Blackpool FC writer Matt Scrafton to bid farewell to The Gazette

Unfortunately I also have to add a first relegation to that list of notable events, which is certainly not the way I wanted to end my time at The Gazette.

Nevertheless, it’s been an absolute pleasure reporting on this fine football club since 2016. The Seasiders will forever hold a special place in my heart.

When I took on the role, I had three simple wishes: witness a Blackpool promotion, see them play at Wembley (the two go hand-in-hand, to be fair) and to be the writer that reported on the club’s first game post-boycott.

I know how fortunate I’ve been to tick all three of them off, but that barely scratches the surface.

Wet behind the ears having never worked in sport before, my first day in the job I was – completely unbeknown to me – to sit down with Karl Oyston, arguably the country’s most hated chairman at the time. Talk about being chucked in at the deep end.

It was Karl, rather than his father Owen, who I dealt with during those early years. In fact I’ve only spoken on the phone to Owen twice and never exchanged a word face-to-face.

While I rarely, if ever, agreed with what Karl had to say or the way he did things, I could at least pick up the phone and talk to him both on and off record. In typical Oyston fashion, the majority of those conversations occurred after 9pm!

That already distant relationship inevitably broke down around the time of the court case and I’ve not spoken to him since, aside from one humorous text exchange when he replied “it’s snowing outside” when I asked if he had any comment to make after he was sacked by his own father.

It’s easy to forget about those stormy and unpredictable times. There were plenty of tales that unfortunately never made it to print and for good reason too. Maybe one day…

Reporting on Blackpool’s promotion from League Two in my first season was a strange and soulless experience, with barely 5,000 fans at Wembley given the boycott, which to this day remains the greatest act of collective defiance any fanbase in this country has ever presided over, held firm.

As I’ve said from the outset, I’m a football supporter first and foremost. Before taking this job, I travelled the length and breadth of the country watching my hometown side, so on a personal level I had huge sympathy for the boycotting fans. Had the same inexcusable turn of events occurred to my club I would have joined those in forced exile.

But I also had a job to do, I had to be as fair and balanced as could be. The fact I wasn’t a Blackpool fan, which has been held against me by some, perhaps helped me take the emotion out of the situation.

Be that as it may, the club’s long-suffering fans deserved to get their club back. November 6, 2017, the day Oyston was ordered to pay £31.27m – a figure that remains etched into my brain to this day – was as exhilarating as reporting on a stoppage-time winner, only bettered by the homecoming 16 months later.

Because of what the Blackpool fans have had to go through, there’s no other fanbase quite like them. They’re as unique as they come.

You know when someone is bluffing, you can see through the bluster. If you feel something isn’t right you’ll shout about it, and rightfully so. That should be celebrated.

Despite dropping down to League One, I know you will continue to back the team the only way you know how. Pound-for-pound you’re the best supporters out there.

While a massive summer rebuild is required both on and off the pitch, I’m confident the Seasiders will bounce back sooner rather than later – as long as the right appointments are made and recruitment is improved upon. There’s no doubt decision-making needs to improve.

There’s a lot of uncertainty in the air at the moment given the sheer amount of work required, but that presents both opportunities and drawbacks in equal measure.

If Blackpool do come back at the first attempt, it’ll most likely be via the play-offs, let’s be honest! If that proves to be the case, I’ll certainly be after a ticket given the huge affection I’ve developed for the club.

A lot of good people have worked behind the scenes at Bloomfield Road over the years and continue to do so until this day. I won’t go through them all, but they know who they are. Sadly quite a few have left in more recent times.

In terms of the managers I’ve worked with – Gary Bowyer, Terry McPhillips, Simon Grayson, Neil Critchley, Michael Appleton, Mick McCarthy and Stephen Dobbie – I’ve been fortunate in the sense there haven’t been any overly awkward or difficult ones.

Of course you have your issues, that’s part and parcel of the job. Over the course of a season you’ll write hundreds of thousands of words about their team, not all positive, so it’s inevitable they’re going to disagree with the odd article here or there.

As long as any issues or misunderstandings are dealt with in the appropriate manner with a healthy dose of respect on both sides, it’s fairly simple to move on without it affecting your working relationship.

All I’ve set out to do from the start is to report openly and honestly. I like to think I’ve always been fair and balanced, but I’m well aware you can’t please everybody in this job.

It’s quite simple though, if the football club is succeeding then more people buy and read The Gazette, whether it’s online or in print. It’s in our interest for the club to do well.

But in the hard times it’s also incumbent on the reporter to ask questions, to scrutinise and to get to the bottom of why things have gone wrong. If you don’t do that, you’re letting down your loyal readers and ultimately they will always be the priority.

Thank you to all of the loyal readers out there that have read, engaged, agreed and disagreed over the last seven years. The pleasure has been all mine. Up the Pool.