Scorers: Accrington: Armstrong (23') Blackpool: Virtue (5'), Spearing (81' pen)
H.T: 1-1
K.O: 7.45 Tuesday 05/03/2019
Attendance: 3,792
Referee: Ross Joyce
Accrington manager: John Coleman
Stadium: Wham Stadium
Changes in the table: Blackpool are now just 4 points off the playoffs and Accrington remain in 15th.
Teams:
Accrington XI: Evtimov, Johnson (Wood), Hughes, Donacien, Rodgers (Kee), Gibson, Clark (Maxted), Barlaser, Finley, McConville, Armstrong
Subs not used: Brown, Zanzala, Williams, Smyth
Blackpool XI: Howard, Turton, Heneghan, Tilt, Anderton, Spearing, Virtue (Pritchard), Evans (Thompson), Feeney, Dodoo (Long), Gnanduillet
Subs not used: Boney, Daniels, Taylor, Delfouneso
Preview: https://theblackpoolblog.wixsite.com/theblackpoolblog/home/accrington-a-preview
Match Events:
The match began very quickly and was hugely influenced by the atmosphere induced by the sheer number of fans in the Blackpool end. It was this encouragement that aided Blackpool with the opener. A long ball forward by Evans was knocked back inside to Virtue who made no mistake. He showed real composure to slot into the bottom corner early on and give Blackpool the advantage just 5 minutes in.
Accrington did not seem too fazed though and in the 6th minute they would create a golden chance, with Clark being slipped through. He could only fire over though, leaning back from close range. In the 10th minute things would open up again for Accrington, but McConville was quickly crowded out.
Blackpool were under pressure, but very nearly found a second. In the 17th minute Virtue would deliver a brilliant ball that Dodoo really could not have been far away from prodding home.
Accrington had the control though and would soon have the equaliser and once more it was poor Blackpool defending that led to it. Blackpool were exposed at the back and this allowed for Armstrong to be picked out in the middle, who swiftly swept home the equaliser.
Blackpool finished the half strongly though, in an attempt to regain an advantage. In the 38th minute Evans picked up the ball from Gnanduillet and had a clear sight on goal. His shot was wide though, in a chance that he really should have profited from to a higher degree.
A few corners at the end of the half presented some more opportunities, but the main thing of note was an overhead kick from Dodoo narrowly avoiding an awaiting Gnanduillet.
2nd Half:
Accrington started the second half brightly with Finley turning his man on 51 minutes and crashing a sweetly struck effort against the bar. This sparked the second half into life.
Blackpool would have a short spell of pressure. First, a long ball by Howard in the 54th minute found Chris Long who was beyond the last defender before being denied twice. Very shortly after this Blackpool would have another chance as Evans crossed to Gnanduillet, who did not quite have the pace to get on the end of it.
Big chances were falling to Blackpool at this point and in the 57th minute is was no different. Long slipped Gnanduillet through on goal, but his shot was saved and then Virtue, on the follow up, would also not be able to find a way through.
This pendulum would once more swing in Accrington's favour again though, as they would begin to build up some pressure of their own. In both the 64th and 65th minute Accrington had dangerous goalmouth scrambles, but Blackpool would survive once more. Blackpool truly were riding their luck. Another chance would go begging for Stanley in the 68th minute as Finely would get the ball off Clark, this time lashing the ball wide of the target.
Blackpool would be the ones to re-take the lead though. Liam Feeney would have his standing leg taken from beneath him, win Blackpool a penalty and present Jay Spearing with the opportunity to send Blackpool back in front. The midfielder, in front of just shy of 2,000 Blackpool fans, smashed the ball straight down the middle 9 minutes from time.
Following the goal things went from bad, to worse for Accrington. Evtimov, the Accrington goalkeeper, was sent of for 'throwing a bottle' into the Blackpool crowd following the goal, something that left Coleman very upset following the match, calling it a 'criminal offence'.
From here on in the task was reasonably straightforward for Blackpool and they could have even extended their advantage. Chris Long was sent through on a couple of occasions, but failed to hit the target, and a few tired tackles resulted in numerous yellow cards for Accrington.
This was a proper derby and one that was contested fiercely throughout, but the number of Blackpool fans that had made the trip was really quite humbling.
Player Ratings:
Howard 7 - Could not do much about the goal and was generally solid.
Turton 7 - Put in a tireless shift at right-back. It is safe to say he is the best option in that position.
Heneghan 8 - Heneghan has progressed so much this season and put in another great performance.
Tilt 7 - Looked unsure at the start, but grew in confidence before picking up an injury.
Anderton 8 - A much more well rounded performance today and looks more assured going forward.
Spearing 6 - Yes, he scored the penalty, but his ball distribution, particularly in the first half, was poor.
Virtue 8 (Star Man) - Got the goal early on and never really gave the ball away. A brilliant well rounded performance.
Pritchard 6 - Did okay when he came on, but did not have much time.
Evans 5 - Evans missed a huge chance in the first half and, although having a hand in the first goal, gives that ball away too readily.
Thompson 6 - His feisty nature really gave Blackpool an edge towards the end.
Feeney 6 - Did well to win the penalty and caused trouble down the flank.
Dodoo 6 - His physicality complemented Gnanduillet well, but he did not really do too much.
Long 4 - For the chances he had in the closing stages, he should have had at least one goal.
Gnanduillet 8 - Pivotal at both ends of the pitch, but needs to start adding more goals and assists to his game, especially if Blackpool are to push on this season.
In Addition:
Blackpool looked threatening in attack. Maybe Accrington were nervy, but nevertheless, for once Blackpool actually looked like they were going to score. They carved out countless openings, but the finishing at the end of it was far from as sharp as it could have been. Even Long couldn't finish off a couple of huge chances and they would eventually be reliant on the penalty.
The bottle incident. It seems a shame to taint such a momentous occasion with negativity for the actions of one fan. Yes, the goalkeeper, having thrown the bottle into the crowd, deserved to be sent off, but the bottle should not have even been there in the fist place. Reverberations of this are bound to be felt in the coming weeks.
Back in the hunt. Blackpool are now just 4 points off the playoffs and, with the fan-base returning, who knows how far this will take them. The playoffs are, granted, unlikely, but it is certainly an achievable target (without a 12 point deduction).
Overall this is a fantastic way to counter last weekend's tramping and sets up Southend perfectly.
UTMP