AT HARTLEPOOL UNITED there’s been good chairman (John Smart, Harold Hornsey, Ken Hodcroft) and bad (Garry Gibson). You can now add Gary Coxall to the latter list.

His near two-year tenure ended on Tuesday evening, when he stood down from the role. He still owns half the club, but won’t be seen in the North-East any more.

Hodcroft handed over the reins after 18 years. At times it was lavish, on occasions historic, towards the end it was stale. It was some ride under IOR.

Under JPNG the wheels came off late last year and from then on it was an unmitigated disaster.

Coxall arrived with promises, like any new chairman does, galore. "We want to improve Hartlepool as well as the club. Firstly, improve the club but what comes with that we are looking at plans to improve the area around it,’’ he claimed.

One shrewd former club employee joked that Coxall needed to realise he was no longer playing Championship Manager on his computer, but was actually in charge of a real football club; one which has history, which actually affects people.

Pools never did get those turnstiles from Upton Park.

He leaves with empty Twitter rhetoric and with next to no progress made on the proposed sale of Victoria Park or the Mill House Masterplan development, although he did engage and entertain the council more than Hodcroft and IOR managed.

When the planned redevelopment of the ground and surrounding area was raised at the end of last year, it came via Access Finance, a Leeds-based company who loaned Pools money.

“I can assure fans that this does not – and will not – put this Football Club at risk, in fact it allows us to finally achieve something the club has wanted to do for years, to own its own ground,’’ said Coxall.

It came at a time when staff wages were delayed, after business partner Peter Goldberg walked away from his role and relationship with the club and chairman. Staff were soon paid.

The loan has since been covered by Sage Investments, who Coxall introduced to the club.

He initially introduced Pam Duxbury to supporters at a forum as financial controller and she has assumed the chief executive role, while now taking on chair duties.

She has already engaged with the club’s nascent Supporters’ Trust. Any talk of full fan ownership is some way off and the Trust insist taking over is not their aim, either long or short term.

Could the Trust and / or other businesses be able to buy out Coxall’s stake in the club which he still owns?

Do Sage and Duxbury intend to hang around for the long term or are they reluctant owners?

Are plans dependent on the club retaining its Football League status and what happens if they fall out of the trapdoor on Saturday evening?

There’s an awful lot of questions need addressing quickly.

It could have been worse though. Hodcroft could have allowed the sale to Peter Harris and the TMH (The Monkey Hangers) consortium to go through.

Harris and Stephen Murrall are currently awaiting trial after being charged with three counts of fraud. They deny the charges, which also relate to their planned takeover of Pools.

Two years ago the Great Escape was completed under Ronnie Moore as IOR looked to sell. At the time the town was right behind the club and the players. Spirit and the old Never Say Die attitude was to the fore.

It’s not quite been like that this time, but with Coxall gone, Dave Jones sacked and ticket sales approaching 6,000 for Saturday’s game, there’s still a slice of hope and the town is showing it’s passion for the club once again. Hopefully that spirit will rub off on the players for one last push.

Never Say Die.