[theo_luddite]

The McGalphsmiths Stadium
Not quite the fortress
Mr. Duff was predicting
By the swollen River Colne
Take your waders.
HD1 6PG

Kick-off 19:45 UK Time
Tuesday 24/09/24

Steve Bruce, Jordan Rhodes and their little sticks of Blackpool rock make a re-arranged trip over The Pennines for what will likely be a warm (if not hostile) welcome in the hillsides of West Yorkshire for Tuesday night's match.

After spitting his dummy out at Town, Bruce has since gone on to enjoy various levels of unpopularty at Wigan, Crystal Palace, Brum, Wigan again, Blunderland, Hull, Villa, Wendies and West Brom before coming out of retirement for a donkey ride or two on Blackpool beach.

Lots of Town fans wanted us to bring Rhodes back again from his loan after he scored 15 goals for Blackpool before Christmas last season. However, his goals dried up at that point and from the end of January to the end of the season he only made 4 more appearances. He's still not found the onion bag in 6 appearances this season but only has a total of around 180 mins worth of playing time on the pitch. Rhodes still ended up as Blackpool's leading scorer, by some way. Goal scoring duties were then mostly shared between Karamoko Dembélé (8), now on loan at QPR and Jake Beesley (7), with Shane Lavery (now at Cambridge) and Sonny Carey chipping in with 5-a-piece.

Last season, across 3 spells, Blackpool were stuck in 8th place for almost half the season, only once reaching the dizzy heights of 7th. They finished 3 points shy of Barnsley to miss out on the play-off's. A slow start to this season saw Neil Critchley ditched before the end of August and Bruce parachuted in after the Transfer Window closed.

On the tellybox

HTTV, which is what used to be iFollow. There's a shed load of EFL Cup and EFL Trophy games on Sky Sports+ tonight, and the three rescheduled League One games are now being shown though they were originally 3:00 pm kick-off's on the Saturday. The website I use isn't listing them, but this one is - https://www.skysports.com/watch/sport-on-sky for UK and ROI viewers.

Latest news

Snoots broke the news that the egg chasers are looking to build a new ground that they won't rattle around in quite so much. The noises coming from the Council would seem to indicate it was news to them too, but given they don't want any part of the McGalphsmiths anymore I think they need to be a bit less cloth eared about it. The might be a temporary vacancy at The Shay sometime soon unless someone starts paying the Halifax egg chasers' bills.

Blackpool turned their annual Autumn Illuminations fancy light bulb show on on 1st September. Originaly an idea to extend the English Summer holiday and hence hotel season for a few more weeks after everyone went back to work, they were first switched on in 1879. I'm sure they used to be done and dusted by the end of October in my youth, they now run into the New Year with lights out on January 7th.

It's not quite Las Vegas, but Blackpool's become more like the seedier side of Las Vegas over the the last 20-30 years or so. The "Golden Mile" of my youth looks more like about 880 yards of sleeze these days. I dare say you can still find a comedian at the end of one of the piers though. That's in addition to Bruce.



https://www.visitblackpool.com/detail/bl...2024-6011/

Out Injured/Suspended/Isolating

Duff Duff repored no further injuries after Saturday

Back training but not oven ready/Back in the frame

He didn't appear to allude to any of the walking woulded coming back for this game either.

Musical Interlude

Sorry, couldn't resist it ...



Arguably Blackpool's most famous export, apart from little sticks of rock. If ever a song about Blackpool could have had a more apt title



I spotted a YouTube video titled "The 10 Best Things to do In Blackpool"

I'd think it would go something like ...

1. Get on the M55 and drive towards Preston
2 - 9. See 1.
10. Keep going.

Well, all that Illuminations traffic needs to get Fylde out of there somehow.

Last time out

As I might have mentioned elsewhere, Saturday was a classic case of "After the Lord Mayors Show".
Duff Duff likes to play a 3-5-2 formation, which works great against sides that want to try and play against us. However it falls flat on it's arse when teams sit back then lob one over our press for a speedy forward to run onto. Given most of our back three have the speed and apparent turning circle of The Queen Mary with a broken rudder, it's causing us problems. It's starting to look like other teams are doing their homework on us and it's becoming questionable what homework we're doing on them.



Town missing penalties at home? Well we hardly ever get them and we miss them when we do, so nothing new there.

Blackpool, after that less than auspicious start to the season, won at Charlton to make it two wins from 2 for Brucey. Both 2:1.



Town dropped a place in the face of that 1:3 defeat as Wrexham stayed on top with a win at home to Crawley, Brum won their 5th on the bounce at Rotherham (quite) to stay 2nd, Barnsley jumped into 3rd with a win at Burton,. Charlton dropped to 4th with that home defeat, Lincoln's goalless draw with Wigan has them 6th and fast starting Smogport dropped out of the Top 6 after they were battered 1:4 at home by Orient, who jumped up to 20th as a result.



The Sack Race

Cardiff lost 0:2 at home to L666s on Saturday, leaving them rooted to the foot of The Chumpionship on 1 point. The Bluebirds decided it was all over for head coach Erol Bulut on Sunday. So he can head back to Germany via Dover. Or maybe just fly home from Cardiff Airport and save the long wait for the ferries.

Mike Williamson parted company with MK Dons last Thursday after they drew 1:1 with Donny Rovers. Prior to that they had won 2 and lost 4. He turned up at Carlisle later the same day. Helluva drive that one. Thick end of 5 hours with a couple of pee and coffee breaks. Tebay Services are always worth a stop though in either direction or Killington Lake on the way back south.

Our old friend Narcis had arrived in Stoke last Wednesday just in time for a drubbing at home to Hull with our old friend Kasey Palmer heavily involved. At least they didn't get too wet.

Tables

Two defeats, two draws, two wins, in that order for Blackpool. You won't be surprised that they are mid-table then?
Other than the 0:3 mugging by Smogport, they've scored at least 2 in every other league game. I Hope Duff Duff is aware!!



Innies and Outies

Apart from signing Jordan Rhodes full time from us, here's a few more. They brought a few quid in by selling a keeper to Plymouth, but I expect Brucey to blow the budget right out of the Irish Sea come January. They were clever to wait until this month to appoint him.



Who's banging 'em in

Their leading scorer is currently fullback, James Husband. How novel, a defender as leading scorer. 'Ood-a-thunk eh?
Kyle Joseph is just one behind him.



They can't all win

Three rearranged games on Tuesday night. We get the chance to move back into the top 3 or possibly drop another place if we put in another abject performance.



We've played 'em before

Town are a shade in front in the League but woeful in the Cup competitions. Good job it's a League game then.
Recent home form against them is hit and miss to say the least.



Next up?

We've two away games at Reading and Brum. Both are on the tellybox so no doubt whatever protest the Reading fans are supposedly planning, it will get broadcast far and wide.

Pressers

Tom Lees and Duff Duff

Lees kicks off a surprisingly early 02:03 in but it's 34:40 before Duff Duff says his stuff stuff.



The views from Blackpool Tower.

Brucey says it will be tough. We know, there won't be many there to witness it either. Town fans that is.

https://www.blackpoolfc.co.uk/news/2024/...ough-game/

Hmmmm - https://www.blackpoolgazette.co.uk/sport...in-4793908

Bruce a shithouser? How did they ever get that impression?

[jjamez]

James husband, the left back that came here on loan to replace Ben chilwell

[themaclad]

It's on Sky Plus red button

[Lord Snooty]

It's on Sky Plus red button

Correct. I had a look this morning and it's there in the upcoming matches section.

[theo_luddite]

OK thanks, the website I checked this morning said otherwise. I'll correct the OP.

I still says otherwise but it's definitely on the Sky listings.

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James husband, the left back that came here on loan to replace Ben chilwell

Thought the name rang a bell, didn't look him up properly.

Talk about a Loan Ranger of a career. Wonder if now he's apparently settled in Blackpool he owns a donkey called Silver?

[theo_luddite]

Tonight's startng 11's

Head Coach Michael Duff makes three changes this evening, with Hodge, Ladapo, and Kane coming into the starting line-up.



Take Me Home Jordan Rhodes on the Blackpool bench again, Husband not in the line-up

[Lord Snooty]

Is that Martin Offiah in their line up?

[theo_luddite]

I was wondering that too Snoots

Hopefully he's not on the wing, we'll never catch him.

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Centre back on loan from Brighton and according to Oggy, not pronounced the same either as Chariots.

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That website I use for TV games has finally taken the hint.

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That said Oggy - get yer facts right - according to WiKi

He is the nephew of former rugby league and rugby union player Martin Offiah

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Radio Local broadcasting for free on t'interweb at the moment for those in furrin lands that can't get a tellybox feed.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/live:bbc_radio_leeds

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Correction - someone suddenly realised they were supposed to pull the plug.

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No Helik own goals tonight then - another in the sick bay for a while by the look of that.

[theo_luddite]

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Fer crying out loud can't we tackle at the back?

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As it stands Town down to 6th as Posh get two late 1st half goals to lead 1-2 at Orient to jump into 3rd.

[ritchiebaby]

Hibs signed big Marv from Blackpool on a free transfer, we soon found out why he was free! However he is getting better once we persuaded him to clear the ball instead of him thinking he was a footballer.