Clark quits as Hartlepool boss in post-match interview

Lee Clark stepped down as Hartlepool United head coach with immediate effect following his side's 3-1 home defeat by Worthing. The result was the club's third consecutive defeat and sixth in their last seven matches, dropping Hartlepool to 18th in the National League table ahead of Saturday afternoon's other fixtures.

Clark, a former Newcastle, Sunderland and Fulham player, joined Hartlepool in the summer after a brief spell in charge of Rotherham United at the end of the previous season. Supporters called for him to be sacked during Saturday's match as the team's poor run continued.

Speaking to BBC Radio Tees, Clark confirmed he was resigning from his position with immediate effect. The former Huddersfield Town and Birmingham City manager said he had wanted to give the club and its fans something to be proud of and what they deserved, but had been unable to do so. He added that he had been excited to take the job, hoping to be the man who returned the club to where it belonged, but that it had not worked out.

Hartlepool were bought in January by American businessman Landon Smith, with the County Durham club aiming to end a four-year spell outside the English Football League in the National League.

The club must now find its ninth permanent manager or head coach during this period outside the EFL.