Dave Challinor very close to signing new contract at Hartlepool United and hopes to have resolution by next week

The Pools manager has always maintained his intentions to stay at Victoria Park despite his current deal set to expire next summer.

And discussions regarding an extended deal have been stretched out over the summer with Challinor and chairman Raj Singh initially some way apart before getting closer to an agreement.

Challinor has confirmed to The Mail that he’s ‘not far away’ from signing on the dotted line and hopes to have the situation resolved in time for Pools’ next home match against Bristol Rovers on Saturday.

“We’re not far away, I just need to read a couple of things over first,” Challinor said. “I was sent something over late on Thursday evening which I need to have a proper read through and I’ll speak with my family and things like that.

"I want to stay but things have to be right not just for me but for everyone really.”

In his first full season in charge at Hartlepool, Challinor led the club back to the Football League via the National League play-offs. Pools have also got off to a solid start to life back in League Two with nine points from their opening five games.

“Hopefully [the contract] gets sorted as quickly as possible,” added the Hartlepool manager. “I’ve been home over the weekend and we’ll read through things but most of the things are sorted and I don’t envisage any issues.

"Hopefully we can get it sorted within the next week and have some positive news.”

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