Don't get me wrong, I'd rather we weren't in a relegation battle - but I've quite enjoyed the ending of this season. I mean, yes, on balance, I'd prefer it if we were heading into the latter stages of the Champions League and holding a 12 point lead at the top of the Premier League - but that will have to wait a few years yet and scrapping for your life brings a certain existential energy to it all.
The squalls of rain and gusts of wind blow around early season holiday makers and late season football fans alike. It's blue sky, it's grim sideways wetness. It's Blackpool in April... A steady trickle of tangerine from the station, gathering numbers down Central drive and finally, as the tributaries convene on the estuary of Bloomfield Road, it's a torrent, a forceful, expectant body surging up to and against and finally through the turnstiles. It's a good sign for the future of the club - if the town will turn out in force for a relegation fight then it's really something that should be viewed as an unequivocal positive. It's amazing what a kick up the arse the last few weeks have been.
The optimism leaves me nervous. Everyone seems to think we'll win. I can hear bold predictions all around. I'm not sure. I feel some of that hope - Exeter are not very good, they're an aging side in freefall and going on reputation alone, you'd probably pick more or less all of our team over more or less all of theirs - but that's exactly why I'm nervous.
This is us. If we can Blackpool it up, we will.
---
I'm immediately heart-broken that there's no Josh Bowler, an absence which only sends me deeper into concern. On the pitch though, we might not have electricity, but we do have pace and attacking intent. It feels like forever since I've actually had some chances and positive football to write about but today, we actually play *quite well* for a decent spell and it's lovely to behold.
I say 'lovely' - I mean 'deeply frustrating for quite a long time' because, whilst the front three of Bloxham and CJ outside of Super Ashley Fletcher looks potent and the change to a more aggressively attacking set up is very welcome, we keep squandering chances...
We're absolutely carving them up in the channels. CJ is rolling back the years to when he wasn't a utility full back but a direct and attacking winger, Bloxham is looking far more comfortable for having a bit of width and freedom in his game rather than just going up the middle. We win early corners and that gets the ground up and behind the team and from there, the scene is set for an out Blackpool bombardment...
First, CJ is in, Walters spinning a ball up the line, CJ peeling away, taking a touch and hitting it low and hard but the onrushing keeper smothers it. It's all about CJ again, good work from Honeyman and there's Hamilton away, this time going wide, hitting the byline and a low pull back, there's a scramble as Fletcher has a chance and Exeter at full stretch block it, but it pops up for Joel Randall, who seems to only need the most simple of touches to guide it home and, as he connects, I'm tensing everything in preparation for the moment of release, the leaping, punching delight of a goal, but instead, I'm falling, literally onto my knees, head in my hands as the loanee guides the ball wide and somehow, we're not in front...
Hamilton wins a free kick after a good high press robs Exeter in a dangerous area. Jordan Brown aims for Horsfall, who nods it back, it's an inviting touch and James Husband looks set to answer it positively, coming from deeper onto the dropping ball and again, I'm ready for this, all goals are great goals, but a goal from Jimbo and I'm probably on the pitch to be honest... but instead of delight, Husband is cursing himself and sinking to his knees as if imitating me from a few minutes earlier and the ball is in the South Stand and I'm turned around looking at the guy behind me as we share a moment of silent 'why do we do this?' frustration...
A shake of the head and it's forgotten. The noise is great. Seaside. Barmy Army. We Follow Blackpool FC. We Come From The Seaside... more pressure down the flanks - Honeyman bursting forward, he's industrious today, him and Brown own the midfield, it's the first time in forever that we've actually taken control of the centre of the pitch and we look so much better for it. A corner...
...It's swung in, I've got a theory that the Horse would be terrific as a target man. If we could sign him again and play him at both ends of the pitch that would be ideal - just as his touch in taking down Brown's corner is, it's brutally delicate, basically as near to a moment of Madine as you can get without the great man himself putting down his can of Stella to flick one perfectly round the corner for Jerry... here are, the Horse about to score a truly beautiful goal, he's going to burst the net and this is going to be glorious
The Horse leans back, kicks the ball like, well, a horse to be honest,,, and ball ends up in row Q.
He trots back to his defensive duties.
This is looking worryingly like it might not be our day. It has 'sucker punch' written all over it. It would be absolute peak 'Blackpool' to dominate a game to this extent and then for Exeter to score a breakaway goal after having done absolutely nothing.
That, thank all the known ideas of god/gods isn't the case. Walters looks up, he dinks a curling ball, CJ leaps, it evades both him and the defender, Bloxham has found a channel, his run takes him on to it, there's a moment of 'what happens now?' but before the situation can evolve, Bloxham is lifting the ball, the keeper completely cut out by the chip and I've got time to think 'that's going in!' and then to assess again, before it drops over the line and relief and delight washes over the stadium.
It's more than deserved - if we hadn't got at least one goal as a reward for the dominance we've shown, it would have been ridiculous but a sublime finish has saved us all from that fate.
Still the game is open, a long ball from the keeper, a flick from Fletcher and CJ is spinning and firing just over.
Finally, Exeter make something. They've looked as weak as anyone who has turned up at Bloomfield Road this season but when they put a few passes together, they actually don't look bad and they play an incisive move, out from the back, around a bit in midfield, down the right and then Wareham on the end of it forces a good, athletic leap from BPF to tip it over.
---
It's been almost all us, barring a little spell of pressure at the end. I'm certainly not turning my nose up at the first half performance - it was everything you'd hope for in this sort of game barring the end product. We could and should be further ahead and it's very rare that we've felt thus this season. We've looked comfortable more or less all over the pitch - the back four have coped well despite it being a bit cobbled together - in fact, there's only really Fletcher (who looks leggy, a bit fatigued perhaps) and Randall who is, (one glorious control, spin and pass aside) frustratingly neither here nor there, not really grabbing the game, not really disrupting the game, just kind of 'in between' play
The Youth Cup winners get a pleasing reception and I'm reminded of my age as it seems 5 minutes since I was watching Blinks (who looks really happy with the noise made as his lads parade the cup) play
---
We start well and Fletcher comes close with a header - but if we were feeling happy with life, then BPF does his level best to banish any complacency a few minutes later. Exeter put one into the box and what looks a routine gather turns into a jump scare moment as the ball is spilled, his response is quick though and he tries to smother it, but the ball escapes again and thankfully Jimmy puts his boot through it and we breath again.
Brown intercepts, drives forward, we work the ball wide to CJ, once again he goes inside and this time he smashes it, the keeper does well, but we win it back, work it to Coulson who flicks his lovely hair, readjusts his headband and lines up an arrowing drive that moves, dips, swerves, but doesn't quite do enough to nestle in the top corner... C'mon Pool!
For the first time, we fall into a lull. Exeter work the ball around, we start to chase shadows. Where we'd dominated, we now look second best. The Grecians aren't exactly storming into the box at every opportunity, but it feels like the balance of the game has changed. We take off Bloxham and put Ennis on. I'm not sure this really works - Bloxham has done a good job today but Ennis finds it hard to make the ball stick to him. The ineffective Randall is replaced by the little dynamo Clarkson. Fletcher makes way for Taylor who doesn't have a lot of opportunity but has a few touches that scream class. Honeyman picks up a booking and is replaced by Anderson. I like Karoy but Honeyman had a little bit of calm on the ball and Anderson only ups the chaos - sometimes that's exactly what you need, but today - in the last 20 mins we're begging for someone to just take a moment and slow it down and that's not what we get.
Still, there's chances - after being under pressure for what feels like far too long, Clarkson shows that little moment of vision we need - a velvet touch and a sublime piece of vision on the edge of his own box to play a short pass to Anderson who has the whole pitch to run into, he charges right up the middle, just as it looks like he's going to take it on, he offloads to the onrushing CJ who smashes it into the side netting before being cleaned out...
If we'd been largely comfortable at the back, that changes when Exeter roll out their giant veteran forward Josh Magennis and suddenly set plays and corners feel more risky. Husband is outjumped, even Horsfall struggles to win his duels. This blog is nothing if not a fan of the big physical gnarly old target man role and once again, I wonder why we don't have anyone comparable within our options and why I'm left with only the Horse for such worship... (when the Horse takes on and beats three players in a wonderful random run when we're under pressure in the second half, I do wonder if he's the greatest player ever to play professional football)
It's getting scrappy. Ennis is forced to fight in the corner defensively. Clearances are skewed. It's clear that if we'd got calmer minds, we could probably spring a break at any moment but no one is calm, there's just too much on this. We chuck on Ollie Casey and CJ is serenaded off the pitch. Say what you like, but this lad has now played left wing, right wing, left back, right back AND centre forward in less than 3 full games and he's done alright in all of them. His versatility has been key in helping us set up - CJ plays all over the shop and that lets others play in the right place. Yes, CJ lacks in what CJ lacks, but if we stay up, he's been as big a part of this run in working out as anyone.
There's lads at the back of the Kop, spinning their tops round their heads. There's every clearance and anything even half decent by 'Pool being cheered to the rafters. Imagine this place if we actually won something.
Exeter are throwing their goalie forward. If I'm a fan of big target men, I'm an even bigger fan of the keeper going up for corners, though today, I don't want any Jimmy Glass shit thank you very much. A weak punch by our keeper, the ball drops horribly for an Exeter shirt.... and thank fuck... is lashed wide. A huge sigh of relief because for moment there I could see the net billowing and feel the deflation in the air all around. C'mon Pool!!
(There's a moment where Peacock Farrell dallies taking the resulting goal kick where it's pointed out that if he just put his foot through it quickly instead of time wasting, he might actually score and I'm left mourning the opportunity to see and celebrate such a goal.)
Finally we do get that break but it's Ollie Casey on the charge who runs it into the corner. He does brillinatly, winning a throw and eating up a minute or so on the resulting scuffling. Exeter have time for one more lump into the box, it's headed away and the ref... (who feels more like he should be fronting some kind of Channel 5 lifestyle programme than running around a football pitch and unusually for a League 1 ref seemed up with the play, to want the game to flow and to talk constantly to the players) ... blows the whistle.
---
Absolute delight at full time.
To have not won that game would have been sheer heartbreak. Again, it's madness to take too much away from only just beating a side that literally haven't won a match for a third of a season - but there was a bit in that game to show we can go at teams and take control. There's also no doubt that, when the pressure has really come to boiling point, they've managed to find the togetherness and fight that was lacking and that as supporters, we've rallied to that.
I've also liked that we're now using different systems and taking on opponents with different ideas. We've not really done that regularly since Critchley 1.0 and whilst, I do see the argument for 'the steering wheel' approach, it also must put doubt in the oppositions minds if you don't know what you're going to get - and for about the first 30 mins it looked as if Exeter had been totally caught out by us setting up in a way they either didn't expect or couldn't counter. I don't know if Thommo has brought a calmness or objectivity or just a voice of reason - but there's definitely a happier camp for him being in it and it feels as if we're using the players as they are instead of trying to make them what we wished they were.
We're not done - it's a worry to be missing Bowler because he's the genuine bit of potential quality in any game, I also think Ennis probably needs to stop playing as soon as possible and get into rehab for whatever is restricting his movement - we still need another win, maybe 4 points overall to feel we can breathe and start thinking of next season. This season can't be over quick enough, it's been one of the dampest squibs you can think of and the summer brings a lot of questions both on and off the pitch - but all that said, I've loved us again for the last few games because, regardless of the football or the league position, a packed Bloomfield Road and a Blackpool victory is the best thing in the world.
Onward
You can follow MCLF on facebook, Twitter, Bluesky, Threads and Instagram or use Follow.it to get posts sent to your email If you appreciate the blog and judge it worth 1p or more, then a donation to one of the causes below which help kids and families in Blackpool would be grand.
Writing about football is possibly a bit pointless in an era when there's the telly and youtube and videos all over the shop. It's not my living this and it's just something I do because I do so there's no problem with reading it and then getting on with your life - but if you do want to chuck some money at the cause of some random fella writing shit no one ever asked him too, then Patreon. is a thing.
