Hartlepool United v Nottingham Forest

By Albatross
April 21 2006

Forget team news, forget a look at the form; Hartlepool United face Nottingham Forest in a game that could give us hope or extinguish it. This is the time for a Battle Cry.

While I still feel that our situation is such that it's more a matter of when than if we are relegated, there are still plenty of reasons to go for it tomorrow. Not least is that despite our desperate situation, there is still that flicker of hope; three wins, and we could yet find ourselves scrambling into 20th place.

Add in other factors as well - many players trying to prove their worth for a contract at Pools or elsewhere, wanting to give a bloody nose to the big fish that's descended into our smaller pond, and the desire to show the fans what this team is truly capable of - and there is still a chance that Pools will defy form and expectation and turn things round. Win this game and if other results go our way things could suddenly look a lot brighter - and after all, over recent seasons Pools have shown that if it gets down to the last game then they are masters of pulling off a result.

Forest will come up to Pools knowing that they still have an outside chance of automatic promotion and a pretty good one of being in the playoffs. They'll come with a run of six wins on the spin. Pools haven't won in eight games; by rights, the result should be a foregone conclusion. And yet there remains hope; while we haven't performed consistently throughout the whole season, it's not too long ago that we deservedly beat Huddersfield at home. We have the worst home record in the division - but ended Chesterfield's long unbeaten run. The tantalising possibility remains that Pools on their day can still pull a rabbit out of the hat and show flashes of what made us one of the best sides in this division for two years.

Forget draws, only wins will do now. It doesn't matter if we romp to a 5-0 victory and hand out a footballing lesson, or scrape a 1-0 win when, after being under the cosh all game, a Forest defender overhits a back pass and it goes in off the keeper's backside. Getting three points is all that matters. And what the fans want to see from their side is not necessarily extravagant skill or neat passing; they want to see commitment to the cause, a side prepared to fight for every ball and devote every single bit of themselves to the Poolie cause.

Will it be enough? Who knows. But if we are going to wave goodbye to this division for a while, let it be with a bang not a whimper; let it be in a blaze of glory rather than with a lacklustre meek surrender. After all, we are Pools - and we Never Say Die.