AS NATHAN Tyson got past Micky Nelson and homed in on goal with two minutes remaining, Hartlepool United's hopes of staying in League One appeared to be as good as over.

Written off as relegation fodder after three successive defeats, victory over Nottingham Forest was Pool's only hope.

Nelson tried to tap the striker's ankles after he got goalside of the defender, but missed. He would gladly have connected and taken a red card.

With £675,000 of centre forward one-on-one with Dimi Konstantopoulos, blue and white hearts were in blue and white mouths.

Michael Proctor had enjoyed his best game of the season in securing a two-goal lead that was reduced to one.

As nerves and hopes were stretched to the confines of persecution, Proctor stood aghast, head in hands waiting for the seemingly inevitable to happen.

After conceding in the last minute at Milton Keynes on Easter Monday, another late blow would have been too much to take. It would have administered the last rites.

Tyson, eight goals for Forest and 19 in total this season after his move from Wycombe, clipped the ball past Konstantopoulos - but also past the far post.

Proctor, hearing the only noise coming from his own ecstatic fans, could remove hands from his eyes and breathe again.

If you are looking for a defining moment, this was unquestionably it.

Tyson last week put back his wedding from the last week of May to early June to cover any potential date in the play-offs.

Perhaps his bride to be will have smiled as broadly as Proctor when she saw his miss. The May date could be on again, as Forest nipped out of the top six after this loss.

"When he broke away, I thought it was typical of how our season has gone,'' admitted Proctor. "I thought it was going in, but thankfully it's gone wide.

"I had sort of given up on it. I saw him hit it and go past Dimi and thought that was it.

"Thankfully it went the other side of the post. There was a lot of people in the ground holding their breath, I was one of them.''

Part of a three-man forward line, Proctor's 60th minute goal means he now has two in two and seven for the season. Quickly doubling Pool's advantage from one to two was vital.

He said: "It was a great ball from Ritchie - I think everyone expected him to shoot, but I caught his eye and thankfully I got two bites at it.

"Earlier in the season the rebound would have gone the other way, to a defender, but this time I got the luck.

"Going with three up front worked really well for us - I think we had to be brave with the formation.

"We had lots of options going forward and it was nice to have Joel back as well, he was different class.

"His link-up play was fantastic and he caused problems all day.''

He added: "We've needed a result like that - we've been threatening one, without it coming.

"Once we got level I couldn't see us losing the game to be honest.

"We have beaten one of the form teams and we did the same to Huddersfield the other week.

"We've proved we can do it. We had chances to beat Swindon and Milton Keynes but it didn't happen, which makes our situation all the more frustrating.

"We know we've got to win our last two games, but there is no reason why we cannot do it.''

Twelve months ago, Proctor was part of a Rotherham side relegated when the Christmas decorations came down. This time around his side has every chance of staying up.

"Last season it was over long before the end of the season, we never had a chance of staying up,'' he said.

"It's different now, we know we can get out of it. Results and performances like this one prove it. We might have to win our last two games, but we believe we can.''

This performance was as good as Pool have enjoyed this season. Against an opposition who had won six on the trot and were unbeaten in ten, it makes it all the more galling and bewildering that they have dropped too many soft points this season.

It was a world away from a team heading for the basement division.

And the major difference was the return of Joel Porter. He was an inspiration up front.

The ingenious Aussie now has three goals in five games. It's no coincidence that Pool's last decent 90 minute performance came in Porter's last start, against Oldham on March 31.

After Tyson latched onto a long ball to lob the ball over Konstantopoulos with their first attack, it looked like (another) one of those days.

Porter had blasted over from close range seconds before the goal, but levelled when he headed home Ritchie Humphreys' fizzed in corner.

Proctor almost made it two, his snap shot tipped over by the far from assured goalkeeper Rune Pedersen.

But Nelson did. The last time he was presented with an opening like this was on his Pool debut, when he bagged a last-minute winner from 35 yards.

This shot didn't have the distance or power of that Peterborough pile-driver, but he wasn't complaining.

Taking possession 25 yards out, the defence parted, he swung with his right boot and the ball spun up off Wes Morgan high into the net.

Straight from the kick-off Pool won possession, Humphreys unselfishly spotted Proctor's run across the defence and, although his first shot was blocked, he was alert enough to tap in his seventh of the season into an empty net.

Nerves were going to be tested and Kris Commons' classy low finish had Forest chasing an equaliser.

Commons was doing his best to single-handedly lift his side and Konstantopoulos saved his low free-kick to keep the lead before the big Greek stopped headers from Morgan and Ian Breckin.

Since Pool were last relegated in 1994 (when they could muster 36 points), only once has a team gone down with 51 points.

Now on 48, a win/draw minimum is needed.

Result: Hartlepool United 3, Nottingham Forest 2.

Read more about Hartlepool here.