Steve Bruce relieved after Blackpool’s comeback win over Cambridge

Steve Bruce was relieved after Blackpool’s 2-1 comeback win over Cambridge at Bloomfield Road.

Pool were rocked by Dom Ballard’s goal after three minutes but rallied to secure a second successive League One win with goals from Ashley Fletcher and Sonny Carey.

The Tangerines are now nine points from a play-off place, while Cambridge’s third defeat in a row leaves them languishing in 23rd place.

“We did enough to win,” said manger Bruce. “That’s the best way of putting it.

“After an awful start it took some resilience from them. And we took longer than I would have liked to recover from the bizarre own goal. Or whatever it was.

“It was comical. Thankfully, we can laugh about it but I don’t think I have ever seen such a bizarre goal.

“It was debatable if it was over the line or not. But we have got away with it because we  have probably played better at home on numerous occasions.”

On loan teenager Ballard’s shot was heading goalwards but was helped over the line by defender Matthew Pennington’s bizarre attempted clearance.

He did finally boot the ball away but the linesman adjudged it had crossed the whitewash.

Fletcher equalised to leave Blackpool – beaten only once in 15 games since Boxing Day – facing a 12th home draw. However, Carey’s second-half strike sealed the three points.

“Our best performances have been away from home,” added Bruce. “And (the fans), they have seen us stutter and we haven’t got we enough wins. That’s the frustration.”

Cambridge boss Neil Harris admitted it was a tough result to accept.

He said: “I don’t know if we deserved to win the game but we certainly deserved a point out of the game.

“It is gutting to have got beat 2-1. The positives are we played really well-again.

“We got in front early on, created numerous chances, looked like a team who had a desire and a structure about us.

“There was so much good about it but again we fell short. And the hard part is the position we find ourselves in is gut wrenching.

“If we look at the short-term, was it a good performance? Yes. Is it acceptable to lose? No, of course it’s not.

“I can’t fault the players’ endeavour, attitude and desire again. There were some moments of quality but it was the decision making in the final third that was just lacking.

“But I don’t focus on the league table, I focus on Peterborough (next game) and make sure I get the best out of the players who are available to me.”