Blackpool will go to Bloomfield Road on Saturday to play relegated Bristol Rovers in an attempt to close off the League One season strongly.
While the Gas will be looking to give their supporters some comfort, the Seasiders could snap their three-game losing streak this weekend and wrap up the campaign.
Steve Bruce’s Blackpool had a remote chance of qualifying for the playoffs, but they are now resigned to spending another season in the third division after winning only once in their previous five games, which also included three losses and one draw.
To be fair, the Seasiders lost to champions Birmingham last time out and second-place Wrexham on April 21. However, supporters will be frustrated that they allowed the Blues to claim the division’s record number of points.
Bruce’s team has dropped 11 points from their past five games, putting them ninth in the standings going into the final matchday. They will be gunning for an eighth-place finish, as they are now three points behind Bolton Wanderers.
Nevertheless, the hosts have dropped their past two games at Bloomfield Road before this weekend, and they will need to produce at the same level that allowed them to win four of six games from late February to the beginning of last month.
If Blackpool wins their final game of the season, they will have a better goal differential than the Trotters, but if they lose, they could drop to 10th place if Huddersfield Town improves their performance.
Rovers, coached by manager Inigo Calderon, were nine points above the relegation zone with ten games remaining after winning six and drawing two of their first fifteen games. However, they were demoted after a terrible one-point return from their most recent nine games.
It is difficult for supporters to accept the Gas’s record of one draw and eight losses, which included a 2-0 setback to Reading last time out, even though they were unlucky with injuries in the second half of the season, with players like Chris Martin and Kamil Conteh suffering lengthy absences.
Despite being demoted along with other struggling teams Crawley Town, Cambridge United, and Shrewsbury Town, Calderon’s team currently sits in 22nd place in the standings with 43 points. The manager has stated that he hopes to lead the team in League Two the following season.
Rovers might finish the season in 21st position if they win all of their points on Saturday. This would give everyone at the club hope that they can recover and be promoted right away.
