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It's 3 months now since I wrote that article on Steve Bruce and what a confusing three months those have been. His devastating news about his Grandson threw the whole club off course for a month whilst before then and since we have been plagued by injuries, suspensions and if I'm honest some players that even the best coach in the world wouldn't be able to get consistency out of. Since his appointment he's actually been in the dug out for 10 league games winning 6, drawing 1, losing 3. Of course the results whilst he was away are what has dented us and whilst football can never be a game of 'what if's', you do wonder had events not taken such a tragic turn and if he had been here since the start of the season and had a chance to bring...

“Why have you got rid of Neil Critchley?” is a question I’ve been asked many times in the last month, usually with a reply of “where do I start …” In many ways, it was an easy question to answer. Critch was a marked man from the moment he returned and unless he started playing exciting football with 3 points at the end of each game, he was never going to win over a dubious Blackpool fanbase. I actually felt quite sorry for him in the end as he was a decent man who should have heeded the advice ‘never go back'. Since last week, the whole Critchley affair has been quickly replaced with “Why have you got Steve Bruce?”. I’ll be honest, this one has been more difficult to answer. Why have we got Steve Bruce? His name hadn’t cropped up, he’d...

Going a season with the same manager is somewhat of a luxury for football clubs these days. Only 48 of the 92 EPL and EFL Managers have been in their job for 12 months or more and you can guarantee that will drop to below 40 by the end of the year. Cricthley had ridden to the heady heights of the 43rd longest serving manager on that list with a season and 89 days under his belt. However, those 454 days were anything but plain sailing. What every new manager needs is that 'bounce'. Fans excited by the appointment, anticipation of what sort of manager they will be and the intrigue as to how they will play their side. Critchley didn't get any of that. In fact last August was a damp squib month where we felt like Bobby Ewing coming out of...

Not sure about everyone else but at 4.50pm on a Saturday, even in the Summer, I start to look at my watch. It's a bit like when you're on holiday and you still wake up at 7am. 4.50pm usually means the dying embers of a game - either holding on or hoping for that last minute winner/equaliser. Of course thanks to the new Sky deal, 4.50pm on the opening day will be as uneventful as the last 13 weeks due to the late kick off and so how will we be feeling by just after 7.15pm on Saturday night? The first day of the football season is a weird old affair. Win and you study the table meticulously, despite only being one result, lose and you won't be buying a Sunday newspaper. When it was announced that Crawley was our first game I had a bit of...

Expect the well oiled manager expression 'there's no easy fixtures in this league' to be trotted out for the next 11 months as League One gets underway in just 6 weeks time. For once, they might actually have a valid point. With Birmingham, Rotherham and Huddersfield joining from the Championship and the likes of high spending Wrexham and ambitious Stockport promoted from League Two, this division next season looks tougher than ever. Throw in last season's Play Off sides Bolton, Peterborough and Barnsley plus the improved Charlton, Reading and Wigan and the league will undoubtedly have a top half and bottom half next season with those 11 sides and hopefully Blackpool vying it out for the top spots. There was a feeling that last...

If I'd spent millions to keep a football club alive, upgrade the ground, invest in the squad and be planning further costly improvements, I think I would be somewhat perturbed by some of the comments following last week's fans forum. "I'm sick of you", "one arrogant owner", "Fcuk off", "a cock" and "bell end" to name just some of the comments I read on AVFTT. Imagine investing a sizeable amount of your own money in to a club, only to be told by a small section of their fans that you can stick your money where the sun doesn't shine. Having been lauded by 'Pool fans, had his name sung out loud, been called the saviour and having rescued the club from an uncertain future, Simon Sadler has now seen the ugly side of being a football owner...

I’m struggling to think of a less memorable season than the 23/24 one. It was a bit like a Boxing match where no one lands a punch, watched by an increasingly frustrated crowd and the points decision at the end suits no one. I say this as someone who attended 36 games last season. The Bolton cup tie, the away win at Barnsley, the home wins against Wigan and Stevenage, and the FA Cup match against Forest stir some memories but otherwise it was not necessarily a season to forget, it was just instantly forgettable. If the relegation and the season before was a kick in the teeth, the return of Neil Critchley was a kick further down. Whatever you think of him as a coach, a manager or as a person, Simon Sadler should have realised whatever...

When Simon Grayson fell on his sword after serving up just 13 wins in 38 games and boring the Bloomfield Road faithful rigid, Simon Sadler had the unenviable task of finding a new manager. Looking back at AVFTT at the time names like Nathan Jones, Ian Evatt, Karl Robinson, Richie Wellens, David Dunn, Steve Thompson and even Diego Simeone were talked about (the latter very much tongue in cheek). Looking back all would have done a decent job, however Simon decided to go in a direction that took everyone by surprise in appointing Neil Critchley. Having signed a three and a half years deal, fans were intrigued as to what the new man could serve up. Fans had been bereft of any sort of connection with a manager after NAPM and this felt like...