Forest Green Rovers will be looking to make it two consecutive victories in the National League as they travel to Victoria Park to take on Hartlepool United.
Rovers confirmed a spot in this year’s Play-Offs last weekend after a 3-1 victory over Braintree Town at The New Lawn.
They will be looking to finish as high as they can in the league table, with the opportunity to finish as high as fourth still a possibility.
Ahead of Saturday’s clash, here is everything you need to know about our opponents.
The Opposition: Hartlepool United
Nickname: ‘Monkey Hangers’
League Position: 9th
Hartlepool have a solid campaign in the National League, currently sitting 9th in the league table.
They had a strong start to the season, going seven games undefeated before suffering their first defeat of the season in Nailsworth.
A first-half strike from forward Kairo Mitchell was the difference on the day, with Rovers winning the game 1-0.
The club have gone four games without a victory, having only picked up two points from the last 12 available in the league.
They did not manage to find the back of the opposition’s net in any of those games either, with their last goals coming back at the end of March.
The Monkey Hangers suffered their worst defeat of the season on this run, a 7-0 defeat at Wealdstone. A game in which the Pools were 5-0 down inside 33 minutes.
Rovers will be looking to extend their opponent’s run without a goal to five games on Saturday.
The Manager: Nicky Featherstone
Nicky Featherstone is the current man in the dugout at Hartlepool United.
Featherstone was appointed back at the start of December following the sacking of former Manager Simon Grayson.
The 37-year-old had a successful spell as interim before his permanent appointment, winning four of his eight games.
He made 415 league appearances across more than 10 years as a Pools player, having also featured this season for the club.
Featherstone will be hoping his side can end their dry spell in front of goal and pick up their first win in four games.
Player To Watch: Alex Reid
Striker Alex Reid has had an impressive campaign for the Pools, scoring eleven goals for his side in the National League.
Reid signed for Hartlepool United last Summer following his release from League Two side Oldham Athletic.
However, it was his loan spell at Wealdstone which caught the eye last season, scoring an impressive 20 goals across his two spells with the club, which helped them stay in the National League.
The forward has all the attributes a good striker needs, and Rovers will need to be aware of Reid’s quality in and around the box.
Head-to-Head:
20/11/2021- Hartlepool 1-3 Rovers (Moore-Taylor 4th, Matt 30th & Stevens 45th)
09/04/2022- Rovers 1-1 Hartlepool (Hendry 53rd)
28/09/2024- Rovers 1-0 Hartlepool (McCann 71st)
05/05/2025- Hartlepool 1-1 Rovers (Doidge 89th)
06/09/2025- Rovers 1-0 Hartlepool (Mitchell 23rd)
