acting as a positive at this crucial stage of the season.

MD: After a run of five unbeaten - which was preceded with six consecutive defeats - the mood is very good. They hit a bit of a bump with the performance against Grimsby Town on Tuesday night, but came out with what could be a vital point come May 8. It was a stark contrast to when they played superbly and dominated against Doncaster and only got a point.

But they have turned things around and with the likes of James Tilley and Ben Gladwin back from injury, things are definitely looking up for the Reds.

JR: Despite how the league table reads there is an element of renewed optimism at Hartlepool after the arrival of new manager John Askey. Although he has yet to win a game, the performances have been much improved as they have pushed some of the top teams in the division to their limits – unfortunate not to come away with three points on a couple of those occasions.

It feels like that win is coming, but, obviously, it needs to come pretty quickly given the position they find themselves in.

But with that said, it feels like there is a positive spirit in the camp. The players look as though they are enjoying their football more at the moment and they have shown some brilliant character in recent weeks. You just wonder whether it may have come a little too late.

Colchester have been brought back into the mix in recent weeks having gone seven without a win - is there a danger that form will continue?

JW: There’s signs of improvement there, for sure. Colchester’s last two games have ended in draws, both from which they battled back from a losing position to take something from the game.

Their recovery in coming back from 2-0 down at leaders Leyton Orient to draw 2-2 with two late goals was particularly impressive and offered hope to U’s fans that their team have what it takes to battle for survival in the coming weeks.

How disappointing was it for Crawley not to take more of an advantage from their four games in hand over Hartlepool?

MD: As mentioned, the point against Doncaster will be the most disappointing given how they performed. The Tranmere 1-0 defeat was also a missed opportunity - literally with Dom Telford missing from the spot. What should have been at least five points was only two from those four against Sutton, Tranmere, Doncaster and Grimsby.

If they do go down, it won’t be the main reason, but not winning at least two of them will play a part.

Hartlepool are unbeaten in five but without a win under John Askey, do you believe that can change as is needed?

JR: Yes, and it’s got to.

For all they have received some plaudits in recent weeks for their endeavour and application, you would swap that for a fortunate three points. They’ve been on the wrong end of a couple of significant decisions, as well, which hasn’t helped but I do believe if they maintain their levels under Askey then we will see them convert some of these draws into a win.

The biggest issue is they’re going to need to go on a run. They’ve only won six times all season and now they’re going to need to find four or five wins in eight.

If your team is to stay up, who will be the key player throughout the run-in?

JW: Noah Chilvers has stepped up to the plate over recent games and taken responsibility, despite his tender age. The 22-year-old has scored in each of the U’s last two matches and is top scorer this season.

He has been at Colchester since the age of seven so understands the fabric of the club and will be doing everything he can to try and ensure they are still a Football League club next season.

MD: James Tilley. He has missed a chunk of the season through injury. On his day he runs the show for the Reds and shows he could play at a higher level and why he was so highly-rated as a youngster at Brighton. But it's no coincidence the Reds recent unbeaten run of five games has coincided with Tilley's return.

Dion Conory is also a key player but he missed the Grimsby game with an achilles injury and Scott Lindsey said after they 'will have to manage him between now and the rest of the season'. That could be key for Reds.

JR: Dan Kemp has been superb since he arrived in January and, along with Callum Cooke, has been key to the change we have seen under Askey.

Josh Umerah has been the standout for most of the season and is, largely, why Hartlepool still have a chance, but he has just gone off the boil in front of goal a little bit. If he can recapture his early season form that will go a long way to helping Pools.

What is your prediction? Will your side stay up?

JW: I think so. They currently have a five-point cushion over Hartlepool with eight games remaining and I just feel they have enough to get the points they require to get over the line.

MD: Although Hartlepool are picking up points, they can't seem to get any wins and I think that will cost them. Crawley have some tough games coming up but I think the crunch games will be Colchester then Hartlepool in consecutive weeks. They will not want to go to Swindon needing something on the final day.

With Rochdale all but down, I think Hartlepool have too much to do and Crawley pick up enough points to climb above Colchester and Harrogate in the table.

JR: It’s going to be difficult. As mentioned, they’ve only won six all season and now they are tasked with winning four or five from eight which still may not be enough.

There is an element of ‘what if’ and whether or not things would have been different had Askey been appointed sooner – Askey himself has shared his surprise at where Pools find themselves given the quality he sees in his squad.

It’s imperative they reach the Crawley fixture on April 22 within three points of them. I’m sure there will be a keen eye on the Crawley-Colchester fixture a few days prior to that, but the odds are stacked against them. They need Crawley’s recent form to drop off and hope Colchester continue to struggle as well as picking up themselves. That’s a lot of variables.