Survival would be greatest achievement, says Blackpool boss

The Seasiders travel to Crewe tomorrow in a must-win clash at the bottom of League One.

A win could see them climb out of the relegation zone, while defeat may leave Pool five points from safety, having played more games than all their rivals.

But after a season of problems on and off the field, McDonald feels survival would be a massive feat.

“This would be the biggest achievement for Blackpool Football Club for quite a while,” he insisted.

“Not trying to compare ourselves with other teams, but this would be the biggest achievement in a while.

“I’ll keep repeating it but we started with five players, three of which were kids.

“Last season they had two experienced coaches, with a bigger budget and so-called better players, and they couldn’t do the job.

“We started afresh and have competed but we know we can get out of it.”

Crewe are five points behind Pool but have a game in hand, while confidence has drained from McDonald’s squad in an eight-match winless run.

McDonald added:”It’s obvious we have to win games. We have to stand up and be counted. Over the last eight games we’ve lost far too many.

“We need to stay positive and focused. It’s my biggest challenge to keep these lads positive.

“They are a good bunch, who are very conscientious about everything they do. They do point the finger and try to drive each other on.

“They are still learning and are a young team, but I think they’ve coped well up until the last five games.”

McDonald hopes that a win tomorrow can fire his side into Easter matches against Bury and Doncaster full of confidence.

“Now we just need to get back to winning ways. If we can do that the confidence will come back,” he said.

“If we can do that, we’ll hopefully do what we’ve done a lot this season and go on a little run.”