Phil Brown has confirmed that he has applied for the vacant Hartlepool job after Neale Cooper resigned last week.
Brian Laws was the bookies' early favourite to take over at Victoria Park but has since been named as the new Scunthorpe boss.
Former Hull manager Brown has been out of work since he was sacked by Preston last December following the appointment of Peter Ridsdale as North End chairman.
"I need to go back to the basics and try and get myself back on the ladder," the 53-year-old told Sky Sports.
"I've sent my CV in that's all I can say. I believe the chairman is out of the country at the moment and hasn't started the interview process yet. But I hope to be involved in that process."
Despite confirming his application, Brown denied he had spoken to chairman Ken Hodcroft.
