What next for Hartlepool United following shock decision to sack manager Simon Grayson?

By Gbam Godwin On Oct 13, 2025

What next for Hartlepool United following shock decision to sack manager Simon Grayson?

Hartlepool United are looking for their ninth permanent manager in three years, following Simon Grayson’s surprise dismissal on Sunday.

True, chairman and owner Raj Singh, who has made 13 permanent hires since buying the club in 2018, is not known for his patience with Pools managers. Only promotion-winning manager Dave Challinor has lasted more than a year in the post, while none of the last five men to sit in the Pools bench have survived more than 17 games, despite the fact that veteran Lennie Lawrence stood down on his own.

Even so, Pools made the “extremely difficult” decision to part ways with Grayson, who leaves having won four, drawn seven, and lost four of his 15 games in charge, with Saturday’s disappointing FA Cup fourth qualifying round draw with Northern Premier League Premier Division side Gainsborough Trinity serving as the final straw for Singh.

Biggleswade Town Council could step in to clear Bonds Lane…

Oct 16, 2025

Plans for supermarket on former hotel site

Oct 16, 2025

City council headquarters evacuated after fire

Oct 16, 2025

Even Darren Sarll, one of the most unpopular managers in the club’s recent history, was given the opportunity to oversee last year’s FA Cup replay before being fired.

Pools are on the hunt for their fifth manager within a year following Sunday's shock decision to sack Simon Grayson after a run of just one win in 11 matches. Picture by Frank Reid. — Pools are on the hunt for their fifth manager within a year following Sunday’s shock decision to sack Simon Grayson after a run of just one win in 11 matches. Picture by Frank Reid.

It all started so well for Grayson, who scored 10 points out of the first 12 available this term after what appeared to be a particularly successful summer of recruitment.

Following periods in India, where he guided Bengaluru FC to the Indian Super League Final, and Nepal, where he won the league title with Lalitpur City, Grayson returned to Pools in June, his first management position in England since 2021.

At the time, it felt like he inherited a club in upheaval after a tumultuous conclusion to last season that saw Pools pushed close to the brink with Singh’s abrupt departure, the apparent breakdown of takeover discussions, and the unpopular owner’s subsequent return.

in the wake of a contested vote among season ticket holders.Even so, despite the impending exits of Mani Dieseruvwe, who scored 43 goals in 89 games at Victoria Park, and long-serving Joe Grey, Grayson talked about his new team’s chances of at least making the play-offs.

After all, he arrived with a reputation for winning promotions, having previously done so with Blackpool, his beloved Leeds, Huddersfield, and Preston. If there was any concern, it was that the latest of those promotions occurred in 2015.

Despite the multiple hurdles, the depleted team he inherited, the reputational harm the club had experienced, and the fact that Pools had fallen behind practically all of their National League competitors, Grayson appeared to have had a fairly successful summer of recruitment. Pools added 14 new players, strengthening the squad throughout and bringing in a number of players with National League experience.

Jay Benn, a member of the Solihull Moors team that made the play-offs in 2023/24, Cameron John, a regular in the York team that finished second last season, and Alex Reid, who scored 17 goals in 32 games for Wealdstone, all arrived with a proven track record in the National League.

When the new season began in August, most Pools fans would have believed that the group entering the new season was far stronger than the one that concluded the 2024/25 season.

Reid, who scored three goals in his first four Pools appearances but hasn’t scored in seven games since, and Johnson, who has had a rocky start to life back in the North East and has yet to open his account for his new club, have three goals in 26 games combined. Dieseruvwe, meanwhile, has 10 goals in his first 12 outings for National League leaders Dale. The statistics make for sobering reading.

Despite their impressive start – Pools won three and drew one of their first four games, maintaining four consecutive clean sheets – things haven’t gone as planned for most fans.

A lack of goals has been one of the club’s most well-documented concerns this season, prompting unavoidable comparisons between new signings Reid and Danny Johnson and Dieseruvwe, who departed to join for Rochdale after failing to agree a new contract at Victoria Park.

While some of this was beyond Grayson’s control – while the Pools manager met with both Dieseruvwe and Grey before their departures were announced, it’s unclear what he could have done to persuade them to sign new contracts at Victoria Park – fans were critical of his generally cautious team selections and pragmatic style of play.

Although Pools have been, for the most part, rock solid at the back, maintaining an incredible seven clean sheets in 15 games, there is a sense that this has come at the cost of some of their threat in the final third.

Both Reid and Johnson have played solo roles leading the line at times this season, with Pools frequently appearing to lack a link between their midfield and attack. While Grayson has always tried to focus on the positives, few would argue that recent performances, particularly against Brackley, Aldershot, Tamworth, and Gainsborough, have left much to be desired.

Despite this, Grayson has had some poor luck with injuries, with Benn missing a few of weeks early in the campaign, the crucial Reiss McNally ruled out until around December, and Reid, who despite his disappointing start remained probably his side’s best option up front,

He has been sidelined for the past three games. It’s also worth noting that Pools, despite a miserable recent run of just one win in their last 11 games, are still four points outside the play-off places, with three of their four defeats this season coming at the hands of Forest Green Rovers, York, and Carlisle, among the best and most well-resourced sides in the division.

Nonetheless, Pools, and Singh in particular, are not known for their patience, and they are now preparing to begin their search for, unusually, their fifth different manager in one year.

In the short term, Nicky Featherstone and Adam Smith will lead the team in Tuesday’s FA Cup encounter at home against Gainsborough, with assistance from Elliot Dickman, who recently joined the club’s coaching staff after the untimely departure of assistant manager Neil McDonald last week.

Featherstone, more than anybody else at the club, understands how precarious his position in the Pools dugout can be.

The veteran, who has only made one substitute appearance this season, is widely seen as a potential successor to Grayson, and he may appeal to Singh.It has to be seen whether he is willing to take on the role while remaining a member of the playing squad and, by all accounts, still learning his trade as a coach. Dickman, who managed National League North side South Shields last season, might also be a quick and available option for Pools to explore.

Meanwhile, Tony Mowbray, Antony Sweeney, and Mark Cooper, who was fired by Yeovil earlier this season, are among the early names being mentioned.