Fleetwood Town are getting ready to take on Blackpool in this weekend's Fylde Coast derby at Highbury.
Town come into this Fylde Coast derby in 13th place in the league table, and after two narrow defeats against first place Portsmouth and second place Peterborough, the Cod Army are looking to get back to winning ways against their rivals.
Having gone so close last season at Bloomfield Road, the staff and the players are ready to take on Terry McPhillips’ side at Highbury Stadium this Saturday afternoon.
Joey Barton spoke to the media ahead of the match, and here are some of his best quotes.
Town boss Joey Barton said…
“This is my first experience of this derby and even though I have played in many over the years, and I am really looking forward to this one as there are local bragging rights at stake.
“I remember playing against Blackpool not so long ago in the Premier League, but both teams meet on Saturday on equal teams and I for one are looking forward to the contest, and so should everybody who attends the match at Highbury.
“It is a derby and who knows what to expect as people say it will be a 0-0 draw, but then it could be a blowout one way or the other, or a team thinks they’ll win and it goes the other way. It will come down to who deals with the occasion the best.”
Blackpool assistant manager Gary Brabin said…
“Obviously we’re proud of the unbeaten run and it’s great, you want to keep it going. But it’s important we don’t focus on it too much and on the past, because we just want to carry our confidence into the next game.
“It was nice to give them a little break but it was important we got them a good week’s training under their belt and they reacted positively.
“That’s certainly been the case with back-to-back wins. We’ve just got to keep it going now. It will be nice to turn the back-to-back wins into a third win against Fleetwood this weekend. It’s bragging rights locally and we can now dust ourselves down and prepare for another big game.”
Last five results in Sky Bet League One (from the left):
Fleetwood Town: L L W W D (Currently 13th on 20 points)
Blackpool: W W D D D (Currently 10th on 22 points)
Last time we met…
The last time Fleetwood and Blackpool met was in April 2018 at Bloomfield Road. With 1,500 Cod Army fans in the away end, it was Wes Burns who gave Town the lead against their local rivals.
Burns became the first Fleetwood player to score against The Seasiders in the league, and the first player to score against them since Jamie Vardy in the 2011 FA Cup tie at Highbury Stadium.
Town did suffer a defeat against Blackpool with two late goals scored by Armand Gnanduillet giving the home side the win on the day.
One to Watch
Jay Spearing, who started off his career in the youth set-up at Liverpool FC, is Blackpool’s one to watch today in the Fylde Coast derby.
Spearing was the captain of the Liverpool Under 18s that won the FA Youth Cup in 2007, and with his impressive performances, he was given the nod to train with the first team. He went on to play over 50 games for the reds in his nine-year tenure.
With loan moves to Leicester and Bolton Wanderers, he then signed for Bolton on a permanent in 2013 and in his first season was named the Club’s Player of the Year.
The 29-year-old joined the Seasiders in 2017 and scored two (and his only goals for the club) in his side 3-2 victory over Bradford City on September 8th 2018.
Betting Preview
Town go into the game favourites, as they are looking to get back to winning ways. The Cod Army are priced at 8/5, but a draw against the sides rivals is 11/5.
The Seasiders (7/4) travel up to Highbury on Saturday, after winning just two of their last five league games. Their last win away from home was on Saturday 15th September against Plymouth Argyle at Home Park.
Fleetwood’s Ched Evans – who has scored six goals already this season - has been priced at 9/2 to be the first goal scorer, whereas if you want an outside bet, Lewie Coyle is 80/1 to score the first goal at the weekend.
Paddy Madden who has been on form for the club this season is just 2/1 to score anytime during the game, and 10/1 to score a brace.
Please gamble responsibly. All odds are subject to change.