How Blackpool's preparations were impacted by Middlesbrough postponement

Blackpool’s game against Middlesbrough at the weekend was postponed as a mark of respect to Queen Elizabeth II, following Her Majesty’s death at the age of 96.

The Seasiders return to action tomorrow night with a trip to Rotherham United before taking to the road once again on Saturday to face Millwall at The Den.

Appleton, whose side haven’t played since the 1-0 win at Huddersfield Town on September 4, believes the disruption shouldn’t have too much of an affect on his players.

“I completely understand the reasons behind the postponement over the weekend,” he told The Gazette.

“In terms of preparations, we prepared on Friday as if the game was going ahead because we didn’t get the news until we came off the pitch on Friday.

“On Saturday, we just trained normally as if there was no game anyway, so in terms of preparations we’ve not changed anything drastically. We’ve just trained instead of playing the game on Saturday.

“This week we’ve been in Monday and Tuesday ahead of the game on Wednesday, so not a great deal has changed other than trying to find the best Tuesday to try and fit in the Middlesbrough game.

“The lads have trained well since Huddersfield, we’ve had some good sessions because it’s been a while, the best part of 10 days, so everyone will be looking forward to the Rotherham game.”

The postponement of the Middlesbrough game throws up some logistical problems given we’re already in a truncated season due to the Winter World Cup in Qatar.

There are a couple of free dates for the game to be rescheduled before the Championship breaks on November 13, although it’s likely to be a highly congested part of the season.

When asked if the game could be rescheduled for after the World Cup rather than before, Appleton added: “Potentially.

“But I think there are two or three opportunities before the World Cup. We were looking at one of those slots to try and fit it in.”