Football: Stockport show promotion credentials
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Your support makes all the difference.Stockport County. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1
Blackpool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .0
IT COULD have been the festive season. Snow blew, the night air was crisp and even the editorial of the Stockport manager, Danny Bergara, spoke of Christmas dinners. For Blackpool it could not have mocked their predicament more.
On 27 December, when this match should have been played, they were sixth in the Second Divsion and promotion had not been discounted. Two postponements, five weeks and some anachronistic Boxing Day programme notes later and they are going downhill faster than any four-man bob. This defeat was their ninth in 10 matches.
Few will have inflicted more pain than this. There was probably a chasm in terms of confidence between Blackpool and County, now up to second in Division Two, but the visitors camouflaged it by prodigious work. Aided by a near-gale blowing in over the Cheadle End and a heavily sanded pitch, they nullified the greater skills of the home side and, in terms of possession and chances, they deserved a point.
The fact that they did not gain any reward rested on two penalty kicks. In the first half Kevin Francis had been virtually anonymous but he made amends in the 53rd minute. At 6ft 7in he is a difficult target to miss and the referee possibly had that notion in mind when he ruled that Gary Briggs had pushed the pounds 1 million-rated Stockport striker in the area.
Briggs looked dumbstruck and his team-mates were equally bemused and surrounded the referee. Francis, meanwhile, waited patiently and when the protests died down calmly placed the penalty into the top right- hand corner of the net forhis 19th goal of the season.
That had been a controversial decision and another followed nine minutes later when the referee awarded a spot-kick, this time to Blackpool. Dave Bamber was the man left sprawling on the floor but County's Tony Barrass looked just as poleaxed that he was being penalised. Bryan Griffiths must have felt equally aggrieved as he shot high over the bar.
With a sense of injustice burning brightly, Blackpool spent the concluding minutes on the attack but could not find a way past the safe hands of Lee Martin. Bamber had half-chances, but compounded his frustration by getting booked and he looked thoroughly cheesed off as he left the pitch. His body language just about summed up the visitors' night. For Blackpool the post-Christmas hangover refuses to go away.
Stockport County (5-3-2): Edwards; Todd, Flynn, Miller, Barras, Wallace; Frain, Ward, Beaumont; Preece, Francis. Substitutes not used: Connelly, James, Ironside (gk).
Blackpool (4-4-2): Martin; Horner, Briggs, Gore, Cook; Rodwell, Beech (Bonner, 70), Gouck, Griffiths (Mitchell, 70); Robinson, Bamber. Substitutes not used: McIlhargey (gk).
Referee: R Poulain (Huddersfield).
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