Hartlepool United's relegation battle: Crawley Town are held in third game in hand against Doncaster Rovers

The Reds held four games in hand over Hartlepool upon John Askey’s arrival at the club but had so far wasted their first two attempts at closing the gap on Pools when losing to Tranmere Rovers and Sutton United.

But after Scott Lindsey’s side picked up a crucial win over AFC Wimbledon at the weekend, they were able to leapfrog Hartlepool following their spirited draw against Bradford City.

It meant Crawley had the opportunity to move four points clear against Doncaster Rovers before being held to a 1-1 draw at the Broadfield Stadium.

Although not ideal for Hartlepool, things could have been worse, with Crawley now holding one game in hand - a home meeting with beaten FA Cup quarter-finalists Grimsby Town next week.

“I don’t think you can help but look at the results and you’re hoping,” Askey said recently with regards to Crawley’s games in hand.

“We shouldn’t be, we’ve got to make sure we do it ourselves. We probably need five wins. That’s what we’ve got to concentrate on because there’ll be certain weeks where you’ll have highs and you’ll have lows. It will be topsy-turvy.

“That’s when you’ve got to keep your nerve and forget about what’s going on at other clubs really. We can’t afford to rely on other clubs. We’ve got to do it ourselves.”

And those were thoughts echoed by first-team coach Antony Sweeney following the 1-1 draw with Northampton Town.

“It should be just concentrating on yourself, but it isn’t. We’d all be lying. It’s the first thing players and staff do. It’s just a natural reaction to where we currently find ourselves and where we are,” said Sweeney.

“But, ultimately, we can’t affect what Crawley do, what Harrogate do, what Colchester do, what Rochdale do. We can affect what we do. But if there’s a helping hand from other results and fixtures then we’ll gladly take that.”Hartlepool could find themselves in an even further precarious position this weekend as they host league leaders Leyton Orient whilst Crawley and Rochdale face off elsewhere.

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