Blackpool can win good, bad or ugly for Mellor

Gary Bowyer’s men have beaten Morecambe 3-1 and Plymouth 3-0 in recent weeks but had to show a different side to their game to grind out Tuesday’s 1-0 win.

And ahead of Saturday’s trip to second-bottom Newport, right-back Mellor is aware such wins will be needed to seal a play-off spot.

“It was a tough game against Stevenage,” he said. “We knew what we were up against but we dealt with it well and battled.

“The ugly wins are the important ones and it stands you in good stead if you can do that.

“I thought we dealt with the conditions well and I’m delighted the boys dug deep and battled.”

Blackpool were much the better side in the first half and deservedly led through Mark Cullen’s early penalty.

They perhaps should have gone further ahead but they had to stand up to a barrage of pressure from Stevenage in the second period.

Pool managed to see out the game to extend their unbeaten run to seven games and Mellor added: “The game could have been dead and buried at half-time but in a way it was nice to win 1-0.

“It makes it a bit more entertaining and I thought the boys were really good. It was nice to hear a few of the fans cheering too.”

Not only did Pool inflict Stevenage’s first defeat in 10 games but they also bagged their third consecutive clean sheet, which Mellor was all too happy to earn.

The 26-year-old said: “It was definitely nice to get another clean sheet and that’s three on the trot now, so we must be doing something right. It’s not just the defenders, though – it’s the whole team.

“The big thing is our mentality. We know we can do it. We’ve just got to keep doing things right.”