We had a hectic week of non-league football from Saturday to Tuesday. There has been manager sackings, first wins and FA Cup shocks. Matthew O'Regan has us covered with the four main stories.
Priced as high as 16.00 with some bookmakers, Hednesford faced an arduous task away at National League promotion hopefuls Gateshead.
The first leg saw Steve King's side claim a draw after a 69th-minute equaliser from Rob Stevenson, forcing a replay at the Gateshead International Stadium.
Gateshead went ahead after 10 minutes through the prolific Owen Oseni, before being pegged back after 22 minutes by Jack Bearne. Rob Stevenson was on the scoresheet again, firing The Pitmen into the lead after 55 minutes. Six minutes later Sion Spence made it 3-1, with Hednesford holding on for a famous win.
It was the final game for the interim manager Ben Clark, who now steps aside for Carl Magnay to manage them. Hednesford have been rewarded with a home tie against Step Three side Gainsborough Trinity who shocked Lincolnshire rivals Boston United in the fourth qualifying round.
Darren Sarll and Hartlepool has not worked out, with the 41-year-old sacked by a National League side for the second time in the space of a year.
The Monkey Hangers are currently 16th in the league and have lost four of their last five league games. Their one win in that spell came in a 4-3 blockbuster at home to Sutton after being 2-0 down.
An FA Cup run was perhaps his way of saving his job, but Sarll was on the brink after a 1-1 draw at home to National League North Brackley. A 3-1 loss in the replay, after being 1-0 up, was enough for Sarll to be replaced.
Hartlepool are now searching for their fourth permanent manager in the space of a season and a half. 76-year-old Lennie Lawrence is the temporary manager yet again.
The Hartlepool hierarchy will be frustrated at their inability to qualify for the Fa Cup proper, with a winnable home tie against Braintree for Brackley.
After missing out on the playoffs by just five points last season, St. Albans had hope of challenging in the top end of the table yet again. However, the Saints got off to a torrid start to the campaign, failing to win any of their opening 10 games.
St. Albans started the season with six losses and a draw and looked destined for the drop. Draws against Weston Super-Mare and Torquay seemed to restore some sort of clarity, before a bonanza of a game against Salisbury. Noble's side were 0-4 down after 57 minutes, eventually losing 3-4.
However, they finally got their first win at the 11th time of asking, scraping past Hampton & Richmond. Noble, who is in his second spell with the club after departing for Wealdstone in January, would be relieved to be off the mark.
Their next game comes in a relegation six-pointer at home to Welling.
Long-serving manager Craig Edwards managed his last-ever Cheshunt game on Saturday. It was a 0-1 loss to local rivals Potters Bar last Saturday. He leaves the club after seven years - the most successful seven years in the club's history.
In his tenure, Edwards managed over 300 games, leading the Ambers to back-to-back promotions and the club's highest-ever league position in the National League South. They also won the Herts Senior Cup for the first ever time and reached the fifth round of the FA Trophy, where they were rewarded with a bumper away tie at Stockport County.
However, a poor start to the season saw Cheshunt slump down to second bottom. This meant that the natural course of action was for the club and Edwards to part ways.
James Elliot won his first game in temporary charge by beating Hastings United 3-2 at home. He faces a tough test in a relegation battle at Whitehawk on Saturday.
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