Loanee Lumley loving life at Blackpool

Blackpools on-loan keeper Joe Lumley has impressed in his time with the club

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The 23-year-old shot stopper is due to return to parent club QPR when his loan deal expires at the end of the current season.

There he will look to impress his manager Ian Holloway and fight his way into contention for the number one jersey occupied by Alex Smithies this season.

But, should he fail to do so, it might be a case of going out on loan again to get more experience.

The four-month spell he’s had at Blackpool has certainly been an enjoyable one so far for Lumley.

“I’ve loved it here, it’s been a good experience for me,” he said. “I’ve enjoyed playing with the boys and playing under the gaffer.

“It’s been good to play a consecutive number of games and to be learning every day. Hopefully I can get a few more clean sheets before the end of the season.”

When asked if there’s any chance of a return next year, Lumley said: “I stay here at the club hotel and I go up to the restaurant a lot to eat; while I’m there a lot of the fans and a lot of the sponsors are up there and we speak about the future.

“I’ve said to them ‘you never know, you never know what’s going to happen in football.’

“I’ve enjoyed myself at Blackpool since I came in January, so never say never.

“But my aim is to go back to QPR and be number one.

“I don’t know what’s going to happen with the goalkeepers there, I’m just going to push myself and work as hard as possible every day when I go back there in pre-season.

“But while I’m here, I’m learning every day and that’s all you can do when you’re a young player. Keep learning and keep working hard.”

Lumley has won plenty of plaudits for his displays at Blackpool, having managed to keep eight clean sheets in the 17 games he has appeared in.

But Lumley says he can’t take all the credit for that statistic.

“Clark (Robertson) and Curtis (Tilt) have both been different class in front of me,” he said.

“I’ve said all along, the clean sheets we keep are not only me, it’s the whole team.

“The two centre-halves have been brilliant, as have the two full-backs. Whether we play four at the back or five at the back, it’s always been positive.

“I talk non-stop to them during the game and they seem to love that.”