Blackpool Post Match Thoughts

[Grist_To_The_Mill]

Was that our first double of the season?

[animallittle3]

As I got back to my car there were two bpool fans got into a tangerine coloured fiat 500.
The owner even had orange sports seats installed.
Classy.

Struggled to get up the hill to Kimmy though

Both myself and my mates had a bizarre two hours in the company of four Pool fans .

We were coming back from Plymouth where we'd saved ourselves from relegation with a last day 2-1 win at Plymouth .

The Blackpool lads were making their way home from Swansea .

The meet up was in the middle of the M5 northbound .

An accident had grinded the motorway to a halt .

We got out of the car after 20 minutes , nowt was moving at all .

The Blackpool lads were behind us .

We got talking as you do and they produced a bottle of wine , I wasn't driving so I accepted .

Drinking wine with Blackpool fans in the middle of the M5 isn't what you normally class as the norm .

Doesn't football produce the most unlikely of events ? .

[mikemiller]

Ogbene seems to be enjoying every minute on the pitch at the moment - just hoping that he doesn't get clogged

[CTMilller]

I'm just beginning to believe that we can be confident going into games knowing we can win, that if we're ahead we can stay there and if we're drawing we can pull away. Until now, that confidence was lacking. I know, this is very fragile and is easily reversible, but at least I feel we have reached that level. I haven't really felt it all season despite our more than acceptable progress in the league.

At an individual level, Barlaser is turning into the kind of loanee who we will sorely miss when he returns to his home club - especially if we do go up. Some on here are talking about whether or not we could make a permanent offer to him. I suspect not - but always a good sign...(I was amused by his goal celebration; it seemed to echo the rather precise, studied way he plays football. He looked a bit reluctant to do the knee slide - carefully picking his spot and gliding carefully down to the ground - but wanted to be one of the boys!)

Everybody played decently and worked hard for each other. Reading the Blackpool boards, they were obviously frustrated by the relentless high press we put on them and the fact that, though we tend to play a lot of long ball, we do it well and we win set plays from it - from which we score.

We can be an elegant footballing/passing side - and in increasingly long periods of minutes. The good thing is that we have this and also players built for the long ball game. That, combined with a lion-hearted approach to taking on the opposition, will have us there or thereabouts this year. (How we would fare in the division above is another matter, of course...)

[gm_gm]

Amazing isnt it...some plank was shouting "Warne out" a few games ago in the East stand...

[daveemiller]

In some ways that was more impressive then Peterborough. Peterborough tried to play out from the back, were strangled by our high press and spent the last 30 minutes arguing amongst each other. Now, Blackpool aren't in the best form but a Simon Grayson side will always scrap and make things difficult and they had threats on the counter. All in all I thought they were a decent side with the right ingredients to win games at this level. A different type of victory but the tight, ugly wins are what we are all about.

Barlaser. I've read opinions that he blows hot and cold. I don't really agree with this. In my opinion up until November he hadn't settled into our style of play. Too much passing backwards and sideways, too light in the tackles, poor set pieces. Those that make the away games have seen that he has been picking up for a while. Thankfully the home fans are beginning to see his abundant talent now. The set pieces are on the money, tackles well timed, forward thinking passing and pirouetting on a sixpence. In a division that is mostly attriitonal, a little bit of class goes a long way. On current form he could soon usurp Ihiekwe as our most important player.

Ladapo. Much like Barlaser, took a while to settle in. It was a problem with our side. Whilst he has not scored in his last few outings, his hold up play and all round game has vastly improved. No longer trying to twinkle toe past people, just give and go and get in the box. Part of me thinks he was initially trying too hard when he arrived, part of me thinks the management team had a word in his ear.

Wiles. Not altogether bad but our weakest link. He's not really a winger but he put a good shift in. Form has tailed off but in his first full season surely we all expected peaks and troughs?

Wood. One player who epitomises the gaping chasm between championship and league one. Often found wanting by pace and guile in the division above, he rarely comes unstuck here. A mountain. MOTM my arse though.

Vassell. Made a difference when he came on. I think that sporadic bursting cameo role JCH used to have suits him.

Hastie. Did not make an impact. What on earth happened to this lad?! Wouldn't be surprised if he departs this week. A shame after his electric start and glowing reports when he checked in.

Thompson. Doesn't look tall enough or physical enough to be a centre half for me. A good stand in but I can't see him rising above Wood, Ihiekwe and Clark. A revelation at right back though and surprisingly adept on the ball. I'd seriously consider converting him from a centre half that can cover right back to a right back that can cover centre half.

Ogbene. A thorn in any side. Got doubled up on again, something Darren Ferguson was arrogant enough to neglect to do last week. As talented as this kid is, his final product still needs a bit of work. The best of our wingers by a distance though.

Happy new year Millers!

[millertop]

It’s worth stopping to the end to see Ogbene celebrating

Them that leave early won’t have an clue what you’re talking about.

He loves it doesn’t he Ogbene 😂

[Galley On]

In some ways that was more impressive then Peterborough. Peterborough tried to play out from the back, were strangled by our high press and spent the last 30 minutes arguing amongst each other. Now, Blackpool aren't in the best form but a Simon Grayson side will always scrap and make things difficult and they had threats on the counter. All in all I thought they were a decent side with the right ingredients to win games at this level. A different type of victory but the tight, ugly wins are what we are all about.

Barlaser. I've read opinions that he blows hot and cold. I don't really agree with this. In my opinion up until November he hadn't settled into our style of play. Too much passing backwards and sideways, too light in the tackles, poor set pieces. Those that make the away games have seen that he has been picking up for a while. Thankfully the home fans are beginning to see his abundant talent now. The set pieces are on the money, tackles well timed, forward thinking passing and pirouetting on a sixpence. In a division that is mostly attriitonal, a little bit of class goes a long way. On current form he could soon usurp Ihiekwe as our most important player.

Ladapo. Much like Barlaser, took a while to settle in. It was a problem with our side. Whilst he has not scored in his last few outings, his hold up play and all round game has vastly improved. No longer trying to twinkle toe past people, just give and go and get in the box. Part of me thinks he was initially trying too hard when he arrived, part of me thinks the management team had a word in his ear.

Wiles. Not altogether bad but our weakest link. He's not really a winger but he put a good shift in. Form has tailed off but in his first full season surely we all expected peaks and troughs?

Wood. One player who epitomises the gaping chasm between championship and league one. Often found wanting by pace and guile in the division above, he rarely comes unstuck here. A mountain. MOTM my arse though.

Vassell. Made a difference when he came on. I think that sporadic bursting cameo role JCH used to have suits him.

Hastie. Did not make an impact. What on earth happened to this lad?! Wouldn't be surprised if he departs this week. A shame after his electric start and glowing reports when he checked in.

Thompson. Doesn't look tall enough or physical enough to be a centre half for me. A good stand in but I can't see him rising above Wood, Ihiekwe and Clark. A revelation at right back though and surprisingly adept on the ball. I'd seriously consider converting him from a centre half that can cover right back to a right back that can cover centre half.

Ogbene. A thorn in any side. Got doubled up on again, something Darren Ferguson was arrogant enough to neglect to do last week. As talented as this kid is, his final product still needs a bit of work. The best of our wingers by a distance though.

Happy new year Millers!

Agree with all of this Dave. In the first half Ben Wiles kept drifting to central midfield leaving space for their wide man. Natural i suppose for someone playing out of position. Talking of which, special mention to Olosunde, who was excellent at left back. This kid is a sup[erb footballer, who although not the finished article, should definitely go on to play at a higher level. Great signing!!!!!