Events on the pitch took a back seat during the first half, however. The game was halted for more than 40 minutes while a supporter received medical treatment before being taken to hospital.
Fulham last night announced that the fan later passed away. “It is with immense sadness that we inform fans of the passing of supporter, Paul Parish,” a club statement read.
“Paul suffered a cardiac arrest and received treatment in the stand this afternoon before being transferred to hospital. Our condolences go out to Paul’s loved ones.”
Fulham had scored 22 goals and taken 12 points from their previous four games and it was to Blackpool’s credit that Silva’s side missed out on the opportunity to further extend their lead at the top of the Championship table
“We were too slow in the second half and you give some belief to the opposition. Our second half was bad but the second half from the ref was really bad. You can have a bad afternoon like my team but it was a bad second half from the referee.”
Silva blamed the referee for a series of minor decisions but there appeared little danger that Fulham might slip up when Mitrovic turned in Fabio Carvalho’s cross. Harry Wilson might have doubled the lead but Blackpool showed signs of coming into it when Bowler struck the bar.
The visiting team continued to improve and drew level when Bowler met CJ Hamilton’s cross with a first-time shot. The Blackpool midfielder is attracting interest but Neil Critchley hopes that the player will remain at the club beyond the end of the transfer window tomorrow.
“I hope he stays with us,” the Blackpool manager said. “He was outstanding. You could see the respect they had for him.
“He’s been brilliant. Let’s see what happens. He’s our player, we’re delighted to have him, we know how good he is and we know his worth.” Critchley, whose side are sitting comfortably in mid-table, added: “It’s a good point today. We’ll get confidence from that but we won’t get carried away.”
Star man Josh Bowler (Blackpool).
