Blackpool 1-1 Shrewsbury Town: Familiar problems haunt Seasiders in New Year's Day contest
Blackpool’s frustrating form at Bloomfield Road continued as they started 2025 with a 1-1 draw against strugglers Shrewsbury Town.
Rob Apter’s second half goal gave the Seasiders a rare lead in front of their home fans on the Fylde Coast, before Tom Bloxham pulled the visitors with 10 minutes left on the clock.
Steve Bruce’s side have only been able to pick up two league wins at home this season, with the most-recent coming back in September.
The first half chance of the afternoon came the way of Bloxham. Some good footwork from the Shrewsbury forward opened up space on the edge of the Blackpool box, but his eventual shot was well off target.
Down the other end, Ashley Fletcher tried his luck from distance too, lifting an attempt over the bar as Jamal Blackman made his way back to his line following a weak clearance.
An effort from James Husband resulted in a similar outcome, with the Seasiders skipper unable to control his contact with a bouncing ball on the edge of the area.
As the first half went on, Blackpool’s frustrations became more and more evident. The clearest example of their mood was a speculative effort from Albie Morgan - who, like his colleagues, was nowhere near the target with his shot.
Ahead of the break, Harry Tyrer was called into action to stop an attempt from Mal Benning, with the Everton loanee doing well to get across to his front post to push the ball behind.
In the early stages of the second half, the Seasiders were able to test Blackman on a couple of occasions. The ex-Chelsea youngster was quickly off his line to stop a back post volley from Husband, before comfortably dealing with a shot from Sonny Carey moments later.
Just before the hour-mark, Bruce made four changes, with Hayden Coulson, Jordan Rhodes, Dom Ballard and CJ Hamilton all being introduced.
On his return from injury, the latter of the quartet made an instant impact, rolling a pass to the edge of the box for Apter to smash home.
The other substitutes also came close to opening up the Shrewsbury defence, with both Coulson and Rhodes having headed attempts from close-range.
Heading into the latter stages, the visitors pulled themselves level, courtesy of some good work from Bloxham in the box, before a shot fired into the bottom corner, after the ball was lost by Hamilton in the build-up.
Evans forced a late save from Blackman in the closing stages, with the keeper tipping a free kick from the left side wide of the mark, as Blackpool were forced to settle for more dropped points at home.
Blackpool FC: Harry Tyrer, Odel Offiah, Olly Casey, Matthew Pennington, James Husband (59’), Rob Apter, Lee Evans, Albie Morgan, Sonny Carey (59’), Kyle Joseph (59’), Ashley Fletcher (59’).
Substitutes: Richard O’Donnell, Jordan Gabriel, Ollie Norburn, Hayden Coulson (59’), Jordan Rhodes (59’), Dom Ballard (59’), CJ Hamilton (59’).