Blackpool's win at Peterborough United has sent out a message

That’s according to boss Neil Critchley, whose side claimed a thoroughly deserved 2-1 win at London Road on Saturday against a side that started the day top of the table.

Blackpool had Gary Madine to thank for the three points, the striker popping up with a 90th minute winner.

Critchley’s players, who were dominant throughout, had earlier looked on course for the three points thanks to Jerry Yates’ early strike, only to be cruelly pegged back with six minutes remaining.

“It’s nice to back a performance up with a result,” Critchley said.

“I don’t believe we had at the beginning of the season. We were performing well but moments and things were going against us.

“It’s now nice for the boys to get that feeling of a win because it’s a big win for us. It shows we’re capable of competing with anybody in this division.”

Pool’s head coach added: “To a man we were excellent, every player on the pitch.

“The two centre-halves, the full-backs and the way they defended, Kenny Dougall was magnificent, the subs came on and contributed. It was right throughout the team.

“Jerry scored, Gary scored, CJ (Hamilton) set the goal up, everyone was excellent.

“I couldn’t speak highly enough of the performance.”

Saturday’s victory extends Blackpool’s winning run to five games in all competitions and three straight wins in the league, the first time they’ve managed to do that since August 2019.

Critchley stressed the importance of continuing that momentum, especially after the club’s mini-break could easily have halted it.

“I think the break helped and I think you could see that with the start we made,” Critchley said.

“We were fresh and we finished the game well.

“We’ve got an athletic, fit group of players that give you everything and that gives you a chance in every game.

“We’ve got a busy period coming up, but we’ve got the squad to deal with it.”

The Seasiders have no time to dwell on their impressive win and must now turn their focus to Tuesday night’s trip to Doncaster Rovers.

“That’s the message to the players,” Critchley conceded.

“We had a meeting about that this week, we looked at the fixtures we’ve got coming up.

“It’s a busy period, a tough fixture list, but I’m sure teams will be looking at us now and thinking ‘we’ve got a tough fixture playing Blackpool’.

“This next run of games up until Christmas will give us an indication of where we’re going to be at the end of the season, so it’s an important time.

“We need to go to Doncaster, who are a really good team, at home especially, and back this result up with another away performance.”

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