Fleetwood Town boss Joey Barton hopes League One rivals Blackpool avoid 12-point deduction after receivership ruling

Fleetwood Town beat Blackpool in the season's first derby and Joey Barton hopes there will be a big crowd at Bloomfield Road for the second

A High Court bid to appoint a receiver to force Blackpool FC owner Owen Oyston to pay the £25m he still owes Valeri Belokon was approved on Wednesday.

The hearing was told the appointment of the receiver could result in Blackpool being docked 12 points by the English Football League.

That is a decision which is yet to be made.

Down the road at Highbury, Barton hopes that deduction does not happen despite Terry McPhillips’ outfit being just two points above his ninth-placed side in the League One table with a third of the season to go.

When asked about Blackpool’s situation, Barton – who has had issues of his own with Oyston family in the past – said: “I’m living in a Fleetwood world.

“I’ve seen it happen but I do not know the ins and outs of it.

“It seems like the fans and supporters of the club are really happy with what has happened. Hopefully they will get their club back.

“What that looks like at this moment, I do not know.

“If that is the case then we are really looking forward to the derby at Bloomfield Road at the back end of the season.

“There should be a lot more people in the stadium and it will make for a great local derby for us.

“I always like to see football fans supporting the club, being happy with it and I understand the difficulty that has been going around that club for a while.

“I have to read up more about it, I’ve seen something about a 12-point deduction.

“I’m not sure how fair that is in the circumstances based on what has happened.

“Hopefully common sense prevails and they are not impacted on what has happened in recent years.”