Big Sam's short spell at the Seaside

Allardyce, Brown & Ellis

The sudden desire to succeed coincided with the arrival of Sam Allardyce as successor to Billy Ayre in the Blackpool hotseat in the summer of 1994. The club was so close to relegation to the Third Division - saved only by Fulham's failure to win at Swansea on the last day of the season - that chairman Owen Oyston vowed history would never repeat itself.

That decision gave Allardyce, well known in the north-west as a central defender with Bolton and Preston, his first crack at the managerial big time.

'The back half of the season was our downfall,' admits Allardyce of the 1994-95 campaign. 'What should have been wins ended up in draws and points slipped away, particularly at home. We got ourselves on the fringe, but injuries and suspensions fell at the wrong time. At the end of the day, we were close...but not quite good enough.'

With around £2 million spent on players (including wages) in the previous 12 months, the Tangerines obviously didn't intend on hanging around the Second Division for much longer.

Chairman Owen Oyston had his critics, but his financial commitment during this period cannot be questioned. His confidence in building a new stadium at Bloomfield Road, assuring the long-term future of the club, was to bring the team to the forefront of his mind. 'The chairman felt more confident about the club's future,' commented the then managing director Gill Bridge. That is why he started to invest in quality players, breaking the club record transfer fee twice in succession. The board is setting its sights firmly on promotion.'

The record was first shattered the previous summer with the arrival of £165,000 striker Tony Ellis from rivals Preston North End. Then in November Andy Morrison - a robust defender who has been made club captain - joined the club in a £245,000 deal from Blackburn Rovers.

This trend had continued throughout the close season with the likes of Andy Preece signing from Crystal Palace, Andy Barlow from Oldham and highly-rated keeper Steve Banks from Gillingham. Allardyce had a busy summer in the transfer market, and regarded these new arrivals as key players for the season ahead.

'Preece was an important signing, he is hungry to get back up there again. Barlow was brought in for his experience at the back, and in Banks we have a cracking prospect who will learn as time goes by and become a valuable asset.'

Preece's brief interlude in the Premiership would spoosedly help bring added quality to an already potent attacking force. The previous season, Tony Ellis finished as top scorer with 19 goals, Andy Watson second with 15 - despite being injured for nearly half the campaign - and young James Quinn notched nine goals in his free role behind the front pairing.

Increased competition was something Quinn was looking forward to. 'If there is a space alongside them or even one of their places, then I don't mind!' he admited.

The Northern Ireland Under-21 and B cap obviously wasn't overawed by the pairing and it seemed he was earmarked to play a roving role behind the front two. Allardyce had at the time nothing but praise for the striker targeted by Liverpool the pevious season.

'Quinny's emergence in terms of the experience gained last term will hopefully stand him in good stead,' enthuses his manager. 'His finishing should improve this season and If it does, the big boys will keep watching him.'

The forwards may have hogged the limelight, but the Seasiders had other quality players at their disposal.

Micky Mellon, a midfielder acquired from West Brom in a £50,000 deal lthe previous season, was rated a bargain buy by many fans. Alongside him was homegrown Andy Gouck, who gave the midfield the battling qualities needed in a fiercely competitive division. At the back, Jason Lydiate (ex-Bolton) and Darren Bradshaw had hoped to continue their solid partnership at the heart of the defence.

Record buy Andy Morrison was especially hoping for an injury-free campaign after constant frustration last term. Signed as a central defender, his newfound role in front of the back four seemed to be his best position.

The squad is a lot stronger now that is was last year,' says Quinn, who believed they can only improve. 'Our chances of promotion must be greater with the players we've brought in.'

Manager Allardyce was equally optimistic about this term's prospects. 'We are back to three up and four down this season,' he says, 'but it will be tough. The teams who have come down from the First will be strong contenders, with Bristol City, Swindon, Notts County and Bumley all spending money last term. Carlisle and Walsall will be difficult sides to beat and I expect them to fare well. I'm hoping we can get off to a good start and stay right in there.'

The Second Division was wide open that season, and at odds of 20-1 the Seasiders seemed to be a good outside bet for promotion. If the ambitions of chairman, manager and players were to be realised, Blackpool thought they might yet finally bring the glory days back to Bloomfield Road.

The 1995/96 season went as planned until the end of March with automatic promotion on the cards and only 1 defeat in 22 league games however, a disastrous end of the season saw only 5 points from the last 7 games and Big Sam's side only reached a play-off spot. In the play-off a 2-0 win at Bradford City was followed by a spectacular 3-0 home defeat in the second leg.

Phil Brown recalled: "Losing that play-off semi was horrendous, I was on the bench in the second leg, and I had to come on and try to change the situation with about 20 minutes to go. "It wasn't the time for me to come on. It was tin hats time and we were getting all sorts thrown at us.

"We were 2-0 down, it was level on aggregate and we conceded a goal after I came on.

"We lost and I know for sure - because he's told me often enough - that it was the worst night of Sam's life.

Despite having guided the club to third in the Division Two table, Allardyce was sacked. Like most supporters, Brown feels the club made a mistake.

"He always refers to having been sacked from jail - because that's where Owen Oyston was at the time." added Brown.

"But Sam must have been beside himself. He still tells me how much that night affected him.

"Having not sampled management at that time, I couldn't imagine how he was feeling. I was feeling lousy, but for manager it must have been a thousand times worse.

"It must have been a really tough time for him and his family. As a manager myself, I now I understand that rollercoaster of emotions."

He recalls: "I'll never forget the backroom staff back then.

"Besides Sam in his first year as a league manager and myself in my first year as a coach, there was Mark Taylor in his first year as a physio.

"Mike Davies was coming to the end of his playing career and he came on board as reserve team coach.

"And by contrast there was Jack Chapman, who probably had 40 or 50 years' experience.

"We had meetings on Mondays, planning the future of Blackpool FC between us. They were really exciting times, very cut and thrust, and I honestly think to this day that Blackpool didn't realise what they had. it goes without saying.

"Maybe they were a little bit hasty getting rid of us. But that's the decision that was made and we all moved on."

It didn't feel like that at the time, though...

NB: Adapted from an original article written by Martin Booker and extracts also taken from an interview with Phil Brown which originally appeared in the Evening Gazette.