Swansea City 3 Blackpool 6

Blackpool blitzed Swansea with four goals from Andy Morrell to cement their play-off place but ruin City's own top-six hopes.

With both sides still harbouring hopes of a final day flurry to the season, the contest started with expected gusto.

Blackpool could have enjoyed a dream start in their unlikely pursuit of automatic promotion when Wes Hoolahan's ball put Morrell in with half-a-chance, only for his poke goalwards to roll wide of Willy Gueret's far post.

But it was the hosts who got the opener they so desperately needed when a free-kick from Andy Robinson on 14 minutes was not effectively dealt with by the visitors and eventually, following a neat cross from Lee Trundle, Izzy Iriekpen headed past the stranded Joe Hart.

But Blackpool bounced back 11 minutes later when Hoolahan and Morrell combined again to cause problems, this time the former Wrexham and Coventry man able to finish to get the leveller.

And Simon Grayson's side took a deserved lead on 33 minutes when Parker caught Gueret from all of 25 yards after Adrian Forbes had put the striker through.

It had looked like the Welshmen were dead and buried but Swansea got the start to the second half which was vital to their hopes when Robinson's corner was not cleared once more and Tom Williams headed back into the box, allowing Trundle to turn and shoot home with just two minutes gone following the restart.

But Trundle missed a glorious chance to retake the lead just two minutes later, Keith Southern fouling the striker only for the club's top scorer to send the goalkeeper the wrong way but hit the right post.

Still Swansea got the goal they were chasing when Robinson's free-kick was again not cleared and Iriekpen was on hand to turn the ball home among the scramble.

But the game swayed back to Blackpool soon after, Shaun Barker's deflected shot coming back off the woodwork into the path of Morrell who headed home his second on 58 minutes.

And three minutes later he picked up his hat-trick when stretched Swansea were unable to stop Morrell converting from a tidy Blackpool build-up, Parker completing the rout a minute from time from long-range.


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