THE alternative to selecting a strong side in this evening’s Durham Challenge Cup tie would be a training session, says Tommy Wright, which he feels would be less valuable than a match against Hartlepool United.

The visit of Pools to Blackwell Meadows has led to over 1,400 tickets being sold to Quakers supporters, providing an unexpected financial boost no matter what the result, although profits are due to be split 50/50 between the clubs.

The level of interest among fans means Wright is almost obliged to name a strong team, and he said: “To me it is better than training.

“We’ve got 15 league games to go, the lads might not learn much more in training now, we’ve done the hard work and I think we’ve turned the corner.

“It’s about the lads putting it into practice where it matters. For me now it’s about games and I was a player now I would want to have an impact on the game.

“If a player scores a worldy on Tuesday it would mean a lot more than scoring a worldy at Eastbourne Sports Complex.”

In previous rounds, against Esh Winning and Stockton Town, Quakers fielded a mixture of teenagers and senior players who Wright felt would benefit from a run-out.

Due to the opposition it is likely to be a stronger side this evening, with Wright’s approach in contrast to predecessor Martin Gray, who viewed games in the competition as a hindrance.

Wright added: “No matter where I’ve been, I’ve always bought into the club I’m playing for or managing. You have to respect what a derby means to supporters.

“You’ve got to live and breathe it, you’ve got to embrace it, these are the games you want to play in and the ones that the fans are up for.

“As a player, that rubs off on you.”

Wright cannot be accused of repeating Tommy Taylor’s infamous faux pas of 2002, when playing down the significance of taking on Hartlepool did little for his status among the club’s fanbase.

He told The Northern Echo at the time: “I know it's a derby game but for me it is simply a game against a team who are second in the League at the moment and they are second because they are a good side.

“There's three points on the table - you don't get double points for winning a derby.”

The three points went to Pools, Taylor’s side outplayed and beaten 4-1 at Victoria Park.

Wright was in the last Darlington side to face Pools, at The Northern Echo Arena in March 2007 in front of 10,000 spectators.

He had scored the winner a week earlier in a 1-0 home over Hereford United, stretching Quakers’ unbeaten run to 13 games as the team rose to eighth position.

It was a period when the likes of Ricky Ravenhill, Gregg Blundell, Tim Ryan as well as Wright joined the squad as part of Dave Penney’s overhaul, one that did not click into gear until the following season when Quakers reached the play-offs.

Pools won promotion in 06-07, recording a 3-0 win at Darlington along the way, and Wright reflected: “It was a great atmosphere, I remember that, and it was the biggest crowd I played in front of at the Arena.

“Hartlepool were going for promotion, but as a club we were going through a transition. Penns had come in, he made changes and as a team we hadn’t quite clicked.

“The team was the old mixed with the new, there were a lot of players sat in the stands, it was a strange atmosphere in the club.

“Some players didn’t want to be there, some were being forced out, it was a transitional period and we played them at the wrong time.

“They had momentum and went on to win promotion, we were midtable, it was a bit of a nothing season, but it wasn’t nice getting beat, especially when you know how much it means to the fans.”