Former Imps Assistant Leaves National League Side After Just Two Months

Neil McDonald has left his role as assistant manager at Hartlepool United just two months after joining the National League side.

The experienced coach, who previously served as Lincoln City’s assistant under Peter Jackson in 2007, had been appointed by Simon Grayson in August but has now departed by mutual consent following a difficult run of results.

Brief Spell Comes to an End

McDonald’s exit was confirmed on Sunday after Pools’ 2-0 defeat to York City extended their poor league form. Hartlepool have taken just one win from their last ten National League matches and currently sit 12th in the table, 11 points adrift of the play-offs.

The 59-year-old’s departure marks another period of change for the North East club, who turned to McDonald in the summer to provide experience alongside Grayson. He has now been replaced by former South Shields boss Elliott Dickman, who joins as the new assistant manager.

During his two months at Victoria Park, McDonald helped oversee 14 matches across all competitions, but performances and results have fallen short of expectations in the early stages of the campaign.

From Sincil Bank to the National League

McDonald’s coaching career has spanned over two decades and included spells at several EFL clubs. After playing for Newcastle United, Everton, Oldham Athletic, Bolton Wanderers and Preston North End, he moved into coaching with roles under Sam Allardyce and Phil Brown.

His time at Lincoln City came during Peter Jackson’s reign in 2007, joining as assistant manager following his departure from Carlisle United. McDonald later left the Imps for Leeds United that same season, with Lincoln receiving compensation for his move. Since then, he has worked in various capacities, including assistant roles at Blackpool, Scunthorpe United, Walsall, Swindon Town and Barrow, as well as managing Blackpool during the 2015/16 campaign.

Interestingly, it is a widely held belief that we were better under Jackson and McDonald than we Iffy arrived. We won eight of 18 under Jackson and McDonald, including a run of three 201 wins (at Shrewsbury and Macclesfield, and at home against Rotherham) as he arrived. We won eight of the next 18 under Iffy, including five when he was sole manager, with Jacko recovering from cancer.

Both Iffy and Jacko lost their jobs in September 2009.