Hartlepool United have celebrated life back in the English Football League by announcing a key sponsorship agreement with Durata.

The Teesside-based critical power infrastructure specialists’ blue and white logo will be on the back of Pools’ new away shirt this season.

As well as appearing above the players’ names on Hartlepool’s red and black away kit in Sky Bet League Two, Durata will also be branded on the warm-up tops before matches.

As the new away strip was revealed, Hartlepool chairman Raj Singh said: “I am delighted to welcome Durata as a new partner for the 2021/22 EFL season.

“This is an exciting time for the club and we are proud to welcome new companies like Durata to be a part of this journey with us.

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“Durata will be proudly on the back of our new away shirt which I have seen and personally really like. It is always great to see Hartlepool United attracting new businesses and partners as we continue to grow in the right direction.”

Hartlepool started the new season with a 1-0 victory over Crawley Town on Saturday in front of more than 5,000 fans at Victoria Park.

Members of Durata’s management team were at the game to see Gavan Holohan score a dramatic winner for Dave Challinor’s side in the closing stages.

Durata’s Managing Director John McGee said: “It feels special to be involved in this way because Hartlepool have been promoted, the mood is positive, it is a local club for us and accessible.

“I was really proud to be in the directors’ box for the first game, there was a fantastic atmosphere. We have been going to football matches for years but to feel part of the team felt different for us. You get more instilled in the game.”

Durata has already felt the benefit of its actions.

John explained: “For us it is about getting recognition in the local area. We were soon contacted after someone saw a picture of our logo on the scoreboard at Victoria Park.

“My Linked In post about sponsoring Hartlepool was seen by 2500 and one person rang the following day to ask if their 18-year-old son, who has the highest grades in electrical engineering, could get a break after struggling to find one. He will now be interviewed by the end of this week.”

Durata will be represented at every Hartlepool game this season as part of the new partnership and is a further sign of the eight-year-old company’s desire to be involved in sport.

It is already a long-standing sponsor of Ribble Weldtite Cycling, the No 1 pro-continental team in the UK, and it has other plans, including sponsoring a 26-mile charity bike ride for Butterwick Hospice.

John said: “It reflects what we want to do as a company. In sport, cyclists, footballers or whoever, strive to be the best they can be and we want to be the best.

“There is quite a lot of synergy between the sports we do follow, in that we want to turn up, do a job and we want to be fantastic.

“We are the best at our game.”

Since Durata was founded in 2013, the company based at Middlesbrough’s Riverside Park has gone from 14 members of staff to 27 plus a long list of sub-contractors.