Blackpool FC: Jordan Thorniley discusses his first professional goal and gives his verdict on the Seasiders' survival fight

Mick McCarthy's side currently sit 23rd in the table and are four points off safety, with their last outing before the international break being a 4-1 loss to Coventry City.

Thorniley scored his first professional goal in the Seasiders’ recent 6-1 victory over QPR, and states they need more performances like that if they are to stay up.

“It’s nice to get off the mark,” he said. “It’s been a long time coming.

“There’s been a few over the years where it’s hit someone’s toe or it’s gone over, so it was a nice feeling.

“I’m a defender at the end of the day. I prioritise clean sheets more than goals. Obviously it’s nice to score but if I come off the pitch with a clean sheet that’s as good as a goal for me.

“I couldn’t miss from there really. If I did miss that would sum up my luck! But it was a great ball in from Charlie Patino and he did the same for the second header from Andy Lyons.”

“It was a great result but we’ve got to repeat that performance every week.

“There’s no point resting on our laurels. You only get three points for a win.

“We’ve known for a while now what situation we’re in.

“It’s either been a lack of performance or we’ve played well on the day and we’ve not been scoring enough.

“We all know what position we’re in. We’ve put ourselves in that position. But it’s about sticking together now and coming through the other side.

“Seasons have gone before where teams have overcome bigger deficits than what we’ve got, so why can’t we stay up?

“The Championship is mental. I’m not sure anyone in the country would have predicted we’d have beaten QPR 6-1, so you just never know in this league.”

Blackpool resume their Championship season with a trip to Deepdale to face Preston North End on Saturday (K.O. 12.30pm).

Thorniley may not be involved in this weekend’s fixture after suffering his third concussion of the season in the defeat to Coventry ahead of the international break.