So, if we'd held on against Wednesday and won the penalty shoot out we'd have been handed a home tie against Everton in the third round. However we went on to thump Oldham 4-1 at the Vic and move to joint second in the League One table.

Wednesday scored a last minute goal against us and were handed a tasty looking home tie in the third round against David Moyes Everton, however they took their eye off the ball and lost 1-0 at home the Bristol City in front of the Sky Television camera's, a result which sees them rooted to the foot of the championship table.

Which would you prefer, Everton and defeat against Oldham, of just the three points thank you please.

Take into consideration the Everton game may have been considered for tv coverage.

Answers on a postcard to ptbap towers please.

I want to see us in the championship courtesy of an automatic promotion spot and play Middlesbrough / Sunderland on an even footing (move over big three 'cos there's now a fourth) so definitely the points. Besides, the League Cup is only slightly more prestigeous than the Monkwearmouth Charity Cup these days.

Points for me as well. Since we've had the league success I can't seem to get motivated about cups unless they've got tits in 'em. It's unlikely that we'll win them so it's just a matter of waiting for which round we'll get knocked out in.

Had it been an away day with the opportunity to go and be noisy in a Premiership stadium I might have been more interested.

I hate that sort of stupid question, becasue it doesn't make sense. There is no reason why we can't have a cup run and do well in the league. Hopefullywe will win the Auto Winscreens Shield and have a run in the fa cup.

league first and last for me.
I reckon there's only the fa cup that you can make real money from now so a home tie with everton in the milk cup isn't a great draw.

I beg to differ, there was probably some sort of prize money for beating sheff wed. 7000 peoplle at the vic would bring in Pools about 100k. When players perform against premier league opposistion they become more confident and their subsequent values increase.

i won't dwell on the fact that we lost but i find people de-valueing cups a little bit embarrassing.....

you're easily embarrassed then.
can't see how a probable beating from a prem side(who would probably send their ressies) would increase anyones value or confidence.Being at the top end of the league might do it though.
the league cup has long been on a downward spiral especially since the big clubs don't come in till later on and even then they turn out most of the youth side until the final.

And because the so called big clubs don't take it seriously is the exact reason why we should. Doncaster and Wycombe have had decent runs in the competition in recent years.

As for getting stuffed by Everton reserves at home - I don't think so, I would seriously fancy Pools chances against any mid table premiership team at the vic.... You only get one chance in the cup. And there is no reason why we can't have a cup run and be near the top end of the league is there.?

We don't need the money.

Who lost in the Paint Pot Trophy last season?? Who were the semi finalists in the League Cup the year before last?? No-one remembers, no-ones devaluing cups, it's just not very interesting in the first place as evinced by the poor attendances in the Cup competitions.

But we never ever get a big team at home these days. I think the last ones were the cup games against Spurs and Arsenal in the early nineties and even then we were already five or six nil down.

Mad John will be able to give us definitive details but we are just so unlucky in cup draws.

Kevin - If a cup run was to make Pools a couple of hundred grand then i don't think that Ken would be complaining. That money could be used to buy someone to fire us to the play offs or promotion. Everything is hunky dory at the moment as we have few injuries and are winning games but if the injuries creep in we could well need strengthening in certain areas. Thankfully Danny Wilson took the tie the other night seriously and played the best XI, hopefully he will do the same in the latter stages of the LDV and from round 1 in the fa cup....

And Mr I - Everton would of been a reasonable draw, in the FA cup last year we would also of had Chelsea away had we stuffed lowly Macclesfield.....

Johnathan - the more games we play, the greater risk of injuries to key players, thus wasting the money earned on players to replace those crocked in meaningless games with no prize at the end. In business we call that a spiral of ineffectual management. Also known as shifting deckchairs on the Titanic. Furthermore, it has detrimental effect on household finances if fans have to travel and fund eight or ten more games in a season. The cost in at Wednesday was 10 quid and 5 quid, they probably lost money doing it.

For these and many more reasons a quick heroic exit at Old Trafford in round three is the most advantageous thing that can happen in the Cup.

Everton would have been a fabulous draw, in fact any prem club north of watford would have been. The game would def have been a sell out and the coverage pools would have got would have been great for the club.

You cant really pick between the cup and the league but for promotional and financial motives its the cup all the time.

sorry lads i am all out of bullets but i have some rat poison

I disagree part of your post, if we had have played Everton a lot of people financially would have given up other things to get a ticket for the game, I definitely dont think it would have affected the attendance at any home gamesefore or after and i'm sure at £18 a shot we'd still have a full house!!

As for the injuries, well thats just part and parcel of the game aint it!!

Well yeah, stretching the budget is another way of putting it

Also if we've got a regular two hour marathon every Tuesday or Wednesday for any length of time, we get a greater risk of strains and pulls. Injuries are of course a part of the game but stress injuries are avoidable with the right regime of rest and training.

Of course the other train of thought is that there's no substitute for real games, I suppose.

But for me, league over cup every time, at least now we've got a few class games a season.

Kevin - You are looking at cup runs from a purely negative perspective, i am surprised at you. The way you are going on we might as well just go out in round one or not bother. the other night Ian Moore scored his first goal for Pools and yesterday he put in a cracking performance possibly due to a boost in confidence. Sometimes a cup game gives players a chance to perform, they have a good game and it sort of kick starts their season. i personally think the more cup runs the merrier....

Jonathan......

No Johnathan, I am looking at cup runs from a purely practical point of view. It's might be lovely to have Everton come to the Vic, put out a scratch team, all of which might do very well in the Championship. But it's finish on the night so we'd never get a big pay day at Goodison, or get to visit it, and we'd most likely get mullered, maybe pick up a couple of injuries, maybe go to extra time and be worn out for the next league game. It crucified Donny last season.

I prefer to think that Ian Moore, having confessed to have been told by Sir Dan that there wasn't any more the team could do to give him any more chances, felt the boot up his nethers and suddenly put another 5 mph on. That's management not inspiration.

I'd definitely have taken the Everton tie if we could have had it ... and worried about the points later.
There's more to having pride in your team than climbing leagues.