Hartlepool United verdict: How did 'broken' Pools end up back here after Crawley Town defeat leaves club all but relegated

It’s a question many will still be asking themselves in the aftermath of what was one of Hartlepool United’s darkest days as a football club.

A fixture which promised so much resulted in such desperate despair.

The numbers suggest Hartlepool are not yet officially relegated, but the feeling around the Suit Direct Stadium following their 2-0 defeat to Crawley Town, in the stands and on the field, will tell you otherwise.

David Ferguson, one of few to show his appreciation to those who remained, shellshocked, inside the stadium at full-time, was fighting back the emotion and tears in his eyes.

He knows more than most what this result means. He knows what lies ahead.

Having worked so hard two years ago to end their four-year hiatus from the Football League, Hartlepool are heading back into the non-league abyss having lost out to a Crawley side who simply wanted it more than them.

The club’s 1908 lounge is often a scene of vibrancy post-match, win, lose or draw. Here, however, there was utter dejection.

Supporters poured out their dismay to one another as the reality of such a damaging defeat came home to roost.

But the overarching emotion was one of disbelief.

Despite what has gone on this season, with relegation seemingly a threat from the off given the nature of their 4-0 defeat at Walsall on the opening day of the campaign back in July, there was always that crumb of hope.

It’s the one thing supporters cling to in moments like these, but for Hartlepool, now, even those flames have extinguished.

But how did we get here again?

The inquests will already have begun. They did so as soon as Dom Telford converted Crawley’s second from a route one goal kick as frustrations were directed towards the directors’ box at the Suit Direct Stadium, owner Raj Singh the target.

In less than two years since their return to the Football League, Singh has now overseen the club’s return to non-league with relegation all but confirmed.

Five managers and over 50 players have walked through the doors over the last two seasons with a significant number of staff also coming and going.

From the outside, it’s no way for a football club to operate successfully with the climax of it all to be seen on the field against Crawley.

It was a performance which encompassed all of the hallmarks of a side who are, ultimately, going to go down.

There were nerves. There was a lack of leadership and organisation. There was a lack of ideas and communication. There were mistakes and missed opportunities. There was no conviction, a lack of fight and spirit.

‘Never Say Die’ is the motto written inside of each shirt worn by the players who took to the field, and while they have shown signs of that mantra during their eight game unbeaten run under John Askey, they have failed to show it when it truly mattered.

When the pressure has really amplified in the final weeks of the season, Hartlepool have crumbled.

You can argue the damage had already been done ahead of Askey’s arrival and yet still, some of those traits have reared their head again.

Hartlepool have kept only six clean sheets this season. They have conceded 76 goals. Only Burton Albion and Forest Green Rovers have conceded more in the entire Football League. It’s an achilles heel which has plagued them throughout, with Crawley's double the epitome of their failings.

Only two players, Ferguson and Jamie Sterry, started against Crawley who started in the club’s promotion winning game against Torquay United in June 2021, with Nicky Featherstone and Ben Killip on the bench.

It shows you how much a squad, and a team, who achieved success has been dismantled in the time since.

And Singh could yet have more uncertainty on his hands when it comes to Askey.

The Hartlepool manager cut a despondent figure following defeat to Crawley and, instead of clinging to the faintest, most unlikely, of hopes Hartlepool could still survive, he spoke of the reality of relegation.

“I wish I wasn’t in this position,” he told The Mail when asked about his future.

Askey will have seen enough in his spell in charge since February to know what is needed and whether it will be forthcoming to bring the club back to the Football League, but is it something he wants to take on? Will what is needed be forthcoming?

With the finances and fierce competition now on show in the National League, you wouldn’t begrudge him for declining. The premier division of non-league football has grown into a different beast in the two years since Hartlepool were last in it – you only have to look at what Wrexham and Notts County have done this season to understand that.

On the flip side, you only have to look at the other end of the table with Scunthorpe United, Torquay and Yeovil Town to see what can happen to once proud Football League clubs if operations behind the scenes do not stack up with the demands on the field. Given Hartlepool’s demise over the last 12 months, who is to say those operations will stack up?

More players and more staff will likely come and go now for Hartlepool but in all of this, it is the supporters, those who continue to feel dismayed at what has happened, who will suffer the most.

This feeling should not have landed back at their doorstep after promotion in 2021 and consolidation last year.

And yet, Hartlepool are now a club, broken, heading back to non-league. How did we find ourselves back here?