Blackpool win at Middlesbrough was no shock result for boss Neil Critchley

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Critchley believes the 2-1 victory at the Riverside was no more than his side deserved as they recovered from a goal down and bounced back from a 3-0 midweek defeat at home to Huddersfield Town.

Blackpool had recorded their first victory back in the second tier a week earlier against Fulham and head coach Critchley said: “It’s not like it’s 2-1 and it was smash and grab. It’s not like we were lucky to get the victory. Our performances have been very good so far this season. We haven’t quite got what we deserved.

“But if we keep showing the same level of commitment and togetherness, then with the ability we’ve got we’ll be fine this season.”

And Critchley’s view that the result against Huddersfield was a cruel one was endorsed by Boro, he revealed.

“You always look at the opposition and listen to the other managers before the game to get some insight into what they might do with team selection etcetera,” he said.

“I listened to Neil’s (Boro boss Warnock’s) interview and he said their assistant Ronnie Jepson was at our game on Tuesday night.

“He said we could have been winning at half-time and it was never a 3-0 game, which I agree with.

“We watched the game back with the players and the ball was actually in play for nine minutes when the three goals went in.

“We didn’t do a lot wrong – it was just a crazy situation.

“We’ve more than competed in every game so far this season.

“It will take a massive team effort from everyone, not just the starting XI, but with the togetherness and ability we show I think we’ll be a hard team to play against.”

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