Charlie Adam walking tightrope in Blackpool's biggest game for decades: Tenth anniversary of promotion to the Premier League

We’re dipping into the archives each day to bring you STEVE CANAVAN’S Gazette reports from a decade ago on Blackpool’s remarkable journey to the promised land.

Ten years ago, our coverage on the day of the play-off semi-final second leg at Nottingham Forest was dominated by Charlie Adam – be it his disciplinary issues or his ability to score penalties...

Captain fantastic Charlie Adam has been banned from shedding any Gazza-style tears if he picks up a booking tonight.

A yellow card for Adam will land him a suspension and rule him out of the play-off final at Wembley, should the Seasiders find a way past Nottingham Forest.

That would be a hammer blow for the team.

Adam is the talisman and has scored in all three victories over Forest this season, including the 2-1 win in the first leg three days ago.

It would also be devastating for the lad himself, after he has played such a huge part in Pool’s fine campaign.

But whatever happens, Holloway has made it clear that Adam has to keep his composure.

“What will be will be,” said the manager, well aware that his star man is on 14 bookings for the season – one away from disaster.

“I think he has showed fantastic commitment in recent games.

“In the match against Bristol City he made two big tackles and could have picked up a yellow.

“On Saturday he was exactly what you want in your penalty-taker.

“You want good players to take the responsibility and he proved again on the day that he is a good player.

“To me the play-offs is a new competition and all of the (disciplinary) stuff should be put aside. This is a new competition so it is all crazy really because surely it shouldn’t still count?

“But the rules say it does so he has got to deal with it.

“I don’t want any Gazza-type tears from him because you have to accept what happens to you.”

Asked if he had ever thought about resting Adam for a game to ensure he doesn’t pick up another card, Holloway answered: “I can’t go into these games thinking I’ve got to save Charlie for a next game that might not even happen.

“How ridiculous is that?

“Without him I don’t think we’d be where we are. With him who knows what we could achieve. He has to learn to cope with this as a man, as a grown up and as a captain.”

Holloway will make his team practice penalties in case Pool’s make-or-break clash with Nottingham Forest goes to a shootout.

The Seasiders’ boss is even considering blasting crowd noises from the Tannoy to recreate a similar atmosphere to which his players will experience at a sell-out City Ground.

Adam has taken spot-kicks all season and has missed only one – in the FA Cup tie against Ipswich in January.

But because of Adam’s role as penalty king, very few of the other players have taken them.

Holloway isn’t worried about that but admitted he will be making sure his players practise.

“We will practise them and we’ll do it as realistically as we can,” he said.

“When I was at QPR we got a Tannoy playing a load of people screaming and shouting and cheering, and the booing.

“We had to record that bit ourselves because we weren’t booed that year, we’d done that well in the league.

“But I made the players walk up from the halfway line and do it with that noise in the background.

“It’s not the same. You can’t really re-enact that situation. But you can try.”

Pool take a slender one-goal advantage to Forest.

Away goals don’t count and if the match does go to penalties, Holloway says that’s where mental strength will come into play.

“Life is very simple for me,” he said.

“If you walk up and believe you are going to score you have a much better chance of doing it.

“And you have to go through the process. You can’t smack a golf ball off a tee with any consistency without having gone to the driving range beforehand.

“I believe in making my players taking the odd penalty here and there in training.

“I know my players. If they’re in a confident mood, which they should be, they’ll believe in themselves and they’ll believe they will score goals because facts tell them so.

“Charlie might have hogged all the penalties in games but I’ve seen other people in training take them.

“We have had little competition in training and I don’t like anybody drawing.

“I don’t think life is about drawing. I think it is about winning.

“So after every little competition we have, normally on a Friday, you will see my teams practising taking penalties and I can tell you some of them are very good.

“They’re not quite as good as Graham Alexander at Burnley because no-one really is.

“But it’s a mental thing and I know my players are mentally strong.”