With Alan Curbishley standing by his statement that the Carling Cup was extremely important for his Charlton side this season, Pools made the Premiership side work extremely hard for their victory.

Despite an early scare from the hosts, Pools more than held their own in the opening half as they matched everything The Addicks threw at them.

Charlton started brightly with the lively Lloyd Sam carving out an early opening down the right hand side. The midfielder burst through the Pools' defence to fire a powerful strike at goal but fortunately for Martin Scott's men, the shot just skimmed wide of the post and out of play.

Pools did not let this early warning deter them as they searched for an opener of their own and midfielder Antony Sweeney was unlucky when he found himself in space in the area. With only the goalkeeper to beat, the ball bounced awkwardly and he saw his effort go well clear of the post.

Scott's men continued to work hard throughout and coped well with the threat of Shaun Bartlett and Alexei Smertin in the opening period as the duo combined well to create chances. But, with Neill Collins and Michael Nelson in commanding form, they could find no way through.

Although it was the hosts who enjoyed the majority of possession, Pools worked hard to stay in the game and they thoroughly deserved their opening goal. Great play from Thomas Butler down the right hand side saw the tricky midfielder play the ball infield for Jon DALY.

The striker moved forward into space and fired a low left-footed drive from the edge of the area which evaded the diving Thomas Mhyre and sent Pools into a 1-0 lead.

The lead lasted only three minutes for Pools as referee Mr Hegley awarded a slightly dubious penalty to the hosts. With Steven Istead adjudged to have fouled Sam inside the area, the official pointed straight to the spot and Jonatan Johansson made no mistake with his kick.

After a tight opening half, the game burst into life after the break, with both goalkeepers pulling off impressive saves. Dimitrios Konstantopoulos was inspirational in the Pools' goal, pulling off brilliant diving saves from Johansson and Matty Holland while the Greek goalie also did well to block a Darren Bent header from close range - the Premiership's top scorer had been introduced by The Addicks at half time.

While Dimi was tested heavily in the Pools' goal, Antony Sweeney was enjoying his own personal battle with Charlton keeper Mhyre at the other end. Sub Chris Llewellyn whipped in a pacy ball from the right which was met by Sweeney and looked to be heading straight into the back of the net when Mhyre somehow got a hand to it to keep the scores level.

The former Everton keeper was forced to react again just minutes later when Sweeney again got on the end of a Michael Proctor cross as Pools continued to plug away.

Charlton thought they had the lead when Johansson powered a header at goal but his close-range effort clipped the post and fell back into the arms of Konstantopoulos.

The hosts made their pressure count just moments later though when Sam lifted a searching ball into the area and the the ever-threatening Darren Bent was on hand to glance a header past Dimi and into the back of the net.

The goal was a little unlucky on Pools after they had coped well with Charlton's pressure but the half-time introduction of Darren Bent proved the difference as the striker caused mounting problems in the final third.

It was another substitute, Jay Bothroyd who grabbed The Addicks' third goal. The midfielder lined up a free kick just to the right of the area and powered an unstoppable strike into the top left corner of the Pools' net.

Pools put in an impressive performance against an established Premiership side and will take full confidence from the match as they now begin their preparations for Saturday's trip to Chesterfield.

Full Time: Charlton Athletic 3 Pools1

Att:10, 328

Pools: Konstantopoulos, D Williams, Nelson, Collins, Humphreys, Istead (Llewellyn), Sweeney, Tinkler (S Turnbull), Butler, Daly (Foley), Proctor

Subs: Provett, Jones

Charlton Athletic: Myhre, Young, Hreidarsson, Sorondo, Holland, Thomas, Bartlett (Bent, 46), Johansson (Bothroyd), Spector, Smertin (Murphy), Sam

Subs: Andersen, Fortune