Blackpool’s meteoric rise up the football pyramid is one of the fairy tale stories that make the sport as magical, gripping and breath-taking as it is.
The seaside club on England’s west coast are famed for the glory days of Sir Stanley Matthews and Stan Mortensen, who helped fire the Tangerines to a memorable FA Cup victory over Bolton Wanderers in 1953.
After a period of decline in the 80s and 90s which saw Blackpool slip into the fourth tier of English football, the Seasiders gradually began to re-establish themselves as the nation’s great entertainers – albeit in a more unorthodox manner via the play-offs.
Part of this success was Keith Southern, who joined Blackpool on loan from Everton in 2002 before signing permanently for the Division Two club. After four mid-table finishes under Steve McMahon and Colin Hendry, Simon Grayson was appointed as manager in in November 2005 to help turn the club’s fortunes around.
The following season saw Blackpool make a promotion bid and the Tangerines narrowly missed out on automatic promotion to Bristol City by two points, despite an enthralling 6-3 victory over Swansea City on the final day.
"I remember that really, really well,” said Southern. “We finished third that season and Swansea just missed out on the play-offs because of that result. We were relying on Bristol City slipping up to nick the second automatic promotion place, but they did the job their end and we finished third. We had that team spirit, togetherness and belief because we'd been on such an incredible run.
“At that stage, when we'd beaten Swansea, we'd won seven on the bounce and finished at Wembley winning ten on the bounce so we were right in the middle of a terrific spell where we never felt like we could lose a game even if we went a goal behind because we still had that fire power and belief in games. Andy Morrell scored four at Swansea, so that was a terrific feeling. It's a little bit deflating that you've lost out on the automatic promotion but, the way we were playing, we were pretty unstoppable at the time."
Blackpool finished the 2006/07 campaign as top scorers in League One and were involved in an incredible 125 goals as they finished third. The Tangerines went on to beat Yeovil Town in the play-off final and secure a place in the Championship for the first time since 1978.
A 1-0 defeat at relegation threatened Rotherham United in the March ended a six game unbeaten run, but from there Southern and co. won seven consecutive matches to finish the season with a flourish.
But is the key to promotion from the play-offs all about momentum, or is just a matter of luck on the day as to who comes out on top?
“If you go into them with some sort of momentum then you've got a real chance; if you've won the last few games of the league season then everyone is upbeat an buoyant and you've got a real chance of making an impact,” continued Southern.
“If you stumble into the play-offs and you're not playing too well or have one or two injuries then it's difficult. So it's a real mixed feeling; you've got to have that belief and togetherness that you've had all season and, obviously, you need a little bit of Lady Luck as well.
"It's difficult really because in 2007 we finished third and had 82 points - comfortably in the play-offs, in the middle of that winning streak. In 2010 we just nicked into the sixth position on the last day - again we were relying on Swansea dropping points.
“We drew against Bristol City at home and Swansea failed to beat Doncaster. Swansea had a Lee Trundle goal disallowed for handball in injury time so if that goal had stood it would have knocked us out of the play-offs, so we went through the back door really in the Championship. But, again, we were on a terrific run - I think we'd only lost two in ten up to that point.
“So I've experienced it when we've finished third where we've been rampant and then where we've just nicked in through the back door basically and relying on other teams to get us into the top six but, again, I talk about momentum and if you've got that squad of players and you keep winning and can keep coming from behind in games - we did that an awful lot in 2010; we were behind in so many games but we had so much firepower in the squad and belief that Ian Holloway [then Blackpool manager] had instilled that we never doubted ourselves.
“It was an incredible feeling to have in football where you just go into every game and feel that you're going to win. So I've experienced finishing third and finishing sixth, but it all comes down to momentum and if you can keep players fit and if you've got the firepower then you can get over the line."
Former Bristol Rovers boss Holloway was instilled as manager at the start of the 2009/10 campaign with a view to keeping the Bloomfield Road side in the second tier. What unfolded was nothing short of a minor footballing miracle as Blackpool reached the Championship play-offs.
Just one defeat in their last eight league games – a 4-1 drubbing at would-be champions Newcastle United – saw the Tangerines secure a sixth place finish – their highest league position for over three decades, an achievement that Southern believes Holloway must take full credit for.
"Without him it wouldn't have been done,” admitted the 36-year-old. “Without his presence, without his philosophy and the way he wanted to do things and the belief he gave us - we were a low end Championship side before Ian Holloway turned up, we were hanging on every season.
“I think we had three seasons in the Championship before Ian turned up and we had hairy moments where we'd stayed up on the last day like in 2008 against Watford. So it wasn't plain sailing, we were just establishing ourselves as a Championship club but had never threatened that top half of the league and certainly never threatened the play-offs before.
“So with his style of play and some of the signings he made, his overall personality was just magical really and everyone bought into what he wanted to do. The lads loved him - we'd have run through brick walls for him and he was the main reason why we got promoted.
“Obviously the players have got to go out there and do it, but it was his blueprint and that environment that he created for us to go on and achieve what we did, so he was pivotal.”
Blackpool were involved in one of the greatest ever play-off games in 2010 when they overcame a much fancied Nottingham Forest side in a thrilling encounter.
PLAY-OFFS AT 30
Blackpool legend Keith Southern reminisces about the Tangerines' fairy tale play-off excursions
Article posted: 16 May 2017
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12 May 2017
Simon Grayson and
Keigan Parker
Championship bound after
beating Yeovil Town
Southern scrambles home the
equaliser against Nottingham Forest
Charlie Adam finds the
net against Cardiff City
Ian Holloway celebrates
promotion to the top flight
Blackpool
Premier League bound
Leading 2-1 from the first leg, Southern and co. travelled to the City Ground knowing that they would need to perform to their best in order to keep their promotion hopes alive. DJ Campbell proved to be the Seasiders’ hero as he bagged a second half hat-trick to claim an amazing 4-3 victory and send Holloway’s men to Wembley.
"It was absolutely incredible,” recalls Southern. “In the first leg at home, Chris Cohen scored and we were 1-0 down; it happened so many times where we went behind in games. Then I scuffed one in for the equaliser and Charlie Adam scored a penalty.
“The fans in the stadium were amazing and the atmosphere was electric, and it was really funny because Forest sailed into the play-offs that season - they were terrific at home - and the game finished 2-1 at Bloomfield Road on the Saturday and we played them away on the Tuesday.
“Billy Davies was the Forest manager and obviously he used to manage Preston, so there's a big rivalry between Preston and Blackpool, and he was kind of getting baited by our supporters, as you can imagine.
“But he felt they'd done enough - the 2-1 was enough in his eyes to go back to the City Ground because their home record was incredible through the season, I think they'd only lost one at home all season so he felt pretty comfortable and that being at the City Ground was enough for his side.
“He was signalling to our fans that it was all done and dusted and that they'd done enough in the away leg. Obviously we went down on the Tuesday night and the atmosphere in the City Ground was incredible - the loudest I've ever experienced in a nearly 20 year professional career; the roof nearly came off the stadium as we came out. It was magical really.
“In the warm up, I always remember Billy Davies coming into the centre circle goading his own fans saying: 'come on, come on' and the noise they made was electric. Again, we went a goal down [Robert] Earnshaw scored and you can't really plan for something like that but we just got on with it; it was just like the norm at that point.
“We were down in so many games but we just kept playing our football and Ian Holloway just instilled an incredible belief in us, and it was a brilliant night and we scored some brilliant goals. In the changing rooms after the game, you'd think we'd actually won promotion and the celebrations on the bus on the way home were something to really cherish forever and was probably one of my finest evenings in football."
Standing between Blackpool and the top flight were Cardiff City, who were aiming to become the first Welsh team to reach the Premier League.
Dave Jones’ side had finished in fourth, six points ahead of the Tangerines with both meetings between the teams that season ending 1-1. The Bluebirds had led in both fixtures, before being pegged back, and a similar script was about to be written at Wembley.
Cardiff twice led through goals from Michael Chopra and Joe Ledley, either side of a stunning Adam equaliser. But late first half strikes from Gary Taylor-Fletcher and Brett Ormerod sealed a magical Premier League promotion for Blackpool and compounded the Welsh outfit to another season in the Championship.
"We always felt like it was meant to be - it was the strangest feeling in the world,” reminisced Southern. “I just never had any single doubt; I know the other lads felt exactly the same. Again, we went a goal behind, Michael Chopra scored early on.
Ricardo Vaz Te celebrates
his dramatic late winner
West Ham United make an
immediate return to the top flight
Kevin Nolan, Sam Allardyce
and Carlton Cole rejoice
“Cardiff beat Leicester in the other semi-final and Ian Holloway had a bit of history with Leicester. We thought Leicester were the stronger of the two sides and it was a bit of a relief that Cardiff went through because we thought that the emotions of Ian Holloway against Leicester in the final might have affected him and, ultimately, affect us in a way.
“So we were really pleased that Cardiff got to the final - not because they were a bad side; they were a terrific side - but we just felt that with everything involved with the manager that we would have had a better chance against Cardiff.
“As it turned out, it was the hottest day I can ever imagine playing in. It was 107 degrees, the thermometer was at the side of the pitch on the big screen while we were playing and it was just that undeniable spirit that we had, again, going a goal behind.
“We turned it around and we were hanging on at the end but it was kind of meant to be and was a special time for everyone and such a brilliant period in Blackpool's history, and the group of players had been together for so long that it was fitting that we'd done so much. Some of those players had been there from League One and to get to the Premier League was incredible."
Unfortunately for Blackpool, their foray into England’s elite lasted just one season as they suffered immediate relegation to the Championship – not before stealing the hearts of a footballing nation.
They started life in the Premier League with a bang – a 4-0 win at north-west rivals Wigan Athletic before being brought back to earth with a resounding 6-0 defeat at Arsenal. The Tangerines recorded impressive victories over Liverpool (twice) and Tottenham Hotspur, while also claiming all three points at Newcastle, Stoke City and Sunderland.
However, a poor run of form, which yielded just one win from eleven games, at the end of the season resulted in the Seasiders’ succumbing to relegation.
But Blackpool came back fighting in the Championship and made the play-offs once more as fans dared to dream of another Premier League campaign.
Holloway’s side held off a spirited Birmingham City fightback to claim a 3-2 aggregate victory and set up a play-off final date with West Ham United, who had suffered relegation to the second tier along with the Tangerines.
Ricardo Vaz Te scored a dramatic late winner to send the Hammers back to the top flight at the first time of asking under the guidance of Sam Allardyce.
"That was a difficult season for me personally, without going into too much detail,” admitted Southern. “I hadn't played that much football for one reason or another that season and I had my ups and downs personally - I had some health issues that I went through, and the club were fantastic with me. It probably didn't hurt me as much as it did the other players, if that makes sense.
“I had testicular cancer and I viewed any game that I played in after that period as a bonus and a win-win that I was back playing. But I was still hurting for the lads; they're still your friends and I talk about that bond because they were the majority of the same players that had gone up to the Premier League and been relegated.
“Ian Evatt was with me in League One when we were promoted in 2007 so I knew him like the back of my hand - I'd played over 300 games with him. So they're your friends and, even though I wasn't playing, I was more disappointed for the boys than myself because I was grateful that I was still playing.
“I don't really remember too much about the day; I think we were the better side and our lads were really unlucky - West Ham nicked a goal in the dying stages, so the boys were really unlucky. So, I've experienced both sides of it, the ups and downs and it's not nice when you lose but someone has to, I suppose."