Hartlepool United and Blackpool will face each other for the first time in the FA Cup when they meet in the third round at Victoria Park on Saturday.
Both teams are enjoying mid-table seasons following respective promotions last year, with Pools currently 15th in League Two and the Tangerines currently 12th in the Championship.
Hartlepool have so far knocked out League One sides Wycombe Wanderers and Lincoln City in the FA Cup this season and are now aiming to reach the fourth round for the first time since 2009.
No team in League Two has picked up more points at home in 2021-22 than the Monkey Hangers, who have lost just three times at Victoria Park this season.
Graeme Lee’s side progressed to the quarter-finals of the EFL Trophy in midweek with a 1-0 victory over Bolton Wanderers; their first win in four matches.
Lee will now challenge his team to make it two cup triumphs over higher division opponents in the space of four days as they host a side 50 places above them.
Blackpool took part in one of the most famous finals in the FA Cup’s history, lifting the trophy in 1953 in the ‘Matthews Final’.
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The club have had little cup joy in recent seasons though, only progressing beyond round three twice in the last nine years.
Gary Madine’s penalty secured a 1-0 win for the Tangerines over Hull City on New Year’s Day, which was only their second victory in their last 11 matches.
Neil Critchley’s side have lost three successive away games and have only won three matches on the road all season, all by one-goal margins
