Hartlepool chair calls clubs to ban Jeff Stelling as row goes on as Singh hits back at former Sky Sports presenter.
The conflict between broadcaster Jeff Stelling and Hartlepool United has gotten worse, and the club’s chairman, Raj Singh, has written to the other National League teams requesting that they bar the former Sky Sports host from their boardrooms.
In protest at Singh’s conduct of the club’s sale discussions, Stelling resigned as Hartlepool’s honorary president in May. Singh had put the club up for sale more than two years prior. Singh seems to have retaliated by attempting to prevent Stelling from receiving hospitality for Hartlepool’s away games, which start on Saturday at Yeovil.
“You may be aware from media coverage that Jeff Stelling has resigned as Honorary President of Hartlepool United Football Club,” Singh wrote in a letter sent last week. “As Chairman of Hartlepool United Football Club I would kindly and considerately ask that Mr Stelling is therefore not provided with official HUFC dignitary spaces in your board room, or equivalent, for any Hartlepool United fixture at your home ground.
“In the unlikely event that Mr Stelling independently attends any Hartlepool United fixture at your home ground, I’d further request that you consider to seat Mr Stelling separately to any HUFC dignitaries or staff.”
When it became apparent that a consortium’s intended buyout was not moving forward, Stelling quit. It is believed that the group, which is led by Shirley Hammond, a local businesswoman, has become impatient with the lack of progress in negotiations.
“I know this is only an honorary role, but it is the best way I felt I could protest against the treatment of the party trying to take control of the club,” Stelling said when he resigned. “Supporters have been left in an intolerable position with a perceived threat to the future of the club should they not support the current owner.”
Although it hasn’t happened yet, Singh has now suggested that season ticket holders vote on whether he should continue to be in charge.
Stelling, a lifetime supporter of Hartlepool, frequently promoted the team when hosting Football Saturday, Sky Sports’ live score and results show, which he hosted for 29 years until 2023. He succeeded Peter Mandelson, the Hartlepool MP from 1992 to 2004, as the club’s honorary president in 2016.
Singh’s £1.8 million purchase of the then-League Two team spared Hartlepool from going out of business, although the team has had a difficult season. Following the team’s relegation from the Football League at the end of the 2022–2023 season, the care home owner from Teesside put the team up for sale.