RAJ SINGH’S push to takeover Hartlepool United has hit a major stumbling block – as the struggling National League club prepare for a televised relegation tussle tonight.

The former Darlington chairman, with Sky Sports presenter Jeff Stelling and ex-Middlesbrough forward Craig Hignett part of the plans, has been in detailed discussions with the club’s owners for a number of weeks.

Progress had meant there was a greater confidence a deal could be achieved and that led to Singh attending Saturday’s 3-3 draw with Fylde along with Hignett.

However, The Northern Echo understands Singh’s discussions with Hartlepool’s owner chief benefactor John Blackledge have hit a huge stumbling block.

It is unclear what the finer details of the disagreement are, although there will have to be a change of heart from Blackledge for the deal with Singh’s consortium to go through.

The latest twist comes at a time when the clock is ticking towards when the latest run of wages are due to be paid on Friday.

Pools’ chairwoman Pam Duxbury is still working behind-the-scenes to find enough money to keep the club going.

While talks with Singh and those forming part of his consortium have stalled, Hartlepool’s decision makers have to ensure their immediate financial obligations are met and that means having the staff’s wages met at the end of the week.

Last month they successfully had the winding-up order withdrawn that was due to be heard today, courtesy of the fans raising the money and paying off a HMRC bill. That allowed Hartlepool chiefs and Singh to concentrate on trying to get a deal done.

Caretaker manager Matthew Bates has to come up with a way for his team to continue their fight for survival on the pitch, with a performance required in a vital relegation battle with Barrow tonight at Holker Street.

Both Barrow, sitting a place above, and Hartlepool, nervously one place above the bottom four, will go head-to-head knowing the three-point cushion they held over the drop zone was eradicated last night when Solihull Moors beat Bromley.

Hartlepool defender Carl Magnay said: "I think everyone is aware of the threat of relegation - and not just relegation, but the size of the league that the National League North now is.

"People keep saying ‘York City’ and I respect why they would. Like us they came down from League Two and have struggled. They didn’t expect to go straight down and neither did we, but they did and we have got to be wary of it.

"York are a big club and unlike us didn’t have the big off-field issues. We do, so we aren’t fooling ourselves. Nobody wants to go down, there’s nobody sitting here saying ‘well with the financial problems if could be the best thing’. We need to stay up.

"There are so many big clubs in the north, the likes of Stockport and Kidderminster, Darlington, Boston and so on - all were in the Football League not so long ago remember. We can’t have Hartlepool United’s name added to that. We’ve got a massive final six weeks ahead of us.”

Hartlepool have nine matches remaining to save themselves from the drop into National League North, for as long as the issues of the field continue to allow them the time.

Bates has overseen two draws since taking over from Craig Harrison and the fighting spirit they showed to deliver a point at Fylde on Saturday is exactly what is required at Barrow.

Magnay told the official National League website: “The mood in the dressing room after the Fylde game was like a side who just one a game.

"We were 3-1 down away to a team who have just smashed Aldershot and Macclesfield to pieces but we found something. We worked and we got our rewards. Seconds before Devante (Rodney) scored an unbelievable equaliser in the last minute, we should have had a clear penalty. Clear.

"When you are down the wrong end, sometimes you get angry and can’t get over things like that but he did. He carried on, ignored the protests, and smashed it into the top corner. I think the celebrations told the whole story.

"Since Matthew (Bates) came in you can see there has been a little switch gone on and now have a bit more about us and we’re going into games knowing we’ve got every chance. "Barrow will be a big test. They’ve just won at Maidenhead but seem to have issues at home and we’ve got to try and exploit that.”