Blackpool's boost going into consecutive home matches

That’s according to head coach Neil Critchley, who was pleased with what he saw from his Blackpool side in their 1-1 draw at Gresty Road on Saturday.

The Seasiders were in control for the vast majority of the game, but had to settle for a point after Grant Ward’s first goal for the club cancelled out Mikael Mandron’s strike.

The draw brought an end to Blackpool’s three-game losing streak, but Critchley knows wins are the order of the day as they prepare to host Charlton Athletic at Bloomfield Road on Tuesday night before facing MK Dons on Saturday.

“There’s no point playing well and picking up a point at Crewe and then not backing it up on Tuesday against Charlton,” Critchley said, speaking after Saturday’s game.

“That’s our focus now and that’s what I’ve told the players. We’re in for training on Sunday and we’ll prepare to get ready for Tuesday night.

“Charlton have just come down from the Championship, it’s a tough game. But we’re at home and we’ll be confident.”

The Addicks have taken seven points from their opening five games, claiming their second win of the season with a slender 1-0 victory against Wigan Athletic on Saturday.

MK Dons, meanwhile, leapfrogged Blackpool at the weekend into 19th place after claiming their first win of the campaign, seeing off Gillingham 2-0.

Critchley is expecting a couple of tough encounters this week, but he believes Saturday’s result has laid down some solid foundations ahead of a hectic schedule.

“We’ve got some important games coming up in a short period of time,” he said.

“Charlton is a tough game at home and MK Dons play extremely good football.

“There’s nothing in this league, there’s a fine line between teams.

“For me, it’s a very open league and I don’t see someone that’s going to run away with it.

“I think we will get better, so the draw at Crewe is definitely something for us to build on ready for Tuesday.”

In the absence of the injured Keshi Anderson, Critchley handed a first league start of the campaign to MJ Williams.

The former Liverpool and Rochdale man didn’t let him down.

The 24-year-old delivered a calm and composed display in the holding midfielder’s role, doing an impressive job of protecting the back four behind him.

“I was really pleased with Jordan,” Critchley said.

“We have to remember he signed late in pre-season, so he’s probably been here seven or eight weeks now which is the end of his pre-season, so to speak.

“He’s looked ready in training in the last week or two, he’s looked up to speed and I thought he was a really good performer for us.

“But saying that, I thought there were a number of good performers for us.”