Now it's all down to the last day of the season as Forest battle to avoid the play-off lottery and on this from they can still do it.
Hartlepool played their part in a game that might have had a lot of goals, but finished up being decided by just one six minutes from time.
Forest showed first as Hartlepool battled to contain the visiting attack. The visitors should have been in front on 11 minutes when a great corner from Chris Cohen put the home defence under pressure and when a weak header landed kindly for him, James Perch snatched at his shot and from just six yards out he managed to send it wide.
Ten minutes later there was another golden chance for Forest as Nathan Tyson raced clear, leaving two defenders trailing behind him, but home keeper Arran Lee-Barrett came off his line and saved with his legs.
Hartlepool got into the game towards half-time and on 32 minutes a snap shot from James Brown was their first real effort on goal, though it gave Forest keeper Paul Smith little trouble as he dived to his right to save low down on the line.
But the keeper was beaten a few minutes later as Ben Clark flashed in a curling volley that flew just wide of the keeper's left-hand post
After the break, Forest should have made it safe long before McGugan's decider, but Tyson missed the target twice with good headed chances.
McGugan came to the rescue late on, and a minute later fellow sub Kris Commons blasted his shot from the edge of the area against the underside of the home bar.