John Askey issues rallying call for Hartlepool United supporters ahead of crucial Crawley Town clash

Hartlepool find themselves in what is pretty much a must win situation as the Reds make the long trip to the North East with Askey’s side three points adrift in the League Two table.

The fixture with Crawley has long-since been earmarked as one of huge potential significance and that has proven to be the case.

Pools have just three games of the season remaining to overturn their deficit on Crawley to avoid slipping back into the National League.

As such, the club are looking to boost the Suit Direct Stadium attendance having announced their 'Together United' ticketing initiative to encourage supporters to bring their friends along at a reduced rate.

Ticket sales, it’s understood, are progressing well, with the club set to see its biggest gate of the season following on from the 5,687 in attendance for Easter Monday's draw with Stevenage.

Manager Askey had recently given his support to The Mail with regards to a ‘Pack the Park’ campaign and, following their defeat against Salford City, Askey has urged supporters to continue playing their part in a game which he described as their last chance.

“Bring your mate, bring your mum, your dad, bring whoever and just try and get behind us and hopefully we can put on a performance that will justify that,” Askey told The Mail.

“Since I’ve come in, the support has been unbelievable and they don’t deserve to be where we are. All they can do is play their part again and hope the lads can turn up and put in performances like they’ve done at home.

“The majority of performances since I’ve been here have been good and there’s been one or two instances where we could have won the game and should have won the game and hopefully that’s not going to cost us.

“It’s why football is cruel because you don’t always get what you deserve and our supporters don’t deserve that,” he added.

“But hopefully on Saturday we give them something to shout about. If we do that then they can make a huge difference.

“We talk about the 12th man, they’re actually the first man aren’t they? They’re the ones who matter the most.

“We all know what we’ve got to do. We’ve been unsure these last few weeks but now we know exactly and we’ve got to roll our sleeves up and have a go.”

Askey is no stranger to high pressure games having been involved in a promotion winning campaign with York City last season.

And whilst Askey is sure the supporters will continue to play their part, the Pools boss has called on his players to stand up and be counted.

“I’ve had times where we’ve needed to win games and when you’re in that position you know exactly what you’ve got to do,” said Askey.

“Then you need players who are going to stand up and be counted.

“It’s a funny one for Crawley because they come into the game where, perhaps, they think a draw will be enough.

"Sometimes it’s better to be in a position where you know what you’ve got to do and you’ve got to win it.”