Fleetwood boss Joey Barton's verdict on Blackpool stalemate: Neither side went for broke

Callum Connolly tries to block a clearance by Blackpool's former Fleetwood keeper Chris Maxwell

Fleetwood Town verdict: Red-hot atmosphere but clash with Blackpool never caught...

“It wasn’t the best game, to be honest,” he admitted. “We’ve had about eight storms batter our pitch recently and you can see that has taken its toll.

“It probably affected the flow of the game a bit but it’s the same for both teams. I just think both teams didn’t want to lose the game and didn’t really go for broke.

“At times it looked like both groups of players were wanting to win it but also not wanting to lose because of the local rivalry.

“Blackpool beat us at their place, so for me this is a point gained in what is turning out to be a really, really good season.”

Town are now unbeaten in 11 games, though they slipped out of the play-off zone on goal difference.

Barton added: “I don’t think we were at the level required in the first half. Perhaps the midweek trip to Ipswich wasn’t ideal preparation but that’s the schedule and we have to accept it.

“I wasn’t worried that Blackpool started the more lively. I think we controlled possession for large parts. Admittedly we weren’t really going anywhere with it but Blackpool weren’t really either.

“We forgot to score the goals we needed. We didn’t have that creative part of our game, that finishing part.

“Paddy Madden had a half-chance and Danny Andrew thought he should have had a penalty as he was running through, but overall I think it would have been harsh if either side had won. I think a drab kind of non-eventful draw was fair.”

Barton was also pleased with a second consecutive clean sheet ahead of tomorrow’s huge trip to Portsmouth. “It keeps the run going,” he said. “That’s just one defeat in 17 games.

“We’ve only lost one game here and we certainly didn’t want Blackpool to do the double over us.

“We’ll go back to the drawing board, particularly with the offensive part of the team.

“Just when you think you’ve got everything moving in the right direction, footballers are like a Rubik’s Cube – you have to put it all back together again.

“We go into a tough game on Tuesday at Portsmouth, and if we keep clean sheets we’ve got that solid platform that will always give us a chance. We’ll always be a team who can get goals.”