Bowyer salutes Blackpool’s Wembley guts
Blackpool boss Gary Bowyer hailed the “guts and determination” of his players as they secured promotion back to Sky Bet League One with a 2-1 win over Exeter at Wembley yesterday.
Mark Cullen poked home a 64th-minute winner to give Blackpool a glorious end to a season which has been plagued by off-field turmoil.
The winner came when Brad Potts raced onto a cute back-header from Kyle Vassell.
Potts prodded the ball goalwards and, although keeper Christy Pym got a touch, it fell perfectly for Cullen to slide in and guide over the line.
Blackpool fans stayed away from Wembley in their droves in protest against the club’s owners, the Oyston family, but those in attendance – only around 5,500 in a crowd of 23,380 – saw Brad Potts give their side a thirdminute lead.
David Wheeler equalised five minutes before the break with an exquisite goal – he took one sublime touch to control a 60-yard pass from Craig Woodman before hooking the ball over Sam Slocombe and into the net.
But Cullen’s finish settled the contest.
“We got a fantastic start and we showed a lot of guts and determination against a very good Exeter team,” Bowyer said.
“We were clinical with our opportunities today and I think that was the difference.
“I can’t stress how proud I am of these players because a lot of them are on one leg.
“It was unbelievable the effort that they showed.”
On the troubled Seasiders’ off-field problems, which have seen supporters boycott matches all season, Bowyer said: “I cant control that, I have no control over that.
“We can only affect the training and coaching and working with the players.”
Blackpool were without injured captain Andy Taylor and lost-stand-in skipper Tom Aldred when he limped off after half an hour. The defender fought back tears as he left the pitch with an Achilles problem.
Talking after the match, Aldred said: “Emotional’s the word to use.”
Potts hailed the Wembley victory as “unbelievable”. “It’s been a long old season,” he said.
“It’s been tough at times, but it feels absolutely incredible. I’m over the moon.”
Cullen added: “It’s absolutely brilliant to get the winner at Wembley.”
Exeter boss Paul Tisdale felt his side were made to pay for “a slow start to the second half. I felt comfortable at halftime,” he said. “I felt we had a really good first half.
“They had the best 10 minutes after half-time and they got the goal at an important time.”