Opening Day Embarrassment For Hartlepool

It was a day to forget for Hartlepool United boss Neale Cooper as his side were comprehensively beaten by Crewe in the first round of the Capital One Cup.

It was a day to forget for Hartlepool United boss Neale Cooper as his side was comprehensively beaten by Crewe in the first round of the Capital One Cup.

After naming the same side for the club's last few pre-season games, Cooper stuck with the same XI for the trip to Gresty Road with Luke James partnering Steve Howard in attack.

Cooper's side made a solid start to the game, but the afternoon took a turn for the worse after just seven minutes when the home side took the lead. A free-kick from wide was deflected and Jay Leitch-Smith reacted quickest to fire home from close range.

That lead was doubled within five minutes, as Max Clayton finished past Flinders after some sloppy defending. Shouts of offside from the visitors were ignored by the officials.

The game was quickly becoming little more than a training exercise for the home side as Mathias Pogba added a third from 6 yards, unmarked in the middle after a simple cross left Pools' defence stood like statues.

The Railwaymen still weren't done as they grabbed a fourth with less than forty minutes on the clock. A weak Pools corner was collected easily by Alan Martin in the Crewe goal and he sent his side on a break with a simple ball down the middle of the field.

It was Clayton, who posed problems for Pools all afternoon, who glided his way to goal and converted with a low finish. Too easy.

The game was more than over by the half time break and it was no surprise to see the pace of the game slow in the second half.

Andy Monkhouse went closest to grabbing a consolation but his strike rebounded off the post. That was as close Pools came, with Crewe adding insult to injury just before the full time whistle as Pogba breezed past a floundering Sam Collins and finished well.

An opening day disaster for Hartlepool and Neale Cooper, who has been given plenty to think about before the start of the league season next weekend.

FT: Crewe 5 Hartlepool 0 Hartlepool: Flinders, Austin, Collins, Hartley, Horwood, Franks, Sweeney, Walton, Monkhouse, James (Poole 46), Howard
Subs not used: Baldwin, Holden, Humphreys, Luscombe, Murray, Nish

Crewe Alexandra: Martin, Davis, Westwood, Ellis, Dugdale, Clayton (Turton 86), Pogba, Leitch-Smith (Daniels 79), Moore, Robertson, Osman (Murphy 77)
Subs not used: Garratt, Turton, Mellor, Ray, White

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