Pools' meeting with West Ham United is the sixth time that the Club have been in the Fourth Round of the FA Cup - and they're hoping to make it Round Five for the first time ever.
As we prepare for kick-off, Phil Dunn looks back on some of our more memorable moments in the greatest domestic cup competition in the world.
1) 1920/1921
Not many people realise that in our pre-League days the Pools sides of those early days had to qualify for the FA Cup - and in 1920 Tom Yews, Harry Thoms and company played an incredible TEN matches and still never made it to the First Round Proper, a 3-0 defeat at Swansea Town in the 6th and final Qualifying round seeing Pools off.
2) 1954/1955
Pools reached Round Four for the first time in the mid-50s, and saw off Chesterfield, Aldershot and Darlington (after 2 replays at Ayresome Park!) before coming face-to-face with Nottingham Forest of the First Division. A nail-biting 1-1 draw ensued at The Vic with Jackie Newton notching from the penalty spot in front of 17,200 fans, but Pools were narrowly beaten in the replay at The City Ground 2-1 in what many say was as good a performance as the more famous Man United tie three years later.
3) 2004/2005
A fact that seems to have been overlooked by most journalists during this Cup Run is that Pools had a Fourth Round Replay just a few short years ago! After thumping Lincoln and Aldershot it needed an Adam Boyd special in a replay at Boston United to send Neale Cooper's side to Brentford in Round Four. Unlucky not to win at Griffin Park, Pools were then subjected to possibly the worst refereeing decision in our history as Scottish defender Jack Ross was red-carded after just eight minutes leading to a 1-0 defeat in the Replay. Three days later, Ross's card was rescinded...
4) 1988/1989
The incredible thing about this run was that we were so poor in the League at the same time! Bob Moncur's side, so desperate in Division Four, beat all-comers at The Vic with Wigan, Notts County and Bristol City all sent packing before in the Fourth Round Second Division Bournemouth held Pools to a 1-1 draw with Brian Honour equalising Luther Blissett's opener. Down at Dean Court 1,500 Poolies watched Pools defence help The Cherries out with two own goals via Baker and Stokes, and despite pulling two goals back through Allon and Toman we lost 5-2.
5) 1977/1978
Yet again, a team headed for re-election came up trumps in the Cup, as Billy Horners side expertly brushed aside 3rd Division Tranmere after a replay, trounced Northern Premier League side Runcorn in Round Two, and famously beat Crystal Palace 2-1 at The Vic to set up a trip to Bobby Robson's Ipswich Town in the 4th Round. Despite a glorious goal by Derrick Downing too pull it back to 2-1, Pools were outdone by Mariner, Talbot and Co and lost 4-1 at Portman Road with 4,000 Poolies making the long trip.
6) 1992/1993
The brave Pools team that started this cup run by beating Doncaster away couldn't possibly have forecast that within weeks they would go on a 13-game non-scoring spell, and the Club would have a winding-up order served upon it. A further great win over Southport in Round Two featured an Andy Saville hat-trick, but nothing could eclipse the tremendous win over Premiership Crystal Palace in the 3rd Round, with Saville's penalty knocking out Coppell's star-studded side. Pools reward was a chance to pit their wits against another top-flight side in Sheffield United, who beat us 1-0 with Alan Cork notching in a very close game.
7) 1991/1992
Once again Ipswich Town ended a spirited cup-tie with a 3rd Round Replay win here at The Vic, after Paul Baker had thundered Pools into a well deserved lead in East Anglia. The first Round had seen Alan Murray's men beat Shrewsbury 3-2, and follow that with a marvellous 2-1 win at Feethams, Darlington, thanks to great goals from Brian Honour and Paul Dalton.
8) 1975/1976
With Pools in the doldrums in the League (yet again!) it was left to the FA Cup to finally see Ken Hale's side produce their best form. A First Round canter over Stockport (3-0) saw scant reward with a trip to non-league Marine of Liverpool. Pools scraped a 1-1 draw in difficult circumstances mainly due to Everton fans looking for trouble, which of course they found with 800 visiting Hartlepool fans. However, a storming 6-3 win over the Scousers here brought a plum tie at Manchester City in Round Three. Sadly, City hit form and thrashed Pools 6-0, with only the dual sending-off of George Potter and Denis Tueart giving the 2,500 Poolies something to shout about.
9) 1987/1988
John Bird's resolute Pools side featuring the likes of Dean Gibb, Paul Haigh and Tony Barratt won 2-0 at Chorley in Round One, and snatched a late, late equaliser at York through Paul Baker before coming up against First Division Luton Town at Home. Safety restrictions at The Vic limited the crowd to 6,000 and Pools certainly gave it their all against a side featuring Les Sealey, Mark Stein and future Pools boss Danny Wilson. Despite Andy Toman's goal Pools lost 2-1 in The Vic mud.
10) 1956/1957
Of course, it would be almost impossible to cover Pools FA Cup exploits without mentioning the famous Man United game so here goes! After seeing off non-Leaguers Selby Town and Blyth Spartans in the opening rounds, Fred Westgarth's side were pulled out of the bag first to face The Busby Babes at Home. On the day, Pools slipped to a 3-0 deficit within half an hour, yet pulled one back through Stamper on 35 minutes. Pools goals from Ken Johnson and Anderson levelled and for ten minutes solid The Vic was rocking - and so were Manchester United! Sadly, Whelan restored The Red Devils lead and Pools lost one of the all-time classic Cup ties 4-3.
