Blackpool boss Simon Grayson vows to avoid making the same mistake twice

Simon Grayson says he won’t be making the same mistake of telling Blackpool fans to judge him after 10 games as he did during his first tenure.
Blackpool boss Simon GraysonBlackpool boss Simon Grayson
Blackpool boss Simon Grayson

The Pool boss made the infamous declaration when he was first appointed to the managerial hotseat at Bloomfield Road in 2005, in his first coaching role.

He ended up with egg on his face after claiming two victories in his opening 10 games.

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Having returned to Blackpool this summer, and subsequently guiding the team to two wins from two, Grayson won’t be making any similar predictions this time around.

“I’ve never, ever, made any sort of prediction because I’ve learned from that first full season at Blackpool, when I said ‘judge me after 10 games’ yet I only won two,” Grayson said.

“I decided never to put any sort of timescale on players’ injuries, predictions or results hence why you’ll get a straight bat from me a lot of the time.

“But I’m pleased with how we’ve played so far this season because I think we’ve got a responsibility to try and entertain people. But I also want to win matches. If we can do both then I’ll be pleased.

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People can talk about playing a certain style of football but winning football matches is the main thing, irrespective of whether you play poorly or great.

“People will take winning matches if you play poorly but obviously I want to find the right balance of trying to entertain and grinding results out.”

If Blackpool are to maintain the attacking brand of play seen so far, then they will need the Bloomfield Road pitch to remain in tip-top condition.

“The pitch is certainly helping with our football but come December or January time we might have to change the way we play,” Grayson admitted.

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“But people are working extremely hard behind the scenes to try and make this football club great again.

“We’re all in this together, it’s not all about me. It’s about what the players do and Simon Sadler and his board do.

“We’re going to have some positive times, we’re going to have some negative times as well because that’s part and parcel of football.

“But it’s about everyone pulling in the same direction and working together to try and achieve a positive season.

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“Where will that take us? Who knows. But we know we will make improvements on and off the pitch.

“We have set out to finish better than we did last season and then we’ll see where that takes us. If we do that we’ll have a good chance of being in and around the play-offs.

“It’s a long season, we’ve only played two games and there’s plenty of ups and downs, twists and turns still to come.”