ANYONE WHO WATCHES Soccer Saturday regularly will know that presenter Jeff Stelling is a die-hard Hartlepool fan.
The 62-year-old broadcaster is also the club’s honorary president, and he even memorably publicly called for the team’s beleaguered then-manager Dave Jones to quit a few weeks back, which he promptly did.
Yesterday, Stelling’s reactions summed up the highs and lows of being a football fan in microcosm, as he watched his beloved team get relegated.
To add insult to injury, Hartlepool appeared to be safe at one point, as they were beating Doncaster 2-1 with time running out.
However, Irish defender Mark O’Brien’s 89th-minute winner for Newport against Notts County rendered the other result virtually irrelevant and consigned Stelling’s side to non-league football.
The despair on the presenter’s face is briefly evident in the clip below after O’Brien’s goal is confirmed, before he manfully continues to report in a professional manner, congratulating Newport on their great escape in the process.
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