Portsmouth fans have expressed their gratitude to Notts County for their hospitality as the South Coast side clinched promotion to League One.

Three relegations in four seasons saw Pompey fall from the Premier League to League Two between 2010 and 2013, but their seventh win from nine games this season sees the club back into the third tier.

A combination of their 3-1 win over the Magpies at Meadow Lane, plus Luton Town's failure to beat Mansfield Town, was enough for Portsmouth to mathematically make sure of a departure from the fourth division.

While Notts also had cause for celebration as they secured League Two safety, it turned out to be a special occasion for Pompey fans, who had endured several years of hell - much like the Magpies had.

Several fans of the South Coast team were very kind in sending us messages of gratitude and support for helping make their day so special, and expressed best wishes for Notts to join them up the Football League next season.

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Kevin Nolan has attributed Notts County's 3-1 home defeat to Portsmouth as an off day but insists that his side will learn from it.

The Magpies fell behind to Gareth Evans's goal from the spot against after a foul on Kai Naismith by Richard Duffy before Jorge Grant found the corner from Elliott Hewitt's pass.

Jamal Lowe's double made sure of the points for Pompey, and with Luton Town drawing at Mansfield Town, the results gave the South Coast side promotion from League Two and set off celebrations among the away contingent at Meadow Lane.

"I am delighted for (Paul Cook) and (assistant) Leam Richardson, who is a good mate of mine," Nolan told the Nottingham Post. "I am delighted they have achieved what they set out for this year and wish them all the best going forward.

"I was just a bit disappointed in the way we managed the game. We just didn't do it as well as we have done in the past. Maybe we got caught up in the occasion a bit. But these lads have been fantastic since I walked in the door in January.

"We are going to have off days and today was one of them. But it's a learning curve and we will learn from it.

"Portsmouth are at the top of the league for a reason and they have been there all season. I thought for the majority of the game we matched them in bits and bobs, just not as consistent as we have been over the last five games."

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Matt Tootle is looking forward to Monday's "massive" League Two home game against Portsmouth, claiming that the anticipated record crowd and buzzing atmosphere is a sign of "how far the club's come and where it's going".

The Magpies will be welcoming to Meadow Lane a Pompey side which could seal promotion out of the fourth tier, where they have been languishing since 2013 following catastrophic financial hardship which is now behind them.

Notts are also smiling after their own off-the-pitch problems came to an end when Alan Hardy took over the club this year, with manager Kevin Nolan all but guiding the side out of relegation danger and the future looking much rosier for the previously beleagured NG2 side.

Tootle is relishing not only the prospect of a big crowd and atmosphere, but also the opportunity for the team to test themselves against high-flying opposition.

The defender told the official Notts site: "It's a massive game, Monday. It will be a really good day for everyone and it will show how far the club's come, and where it's going.

"It's a good test for us. We beat Plymouth a few months ago, we beat Portsmouth away and we'll show on Monday that we're just as good, if not better than them.

"This should really be a top-of-the-table clash. It will be a great game and a great crowd - and I can't wait."

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Kevin Nolan has claimed that while he has fond memories of being promoted at an away game, he does not want Portsmouth to be enjoying a promotion party of their own at Meadow Lane on Monday.

Pompey face Notts County in Nottingham in two days' time and, should they beat the Magpies and Luton Town drop points, they will be promoted to League One.

Nolan enjoyed a promotion party at Plymouth Argyle seven years ago as part of the Newcastle United squad, and remembers how the Pilgrims allowed them to celebrate at Home Park.

"We went to Plymouth and what happened there was fantastic," Nolan told the Nottingham Post.

"They got relegated on the same night we won the title, but they were brilliant to us as a club. They allowed the celebrations and put all the songs on for us and things like that. It was a first class attitude from them.

"If Portsmouth do get promotion then they will get a shake of the hand from me. We will maybe have a glass of champagne on their behalf, but we don't want that scenario to happen.

"I told the lads I don't want the party at our place. We've just got to make sure we keep the run going.

"The last I heard was they (Portsmouth) had sold nearly 5,000 tickets. It's going to be a good day, but what we have to do is make sure we don't get carried away with everything that's going on around the game.

"We have to make sure we do what we have been doing at home which is making it difficult for Portsmouth and deliver the kind of performances we have been producing of late.

"It's another one for the lads to put a statement out there which says I am ready for next year."

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Kevin Nolan has hailed the Notts County fans for turning out in their numbers at Crewe Alexandra and giving them incredible support all through the game.

A total of 1,069 Magpies fans went through the Gresty Road turnstiles to see their team play out a 2-2 draw which puts them just two points from mathematical safety.

After the game, Nolan told the official Notts site: "I thought our fans were incredible all through the game. I thank them all for their support - the lads and I really appreciate it.

"If you get those numbers travelling with you you're going to start sneaking up that table and things start looking positive for next year.

"We gifted them two goals today and if we had eradicated those mistakes we would have had a relatively easy day, I think.

"Some of our play was really good today in difficult conditions - it was a bit windy out there - and I thought we were very worthy of a win.

"We're absolutely gutted it's a 2-2 draw but how good is it that we're talking like that now, instead of coming away thinking 'we've had another loss and we've got a lot of work to do'?"

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Kevin Nolan has expressed his bewilderment with referee Gavin Ward's decision not to award Shola Ameobi a penalty late on in Notts County's 2-2 draw at Crewe Alexandra.

With the League Two clash at Gresty Road delicately poised, the veteran striker was brought down by Crewe goalkeeper Ben Garratt, but instead the referee gave the hosts a free kick and booked Ameobi for diving.

Nolan could barely contain his frustration after the game, and the Nottingham Post quotes him as saying: "Your guess is as good as mine as to why the ref didn't give it.

"Whether we would have scored I don't know because our recent record of penalties isn't great.

"I am bewildered. I think the ref and his staff know it is the wrong decision. The fourth official has to help the referee. He could see it, we could see it, and everyone in the stadium could see it.

"It's so annoying because the officials are supposed to be a team and work together.

"This is another thing about that decision, they have to know the player. Shola is an honest player and plays the game in the right way.

"I don't think he's been sent off and he very rarely gets yellow cards. He's not a cheat so I don't know really what to say because I don't want to get into too much trouble."

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Alan Hardy is looking forward to Easter Monday's Meadow Lane clash between Notts County and Portsmouth and hopes that more people go through the turnstiles than for the Mansfield Town game.

Pompey are gunning for automatic promotion from League Two this season, sitting third on 74 points - eight ahead of Luton Town with just five games left, and have a chance to confirm their ascent into League One in Nottingham.

The Notts owner is relishing the chance to see a top-three side try their luck at "our fortress", in what he expects will be a game with brilliant atmosphere.

Hardy wrote in the Nottingham Post: "[The win over Carlisle] set us up very nicely for the games over the Easter weekend which is a great time of the year for any football fan given the amount of fixtures.

"First we travel to Crewe on Good Friday where we hope to continue our momentum ahead of the Portsmouth game on Bank Holiday Monday.

"That game has got so many people talking around the city, not least because Portsmouth fans are travelling in their thousands as they look to win promotion to League One.

"Ticket sales have been magnificent and I am hoping that we will surpass our biggest attendance of the season so far which was against Mansfield Town back in January.

"More than 11,000 fans came through the gates for that derby, but I am expecting us to eclipse that total and I cannot wait to experience the atmosphere.

"For some time now, I have been longing to see a top-three team at our fortress because that's what Meadow Lane has become.

"We are unbeaten at home in 2017 and I don't think there will be too many teams across the divisions who can boast that kind of record."

To read Alan Hardy's latest Nottingham Post column in full, click here.

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Kevin Nolan wants the Notts County players who are out of contract at the end of the season to be exemplary off the pitch as well as on it.

With the exception of Adam Collin, Mark Yeates, Carl Dickinson, Michael O'Connor and Matt Tootle, every other player will see their current deals expire this summer.

Nolan is hoping to reward those players who have made themselves count over the last few months, but will also look at their attitude as a whole in training and during downtime.

"It's not just about a Saturday, it's about how you react to them, whether you are in the team or out of the team and whether you are in the squad or out of it," he told the Nottingham Post.

"All those type of things - including how they act around the club - will be monitored.

"That will all be taken into consideration when we are deciding if we want to keep players for another season or whether we will be saying thank you for their services and wishing them luck in their career.

"But we haven't got there yet. I am really pleased with what I have got and there are some tough decisions to be made."

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Shola Ameobi has dropped a massive hint towards extending his Notts County contract beyond the end of the season after admitting it's "the place I am supposed to be".

The former Newcastle United striker penned a short-term deal in February, with ex-teammate and friend Kevin Nolan at the help of the Magpies.

Since then, he has won plaudits from both fans and pundits with four goals in 13 appearances, even prompting some Newcastle fans to joke about signing him back.

Speaking of his time at Notts, Ameobi told the Nottingham Post: "I am loving every minute of it and the big thing for me is that I've been able to come in and feel at home straight away.

"I can hear the love from the fans and it means a lot, not just for me but for the team because they are really behind us.

"It makes me feel that this is the place I am supposed to be. So as long as my body allows it, then (a contract renewal) is something I am hoping that can happen."

Earlier in the day, Nolan had dropped a hint of his own about hoping to renew Ameobi's contract at Meadow Lane.

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Kevin Nolan has made a hint towards Shola Ameobi staying at Notts County beyond the end of the season.

The 35-year-old frontman joined the Magpies on a short-term deal in early February and has bagged four goals in 13 games for the club.

Nolan told the Nottingham Post: "I'm quite certain that if I want to keep Shola then he will be here next year, because we're mates.

"He was not playing and no one had rang him up for his services for the last six months when I made the call.

"I think he's spoken quite openly that he was thinking of even hanging up his boots in January.

"What you are seeing now is a fully fit Shola Ameobi and what he can do. I know what he can do, that's why I brought him to the club.

"And it's not just what he does on the field, but off it too with his professionalism. He's a credit to himself as well as his family, and he's a credit to this club because he drives a lot of it in the dressing room and makes my life easier.

"I've got nothing but good things to say about Shola. He's happy, I'm happy so when we know we're happy we normally come to a good agreement."

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Kevin Nolan has paid tribute to the stability behind the scenes as a major factor in Notts County's improvements on the pitch.

Since Alan Hardy took over the club in January, the Magpies have enjoyed steady progress which has turned them from down-and-out misfits into the in-form team of League Two.

There is even talk among the fans of a late, though somewhat-implausible-at-this-stage, tilt at the playoffs, which just goes to show how good things are now, considering the start of the year was a case of bracing ourselves for the non-league.

"The work that Alan is doing off the pitch is absolutely fantastic and what the lads are doing on the pitch is backing all that up," Nolan told the Nottingham Post.

"It makes for a much healthier environment when everything is getting sorted from top to bottom and you have a manager and chairman who are in tandem with each other.

"That's why you are seeing the performances from these lads. They are settled and know exactly what is expected of them."

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Jess Clarke, one of the longest-serving players in the Notts County Ladies team, has completed a move to Liverpool Ladies for an undisclosed fee.

The 27-year-old, a striker who came through the youth setup at Leeds Carnegie Ladies, joined the Lady Pies in 2010, spending the last six seasons at the club.

Clarke was part of the 2015 Notts squad that reached two major cup finals, including the Women’s FA Cup Final, the first to be held at Wembley Stadium.

On the departure, Notts manager Rick Passmoor said: “Jess has been a fantastic asset to this team for the three seasons we’ve been here.

"She expressed a desire to move on to a new challenge – a request we reluctantly accepted."

On her move, Clarke told the Liverpool website: “I am delighted to join Liverpool Ladies and I’m really looking forward to working alongside the players and Scott.

“There is already a great squad of players here and I am confident that we will have a successful Spring Series.”

Liverpool Ladies boss Scott Rogers, meanwhile, said: "Jess will give us more options up front and I am confident that she can prove to be a really important addition to the squad.

“Jess is lightning quick, as well as being clinical in front of goal. She is also proven in the FAWSL, so I am delighted to have signed her ahead of the upcoming Spring Series."

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Notts County have secured a deal with Basford United that will guarantee the Magpies their own training pitch next season, Kevin Nolan has revealed.

The team have currently been using Basford's facilities and 4G pitch in the build-up to games, but this will change going into the new campaign.

"We have brokered a deal with Basford United and we will have our own pitch up there," Nolan told the Nottingham Post.

"Our groundsman will be working there. They (Basford) have been fantastic and so too have the boss (Alan Hardy) and Jason (Turner, CEO).

"It's another positive move for the club and epitomises what is going on at the club at the moment in terms of getting the right facilities.

"We have been training on 4G and while it's not great to be working on it all week, at least you can work on your qualities and know the weather will not have a massive effect.

"Next year we are hoping to have a great playing surface at Meadow Lane and we are hoping to replicate that at Basford.

"We are going to have our own pitch that we will be able to train on daily. It will be a grass pitch and we will also have the use of the 4G when needed.

"I am just delighted we have somewhere for next year when we will be on grass more often than not."

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Notts County boss Kevin Nolan has singled out goalkeeper Adam Collin and midfielder Michael O'Connor for praise following their respective displays in the 2-1 win over Carlisle United.

Collin made up for failing to save Jabo Ibehre's shot for the hosts' opening goal with a great save from the striker one-on-one, while O'Connor impressed after coming off the bench for the last 25 minutes.

"I think Adam will be disappointed and he has already held his hand up about the first goal," Nolan told the Nottingham Post. "But you have seen a reaction from him because he then saves a one on one with Ibehre later on in the game.

"Adam has been absolutely first class since I came in and the problem with playing goalkeeper is that if you make an error you are often punished for it. But when you look at it, he has saved us the three points.

"Although the first goal went in, the save from the one on one was absolutely fabulous. He won't be getting any gripes from me, but he'll probably beating himself up more than I will be having a go at him.

"Michael O'Connor was a real positive coming on for us. It would have summed up a fantastic afternoon for him if he had scored. He definitely made an impact on the game and it was a massive one."

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Kevin Nolan has found himself beaming once again after yet another impressive Notts County display and result in Saturday's 2-1 win over Carlisle United.

It looked like the Magpies' winning run would come to an end at Brunton Park when substitute Jabo Ibehre put the Cumbrians ahead and the clock began to tick over into the 80s.

However, Jon Stead drew Notts level in the 85th minute before Matt Tootle struck a winner heading into injury time to make it four wins on the trot for Nolan's boys.

The result not only all but confirmed League Two safety, with 13 points' distance between the 15th-placed Magpies and second-from-bottom Newport County with just 15 points left to play for, but with just 10 points between Notts and the top seven, there is even talk of an audacious tilt at the playoffs.

"The away form is looking a lot better now and a lot healthier since I came in," Nolan told the Nottingham Post. "I thought we thoroughly deserved the points and I thought we handled them really well.

"I was a bit disappointed with the goal we conceded. I thought we could have cut it out a lot earlier.

"I was delighted with the reaction of all the boys and then from the lads who came on. Their attitude and application when they came on to the pitch was just brilliant. That's why you have a squad and that's why I talk about it all the time."

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Kevin Nolan has revealed that he is eager to his future at Notts County beyond his current 2018 deal.

Earlier this week, Alan Hardy let it be known that he is in talks with Nolan over a new three-year contract at Meadow Lane, following his impressive spell in charge so far.

Nolan told the Nottingham Post: "I'm delighted that we can now open discussions about maybe extending the stay. I'm sure they will be quite smooth talks.

"I think the most important thing is that we put that to bed, we get me and my management team sorted so that it bodes well for when we are talking to new players for next year, and the current squad, so they know it's settled.

"I think a lot of them under the last regime were very unsettled in what was going on.

"But now they're seeing I've got the full backing of the boss and hopefully it will go a long way to making a few of them feel more familiar or more settled in the fact that they are signing a contract with a club going forward."

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Alan Hardy has admitted that he wants the Meadow Lane pitch relaid to make it fit the way Notts County want to play next season.

The Notts owner announced earlier this year that the pitch is to undergo work in May.

"When we played Doncaster a few weeks back, I looked at the pitch and thought it was great," Hardy told the Nottingham Post.

"Ours isn't that conducive to the way we want to play, which is why we are having work carried out come the end of the season.

"It doesn't help that the sun never gets to the side of the pitch where the Derek Pavis Stand sits because the stand overshadows much of that surface in front of the dugouts.

"So we have looked at it and the last time there was work on the pitch was seven years ago.

"The plan is that we are going to take the top 18 inches off and complete the new pitch ready for next season.

"Personally, I love seeing players like Marc Bola, who are fast, skilful and young, driving down the pitch and moving the ball about at speed.

"That's the style of play the manager wants so I thought it was best to give them a surface they can really play on."

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Alan Hardy has revealed that he is in talks with Kevin Nolan over a new three-year contract at Notts County.

The former Leyton Orient manager, whose current deal expires at the end of next season, has taken the Magpies from relegation certainties to the brink of League Two safety since his appointment in January.

However, should a Premier League club come calling for the 34-year-old, Hardy vows not to stand in his way.

"We are currently negotiating a new three-year contract with Kevin," the Notts owner told the Nottingham Post. "As a result of us being safe, and I now believe that is the case, it's the appropriate thing to do.

"Talks began on Wednesday and, in an ideal world, I really would like all the negotiations to be concluded before Good Friday.

"It's no secret as to what I think of Kevin and the job that he has done here. He has been magnificent and he is pivotal to the journey we want to go on. There was never any doubt in my mind that he was going to be successful.

"I am really happy for him to have a clause in his contract that if a Premier League club comes in for him, then he should be allowed to go. There is no way I will stand in his way.

"My whole business life has been about mentoring, encouraging and growing people as individuals, as professionals and as people. If a Premier League club comes in for him then I shall shake his hand and wish him well."

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Kevin Nolan has suggested that he will not make wholesale changes at Notts County at the end of the season.

The Magpies are now all but safe in League Two following a revival spearheaded by Nolan and new owner Alan Hardy.

Prior to the takeover, there had been a lot of criticism of the Notts players, but the vast majority of them now have new leases of life and have been performing admirably in recent weeks.

This has not gone unnoticed by the Notts boss, who says that he will add more quality to the squad whilst looking to keep the spine intact going into next season, and will also seek to blood in more academy prospects.

"There are a lot of lads here now who have bought into what we are trying to do," Nolan told the Nottingham Post.

"Hopefully there will be a lot of them we would like to keep and then it will be a case of trying to add more quality.

"We also have an academy which is also flourishing and we have a blank canvas in how we are going to deal with that.

"We are going to make sure we get the right people in the right roles to take that forward."

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Alan Hardy has revealed how Notts County have been the subject of interest from a group of investors looking into buying the club, just a few months after his own takeover.

Writing for the Nottingham Post, Hardy suggested that the sort of numbers they were thinking of to purchase Notts was high, but the answer was "a very firm no".

He wrote: "As the date was April 1, I suspect many believed I was on a wind-up, but I can confirm that this wasn't the case and the offer was bonafide and genuine.

"It started when my accountants received a phone call out of the blue last week from a group of investors who own a football club in a continental league.

"They were looking to buy into a European club side that has potential. I don't think it's the first time they have looked at Notts, because they may have had a sniff in the days of Ray Trew.

"But with the club looking like it could have been relegated, it perhaps put them off because Football League status is everything.

"Now we are technically clear of that, and we can see the fantastic progress we are making on and off the pitch, they asked if there was any possibility of having some early discussions.

"My accountant, being my accountant, asked what sort of numbers they were thinking of and we were pleasantly surprised.

"But while it was nice to receive such interest, my response was a very firm no. We are on a journey here at Notts County, one which we have only just started.

"We are absolutely loving it, we are making great progress and believe me, we are only at start of what I believe will be a wonderful ride.

"My plan is to take this club to the Championship, but of course, it's still very flattering that a serious organisation would consider having some discussions with us."

To read the rest of Alan Hardy's column on the Nottingham Post, click here.

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Kevin Nolan has expressed his interest in forging closer links with Arsenal in light of Marc Bola's successful loan spell at Notts County.

The young left-back, a product of the Gunners academy, is developing well at Meadow Lane, and has said himself how being at Notts is helping him grow and prosper as a footballer.

Nolan is hoping that glowing reports all round will not only enable Bola to return to the Emirates Stadium as a better player, but that the Premier League club will entrust Notts with more loanees in future.

"I said to the boss (owner Alan Hardy) the other day that I want teams to think that we are the ones who will look at youngsters and not be afraid to put them in," Nolan told the Nottingham Post.

"If you are good enough, you are old enough, in my opinion. You will see that if I feel that the lad is ready then he will be going into the team.

"Marc Bola, for example, has flourished since he has been here. He will go back to Arsenal a better player.

"With the relationship we have with Arsenal now, if they have another four or five in the pipeline, when we do ring up about them, I hope there is no hesitation because they know they'll get looked after."

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Kevin Nolan has revealed that Shola Ameobi was given the opportunity to be subbed off in Saturday's 3-1 win over Colchester United, but turned it down as he was so eager to bag a hat-trick.

The former Newcastle United forward scored twice against the U's, in a win which keeps the Magpies 13 points clear of the bottom two in League Two.

Nolan told the Nottingham Post: “You get that from him (Shola) day in, day out. Now you’re seeing a fit Shola.

“We’ve been able to manage him, keeping him on the training pitch as well as on the pitch on a matchday.

“I did ask him in the 90th minute if he wanted to come off but he said ‘No, I want my hat-trick!’. That just shows what he’s thinking of all the time – it’s first class.”

Ameobi's brace on Saturday was his first in nearly seven years, when he scored two in a 5-1 win for Newcastle over Sunderland in October 2010 to go alongside a hat-trick by none other than Nolan.

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