For those making the trip to the north-east, it’s a round trip of over 500 miles that will take about 4-5 hours each way by car or coach.  Rail travel isn’t an option unless you plan to stay in the area on the Saturday night – you can’t get a train back on the Saturday evening.

By Supporters Coach – This is by far the cheapest and easiest way to travel.  For the rest of this season away travel is £5 per person for everybody.  Away travel is subsidised by FGR and the Supporters Club.  For full details go to Away Travel Offer – Remaining games (24/25) | WE ARE FGR.  For more details of coach pick-up points and timings etc go to FGR Away Travel – Forest Green Rovers Supporters Club (fgrsc.com)

Book your coach ticket from FGR Tickets | WE ARE FGR or by phone on 0333 123 1889 Monday to Friday, between 9am and 3pm. (Closed Wednesdays)

Please try to book as early as you can as seats will be on a first come first served basis..

By Car – The postcode for car travellers is TS24 8BZ.  It is a long journey of about 260 miles that should take around 4 hours and 45 minutes.  There is a reasonable amount of parking near the ground as well as some pay and display parking that isn’t too expensive.  There is also some street parking within an easy walk.  The ground is very close to the town centre.

By Train – The railway station in Hartlepool is pretty close to the ground but, inevitably, this doesn’t look like a good travelling option.  You won’t be able to get back home on the same day so only viable for those who are overnighting.

Victoria Park has been Hartlepool’s home since they were founded in 1908.  It has a capacity of 7,865 and usually contains a crowd of up to 4,000 fans who aren’t afraid to make quite a lot of noise!

Hartlepool are 12th in the table and have been ‘middling’ all season.  They haven’t flirted near the relegation places and neither have they  threatened the play-off spots this season.

Pools have been stronger at home than on the road this season and they have won their last 3 home games.  Charlie McCann’s 71st minute strike settled the return fixture back in September when Rovers won 1-0.

Striker Gary Madine is Pools leading scorer with 7 goals.

Hartlepool’s nicknames are ‘Pools’ or ‘the Monkey Hangers’.

Legend has it that during the Napoleonic Wars of the early 19th century, a shipwrecked monkey was hanged by the people of Hartlepool, believing him to be a French spy! To this day, people from Hartlepool are still known as ‘monkey hangers’.

The team’s mascot is a monkey called H’Angus!

Their 2 most famous managers have been Brian Clough (his first managerial appointment) between 1966 and 1967 and Cyril Knowles between 1989 and 1991.  Under Knowles, a legend at the club even today, Hartlepool enjoyed relative success.  But in 1991 Knowles was diagnosed with brain cancer and passed away later the same year.

Some say Cyril Knowles was the best full back Tottenham have ever had.  Hartlepool fans remember him as a legendary manager.

Brian Clough rejuvenated Hartlepool in his short spell in charge before moving to Derby County.

In 2002, Pools mascot, H’Angus, also known as 28 year-old Stuart Drummond, beat off opposition from the main political parties to be elected to the £53,000-a-year job as mayor of Hartlepool.  His winning slogan in the campaign was “free bananas for schoolchildren”.  Even though his candidacy was just a publicity stunt, he was subsequently re-elected and served until 2012 when the post of mayor of Hartlepool was eventually abolished.  He never made good on his promise of free bananas!

The mascot monkey that became Mayor of Hartlepool!

Hartlepool is in County Durham and is a seaside and port town on the north-east coast.  Victoria Park is close to the railway station, the town centre, and the sea.

The name comes from a pool where harts (red stags) drank.  With a bit of French influence after the Norman Conquests the town became Hart-le-Pool (the pool of the stags).

The area became heavily industrialised in the 19th Century with an ironworks and shipbuilding.  By 1913, 43 ship-owning companies were located in the town, with the responsibility for 236 ships. This made it a key target for Germany in the First World War.  One of the first German offensives against Britain in WW1 was a raid and bombardment by the Imperial German Navy in 1914.  Hartlepool was hit with a total of 1150 shells, killing 117 people.

During this period there were 2 Hartlepools – ‘Old Hartlepool’ & ‘West Hartlepool’.  They were finally merged in 1908.  The town’s football club was then called Hartlepools in a bid to show it included both parts of the town.  Local fans still refer to the club as ‘Pools’.

Loss of heavy industry and the docks meant the town became a byword for urban decay.  In the 1990’s, the docks near the centre were redeveloped and reopened as a marina.  The accompanying National Museum of the Royal Navy opened in 1994, is all centred in what is known as the Hartlepool Historic Quay.  It’s an attractive area, a stone’s throw from the football ground.

The National Museum of the Royal Navy on Hartlepool’s historic quay.