Pre-season games

[Bispham Seasider]

Wow. Today Blackpool have announced that the two games in NI have been cancelled "due to unforeseen circumstances beyond our control" and that Ballymena United & Bangor were premature in announcing the games on their websites.

Instead Blackpool will play Football League Two club Shrewsbury Town at their new 9,875 capacity Prostar stadium on Friday 25th July, kick-off 7.30pm.

The match will see Blackpool coming up against former club captain Michael Jackson and former 'Pool striker Richard Walker who played for the Seasiders from 2001 to 2004 before moving to Bristol Rovers where he made over 150 appearances. He is on a season-long loan at Shrewsbury. Also at the club is former Nottingham Forest striker Grant Holt who spent a short spell on loan at Bloomfield Road last season.

Shrewsbury are managed by former 'Pool player "Agent Simmo" Paul Simpson, who earned the Agent tag by Blackpool fans while he was PKE manager when he led the club toward relegation and did his best to try and get them relegated. But his mission was evntually discovered by PKE and he had to leave. He did though receive a heros welcome when he was a half time guest at Bloomfield Road in one match last season when he was introduced as Agent Simmo. :D

[Bispham Seasider]

Shrewsbury Town 2 Blackpool 0

And so the barren streak continues pre-season! As does the injury list, as three players come back from injury (Hammill, Martin and Coid) so we get three more players injured (Kabba, Barker and McPhee).

The Blackpool starting line-up was given as

Matthew Gilks

John Halls
Alex John-Baptiste
Shaun Barker
Joe Martin

Jermaine Wright
Stuart Green
Adam Hammill
David Fox

Stephen McPhee
Steve Kabba

Subs -
Paul Rachubka
Danny Coid
Ben Burgess
Keith Southern
Michael D'Agostino
Ross Lloyd
Dominic Merella

Then in the warm-up both Kabba (achilles) and Barker (thigh) pulled out to be replaced by Burgess and Coid. Blackpol were forced to make an early change with McPhee coming off injured and being replaced by D'Agostino.

Both Shrewsbury goals came in the second half. But even with a makeshift back four and a long injury lost, we should still have beaten a team two leagues below us.

Attendance 1,457 (105 Blackpool fans)

The injury list now reads as

Gary Taylor-Fletcher
Stephen Crainey
Danny Mitchley
Steve Kabba
Stephen McPhee
Shaun Barker
Claus Jorgenson
Marlon Broomes
Matty Kay
Ian Evatt

Thats TEN players out injured and also means we are down to ONE fit striker at the club - Ben Burgess.

[st mirren till i die]

booya!

[Bispham Seasider]

Blackpool 0 St Mirren 2

Blackpool's starting line-up was

Paul Rachubka

John Halls (still on trial)
Steve Pressley (on trial)
Marlon Broomes
Joe Martin

Danny Coid
Jermaine Wright
Keith Southern
Adam Hammill

Gary Taylor-Fletcher
Ben Burgess

subs
Matthew Gilks
Alex John-Baptiste
David Fox
Stuart Green
Claus Jorgenson
Michael D'Agostino
Dominic Merella
Ross Lloyd

With a starting line-up that had one recognised striker (GTF being a midfielder) and no strikers on the bench it was no surprise that yet again Blackpool failed to score. And also yet again, a player went off injured, with young Joe Martin going off toward the end of the first half and being replaced by Claus Jorgenson in the second half.

Blackpool did have a goal disallowed for offside, and hit the bar from a Ben Burgess header, but we need to score some goals soon! Of course it is only pre-season when games mean nothing. After all on the same night, QPR were beaten 1-0 at Kilmarnock and Barnsley were hammered 6-0 at home to Wigan Athletic.

The crowd was up on last seasons one pre-season hom friendly with 2,200, which included just over 300 St Mirren fans.

Overall it was a fairly even game, just we don't seem able to score, and the Saints second goal was added in the last minute of the match.

Adam Hammill stood out to say the least. I just hope we can keep him for the full season. He will become an instant fan favourite and unlike Hoolahan, he can use both feet, and also unlike Hoolahan he has pace.

John Halls surely did enough tonight to earn a contract. He looked decent enough at right back. Whether Steven Pressley will get a contract I don't know, he did ok and it was funny to hear St Mirren fans boo'ing him off the pitch when he got subbed!

Daniel Nardiello and Zeshan Rehman were both rumoured to have been at the match ahead of the announcement tomorrow of Gorkss signing for QPR (who he played for in the 2nd half at Kilmarnock tonight) and both Rehman (on loan) and Nardiello (permanent) signing for us tomorrow.

We finished the match without a recognised striker on the pitch so we defintely need a new striker (well two would be better!).

Also BLACKPOOL TARTAN ARMY - flag at Bloomfield Road!! :D

Sat in our new seats tonight near the back of the Kop. Great view, just a trek up from the front to the back!

[Bispham Seasider]

On Saturday Blackpool travel to Birkenhead on the Wirral to play League One club Tranmere Rovers. There is apparently also a behind-closed-doors match arranged for Monday next week but other than that the next match is the first league home game against Bristol City a week tomorrow!! Gulp.

On the injury front there is some good news. Blackpool will still be without

Stephen Crainey, defender (groin)
Steven Kabba, striker (achilles)
Shaun Barker, defender (thigh)
Joe Martin, midfielder/defende (groin)
Matty Kay, midfielder (thigh)
Danny Mitchley, striker (thigh)

However both Stephen McPhee and Ian Evatt are now back fit.

So the squad for the Tranmere game will be (bearing in mind that the first year professionals are going with the Youth team to play Rhyl in North Wales)

Keepers
Paul Rachubka
Matthew Gilks

Defenders
Danny Coid
Marlon Broomes
Ian Evatt
Alex John-Baptsite
Zeshan Rehman
John Halls (still on trial)
Steven Pressley (still on trial)

Midfielders
Keith Southern
Adam Hammill
Jermaine Wright
Stuart Green
David Fox
Michael D'Agostino
Claus Bech Jorgenson

Strikers
Gary Taylor-Fletcher (*)
Daniel Nardiello
Stephen McPhee
Ben Burgess

Gary Taylor-Fletcher, although a midfielder, he was used as a striker against St Mirren and did ok so could well be used up front tomorrow, or maybe revert to midfield on the right wing.

[Dynamogal]

It's the defense that worries me. :(

[Bispham Seasider]

Aye, losing Gorkss is a huge blow and with Stephen Crainey still not fully recovered it isn't ideal. I think that if we end up signing John Halls, and it does seem likely now, then we should have a decent back four, especially when Crainey comes back. The one thing we will have this season is strength in depth, something that was really lacking last season, plus we will have a few players who can play in a number of positions.

On to todays match, Blackpools starting line-up with eight subs -

Matthew Gilks

Danny Coid
John Halls
Ian Evatt (c)
Steven Pressley

Adam Hammill
David Fox
Claus Bech Jorgenson
Gary Taylor-Fletcher

Stephen McPhee
Ben Burgess

Subs -

Paul Rachubka
Keith Southern
Marlon Broomes
Stuart Green
Jermaine Wright
Alex John-Baptiste
Daniel Nardiello
Zeshan Rehman

So Grayson has put the "newest of the new players" :rolleyes: (*) who signed just two days ago, on the bench. I doubt that the starting line-up will be anything like that for the Bristol City home league match a week today, and presumably he will be switching formations and players round still. The subs bench is probably the strongest we have had for many years too.

I just hope we get through the game without any more injuries!!!

(*) Out of the squad of 19, NINE are new players, a big change from last season.

[Bispham Seasider]

Tranmere Rovers 1 Blackpool 0

Sigh, another pre-season loss. Another pre-season game without scoring a goal. Of course it means nothing, but it is starting to get to be a bit of a worry that we have neither scored since a Lithuanian triallist scored a last minute equaliser in Latvia against FK Jurmala nor won since the win at Fleetwood Town in the first pre-season game.

New signing Charlie Barnett scored Tranmeres goal in the first half. By all accounts though so far it does seem to have been a low key game.

Blackpool made quite a few changes in the second half using all the subs apart from keeper Paul Rachubka, meaning that Zesh Rehman and Daniel Nardiello made their 'Pool debuts. However, apparently Nardiello lasted only seven minutes and had to come off with an injury to his left leg. As Blackpool had used all their seven outfield subs it meant they had to finish the match with just ten players.

And that is it for pre-season games, although there is apparently a behind-closed-doors match on Monday, but no idea yet who it is against.

Nevr known a pre-season like this though for injuries, and for Nardiello to get injured after 7 minutes of his debut says it all for our luck with injuries so far.

[Dynamogal]

So...if this recap is correct:

Blackpool-Fleetwood Town: Win 2-1
vs. Jurmala: Tie 1-1
vs. Skonto: Loss 0-4 (ouch!)
vs. Wrexham: Tie 0-0
vs. Shrewsbury: Loss 0-2
vs. St. Mirren: Loss 0-2
vs. Birkenhead: Loss 0-1

7 pre-season games played. 3 goals for and 10 against. :( 5 matches without a goal. <sigh> Grayson should talk to Joseph Ngwenya's agent. I believe he's still looking for a team (currently trialing in the Bunsdesliga.) Speed to burn, not afraid to mix it up and goes back on defense when needed - all around good player.

Who was in goal for 'pool when the goals were scored? It would be interesting to see if there appears to be a challenge to Rachubka's starting position by Gilks.

[Bispham Seasider]

With the keepers, Grayson seems to have used both Rabs and Gilks a similar amount. Gilks played today and Rabs played last Tuesday. It does look as though Gilks will be pushing for a place in the starting line-up next Saturday for sure.

Of course also today Sheffield United, who are among the favourites to get promoted this coming season, lost to another League One club, Huddersfield Town - whose goal came from former Seasider Keigan Parker - probably his first goal for a year. But it does show how little pre-season really means.

All these injuries are a concern though, and Nardiello going off injured just seven minutes into his debut wasn't good either. Just have to hope that he will be ok for next Saturday but with Steve Kabba also injured that is two strikers again injured!

I've seen about Joseph Ngwenya on the Houston forum that he is over in Germany. Pity he isn't here!

(And it is just me being awkward calling Tranmere Rovers, Birkenhead as Tranmere is an area in the town of Birkenhead :D)

[Bispham Seasider]

This afternoon Blackpool are taking on a Blackburn Rovers team at Bloomfield Road in a behind-closed-doors match. Stephen Crainey is apparently playing which is excellent news ahead of the new season. However, I doubt he would be fully fit to play 90 minutes on Saturday.

However Shaun Barker, Steve Kabba and Joe Martin are said not to be involved today.

[Bispham Seasider]

On the official site it says that Crainey didn't play, but that he is getting back to fitness which is at least good news.

Reports say though that the score was

Blackpool 4 Blackburn Rovers 2

With the Seasiders goals coming from Keith Southern, Gary Taylor-Fletcher, Stephen McPhee and John Halls. Not sure if true or not yet or even what sort of team Rovers put out - presumably it was made up of first team squad players and youngsters.

[Dynamogal]

Yes, good result! What has the weather been like for these pre-season matches? Hot?? Humid?? How are the boys holding up??