By Charlie Summerbell
October 10 2012

Missing one penalty is bad enough, but missing three out of five in a shoot-out just about sums up Hartlepool United's sorry season and saw them go out of the Johnstone's Paints Trophy as their situation managed to get even worse.

The Victoria Park tie against League Two Bradford City went straight to penalties after 90 goalless minutes, but Pools managed to miss out when the game was there to be won.

The final spot kick, taken by Evan Horwood, summed it all up as his shot hit keeper Jon McLaughlin, bounced up onto the bar and down onto the line before spinning away.

“When things are hard, and they are just now, it goes against you,” boss Neale Cooper told the Northern Echo.

“We have played well in the last two League games and lost, played OK tonight and lost. It’s hard for us.

“I thought my luck was back in when they missed their first penalty and then it ends up against us.’’

It wasn’t the worst Pools performance of this sorry season, but it wasn’t brilliant either and Cooper added: “It was a decent performance in parts, not as good as the last two, but yet again we lost. On penalties this time and hit the post three times in the shoot-out.

“We had chances, they did too and they are a decent side. When we started moving the ball quicker we did better.”

Cooper gambled by playing on-loan pair Ryan Noble and Charlie Wyke, who only joined from Middlesbrough on Monday, in attack, and they were lively enough.

But when Jonathan Franks, Noble and then Horwood missed from the spot, Pools were on the way out.

Goals and points are difficult to come by for Pools this season and to say they need a League One win at home to Doncaster on Saturday is the understatement of the year.

The way things are looking, it’s going to be a long, hard winter and a quarter of the way into the season, Cooper must be fearing for his job.