A night that Blackpool fans have dreamed of for years as their side are heading to Wembley again

Passion in the stands, passion on the pitch, a team and club to be proud of. Blackpool are heading to Wembley and boy do they deserve it.

After struggling at the start of the season, this moment seemed miles off but Neil Critchley and his side have been absolutely relentless in 2021 and have rightfully earned their place on the Wembley turf, one game away from a Championship return.

The night had everything you could dream of after so long without fans.

Up to an hour before kick-off, Bloomfield Road was rocking with supporters returning in their thousands and well aware of what a poignant moment it was. This moment simply means more to the people of Blackpool

Trials and tribulations throughout the modern history of this club, the likes of which no other club will ever endure given the uniqueness of the situation, have created a resolute nature of this fanbase.

Every goal, every pass, every game is savoured just that little bit more because they know it was taken away from them through the boycott years.

For a return of fans this game had absolutely everything and was as open of a second-leg as you are likely to see this season.

Oxford gave it all they had but what they did not count on was the mentality of this Tangerine squad.

Each and every time the visitors looked like they had a foothold in the game as they opened the scoring and fired back on two more occasions, Blackpool quickly snatched it away from them.

The tempo and intensity of the home sides’ play has been a highlight throughout this campaign, but the manner in which they pressed from the front and fluidly countered was on another level to anything they have showcased this season.

It was clear the supporters had given them an added edge, as they responded similarly to the players after Oxford goals, rallying behind their side to ensure the game remained in their control.

Elliot Embleton scored a stunner to equalise and that goal encapsulated exactly what this team is about, they drove forward in possession disrupting Oxford’s midfield organisation, using pacey overlaps to stretch the play, before producing a moment of sheer quality.

A year has passed since you could last heard the crowd roar, but that roar when Embleton’s equaliser went in followed by the pandemonium of people diving on top of their friends, not knowing what to do with themselves is exactly what makes this sport what it is.

It was the perfect goal at the perfect time and any nerves that Blackpool were going to fall away were quickly tucked away.

To follow that up just minutes later with a second goal to take the lead showed a real sense of what makes a promotion candidate a promotion candidate. As soon as the equaliser came, Blackpool were looking for blood and they efficiently found it.

Whilst Kenny Dougall will get the plaudits for his hook into the net, Dan Ballard pulled off one of the finest assists of the season.

The ball looked destined to go out of play at pace until Ballard used all of his athleticism to somehow twist his body into a position to force a diving header back across goal into the path of Dougall.

Only the defender would be capable of that, that moment, in a nutshell, is why he is destined for the very top level.

From that point, the game flowed one way and another as both sides almost had a mutual agreement to just go for it and play expansively, continuing to take risks. That pattern of play would not stop and neither would the Blackpool fans.

Jerry Yates was the final Seasiders’ goalscorer and duly dedicated his goal to the late Jordan Banks, the local youngster who tragically lost his life after being struck by lightning on his way to play football.

This tragedy has hit the local community hard and to be able to have Jordan play a part in one of this football club’s finest moments is something that he and his family deserved.

Whilst Oxford responded as they did throughout the evening in a fine effort to turn around the tie, Blackpool’s place in the play-off final was never in doubt.

Then the final whistle came and the sheer joy in the stands and on the pitch.

This is a moment that many thought they would never see again after a five-year boycott with a club at civil war and nothing but hatred shown to the club’s previous ownership.

Simon Sadler, now the owner of the club, is the focus of positive chants, opposed to those of the protest years and success was bound to come under his stewardship.

Since his arrival, this club has done everything the right way, whether it be giving their manager time to build, recruiting key player after key player and developing a structure that will last decades.

Neil Critchley though is the man that deserves most of the plaudits.

He is overcome a lot this season and many doubted him but he stands as a hero to this Blackpool support regardless of what happens at Wembley next Sunday.

In his pre-match and post-match interviews, he mentioned wanting to make a team that represents what Blackpool as an area is about, well he has done that and more.

Jerry Yates, Chris Maxwell and Kenny Dougall to name a few get exactly what is so special about this football club.

There is an aura around this club that no external party will ever be able to understand but those who have joined this season have taken it in their stride.

Last time out at Wembley, supporters could not go because they were boycotting the ownership and they did not care what the personal cost was, they did everything in their power to ensure the long-term survival of their club and it is because of them that this club is where they are now.

And with that, the most successful team in play-off history, Blackpool will head to the capital with confidence, momentum and a swagger about their play and whether it is 1,000 or 40,000 tickets for Wembley, the Seasiders’ fanbase will be there, because they always are and always will be.

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