Scorers: Henghan(50'), Pritchard (83' pen) - Akinfenwa (12'), Jacobson (53')
H.T: 0-1
K.O: 7.45 Tuesday 29/01/2019
Attendance: 2,388 (145)
Referee: Martin Coy
Wycombe manager: Gareth Ainsworth
Stadium: Bloomfield Road
Changes in the table:
Form: WDW - WWW
Teams:
Blackpool XI: Mafoumbi, Nottingham, Heneghan, Tilt, Bola, Turton, Spearing (Pritchard), Thompson (Kirby), Feeney (Sorensen), Delfouneso, Gnanduillet
Subs not used: Anderton, Taylor, Shaw, O'Sullivan
Wycombe XI: Allsop, Jombati, Jacobson, Gape, El-Abd, Cowan-Hall (Bolton), Thompson, Freeman (Tyson), Samuel, McCarthy, Akinfenwa (Bloomfield)
Subs not used: Yates, Stewart, Bean, Kashket
Preview: https://theblackpoolblog.wixsite.com/theblackpoolblog/home/wycombe-wanderers-h
Match Events:
First half:
Blackpool started the match brightly, with the majority of the play being in their attacking half, but then disaster struck, twice. First, Jay Spearing went down injured, a man who does not stay down without justification. It showed when the Blackpool captain was forced off and was replaced by Harry Pritchard. Things would then worsen even further when, despite Blackpool continuing to be dominant in proceedings, they would go one goal down. Wycombe's first corner and first chance would result in a goal as the ball was simply swung in and nodded home by Akinfenwa. Blackpool's recent defensive resilience was up in the air as the prospect of Blackpool's 4th clean sheet in a row disappeared instantly.
After that 12th minute opener, Blackpool would almost respond just 2 minutes later. Delfouneso would swivel quickly in the area, but could only fire narrowly wide from a good position. It just was not happening in the periphery of the box however, and this allowed the Chairboys to grow into the match.
24 minutes in Wycombe would almost double their advantage when Samuel would nip in front of the Blackpool defender, only to flick into the side netting. Blackpool would persist however and very nearly grab a goal of their own. In the 29th minute Delfounso would see Allsop flap at his cross and allow it to find Feeney. The winger would head over from very close range and was probably as surprised as anyone when the ball came to him. Blackpool just were not good enough in the final third and Wycombe constantly threatened to capitalise on this. In the 42nd minute Tilt would lose the ball and Wycombe would rush forward, only for Freeman to find the gloves of Mafoumbi. Delfounso would almost square things up before half time with a left footed shot, but it was not to be. Blackpool were still in it, but there was plenty of work to do in the Second half.
Second Half:
Blackpool would come out in the second half with everything they had and quickly won an early corner and from that corner would equalise. The cross towards the front post would be met by Heneghan who would head into an empty net as Allsop was left stranded.
Things were seemingly looking up for Blackpool, but not for long. A corner would be whipped in and either went directly in via Jacobson or was prodded home by McCarthy, whoever the scorer, Blackpool were behind once more.
Blackpool would continue to fight on and continue to play in their attractive way. Blackpool were still, with their height, very reliant on set pieces. In the 58th minute the ball was whipped in by Thompson from one of these set pieces, but they still could not produce the goods, as Gnanduillet did not connect properly. McPhillips threw everything he had left at the match, putting Kirby and Sorenson on the field and, in the mean time Gnanduillet would blast over a free kick.
It would be one of those substitutes that would help get Blackpool the equaliser. Kirby would weave beyond Cowan-Hall and go down in the area under challenge and win a penalty. Despite some squabbling over who would take it, it would be finally settled that Pritchard would take and blast in off the bar with 6 minutes of normal time remaining.
If there was going to be a side that would win, it was more likely to be Blackpool but, Allsop was able to clasp onto a manufactured close range back heel from Delfounso to keep the scores level and win Wycombe a point.
Player Ratings:
Mafoumbi 5 - Looked a little out of sorts and did not command the area as he does usually.
Nottingham 6 - His long throw is a real asset, but he needs to make the most of the pace he has.
Heneghan 8 - A goal and was brilliant at the back. A great all round performance.
Tilt 6 - A big mistake in the first half almost let Wycombe in, but was solid excluding this.
Bola 7 - Put in what is becoming a consistant performance at left back.
Turton 7 - Was very good throughout, picking up a number of loose balls.
Spearing ? - He was on for about 3 minutes.
Pritchard 7 - Spearing's replacement converted the penalty well and put in a good shift.
Thompson 6 - His freekicks and corners cause all sorts of problems and was threatening throughout.
Kirby 5 - Won the penalty, but did not do much else.
Feeney 6 - A good performance from him, just neds to make his crossing more consistant.
Sorensen 7 - The signs here are good. He did not get a chance, but always found his man with his passes.
Delfouneso 8 - Looked sharp and as agile as ever.
Gnanduillet 7 - Should have had an assist in the last few minutes, but was winning his flicks, especially in the first half. In Addition:
Jay Spearing could be out for a while. The midfielder picked up an injury very early on and grimaced at the injury. He was forced off, and Spearing is not the sort to go off easily. You can only hope for the best because he is so important to this Blackpool side.
Blackpool played well, but defending from corners was awful. Blackpool knocked the ball around very well and were a much better side than they have been recently, but they did not deal with corners and were left disjointed by the class delivery.
Blackpool are not decisive enough in the final third. They always seem short on ideas and there is still not really anyone who can split the defense or deliver a few decent crosses into to Gnanduillet. Blackpool were better than usual today, but still resorted to set pieces for their goals.
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