Stelling said that he will join Pools fans in the stands after club chairman Raj Singh wrote to National League clubs asking that the former Sky Sports and now TalkSPORT presenter not be allocated spaces in their boardrooms.
In May, Stelling stood down as honorary president of Hartlepool in protest of Singh’s handling of negotiations to sell the club to a local consortium.
The 70-year-old discussed the recent situation on TalkSPORT on Wednesday morning, stating that he had been to several games on an independent basis last season.
Reflecting on an unsettled couple of days ahead of the new season, Hartlepool United Supporters Trust (HUST) and Hartlepool United Football Club Supporters’ Association (HUFCSA) member Ron Harnish branded the ongoing situation as “silly”.
Stelling stood down as honorary president of Hartlepool in May (Zac Goodwin/PA)
“The letter really (was) a shock and it hasn’t put the club in a good light,” Harnish told PA news agency.
“Initially you look at it and it’s very surprising, then you look and think ‘why have they done this?’.
“It doesn’t make any sense to a fan looking at it so they just think it’s silly, it really is silly. Why would a chairman of a football club put this letter out to all the other chairmen?
“You ask any Hartlepool fan – in all honesty they should forget all about this and get on with the football.”
Hartlepool issued a statement on Wednesday stating the letter was written asking opposition not to seat Stelling in “dignitary places”.
The statement said: “For absolute clarity, neither the club nor chairman have asked for other clubs in the National League to exclude or ban Mr Stelling from matches at their grounds.
“The letter that the club recently sent to National League opposition simply informed opposition that Mr Stelling no longer held a formal role and considerately asked opposition not to allocate Mr Stelling dignitary places or seating, so as to avoid any unnecessary confusion or embarrassment on match days for the benefit of all parties including Mr Stelling.”
⏳ Counting down to Saturday.#HUFC pic.twitter.com/6MI7Hzqtqz
— Hartlepool United (@Official_HUFC) August 7, 2025
Despite being surrounded by off-the-field problems, Hartlepool’s new campaign begins on Saturday with a trip to Yeovil, where Stelling will be in attendance having purchased his ticket.
Hartlepool picked up 60 points at the end of the 2024/25 campaign with 14 wins from 46 league matches and boss Simon Grayson insisted the club will “continue to stick together” as they aim to build on last season’s 11th-placed finish.
“We do have a united mentality at the club, we win together and we lose together,” Grayson told the PA news agency.
“I can’t control what goes on away from the pitch, I can only control my department which is management and the players.
“We want supporters who may be on the fence of coming back to show their faces at the games and back the team, because at the end of the day, we are playing and fighting and competing for them.
“This club is a family, and we will continue to stick together as a unit, and we will try to be the best we can for those supporters.”