It has been suggested that Blackpool's season starts on Saturday with the arrival of Bolton. Forget those awful defeats at Huddersfield and Reading, no need to dwell on the home defeats to Ipswich and Brentford and let's put all the off the field troubles behind us. The Seasiders season 2014/15 has been shortened to 30 games and there's the small matter of a 10 point gap between us and safety). Does that make you feel any more optimistic? Probably not.

The truth is that what has happened this season won't be forgotten for a long time. Too much has gone wrong for most fans to forgive and forget but before they start turning their backs on Lee Clark altogether, it may be worth thinking about what a relegation would bring. As fans we've enjoyed the status of top two tier football for 7 years now and few will want to return to the delights of Rochdale, Oldham and Chesterfield, not to mention FA Cup first round football and the Football League trophy. It was bad enough to lose our Premier League place and so let's not give our Championship status up without a fight. There's still 90 points to be won, nobody gets relegated in November and we have a group of fixtures coming up which will reflect where we are as a club.

The two week break has given Lee Clark a chance to assess his squad, bring in some new blood and get the players fitter. Some of the old problems still exist like the lack of a recognised left back, some would say a striker is still needed and you can even point to a lack of a commanding figure on the pitch to lead the team by example. However, Jamie O'Hara, Chris Eagles and Jonathan Legear certainly add some much needed options and few will know how Clark will play this one. You can imagine any announcement of John Lundstram will be greeted with howls of derision and hopefully he'll be the first name off the team sheet. The new players certainly have that extra bit of quality and experience but will they be able to deliver on the pitch?

With the two Oriol's conveniently still not fit, Cubero off in Costa Rica for a bit of sunshine and McMahon still suspended, Clark still doesn't have the luxury of a fully fit squad. Neil Lennon looks to be sorting Bolton out but whilst they may be well clear of Blackpool, they're still in the relegation mix up. To deny them three points may prove as useful as the Seasiders gaining three points. It's taken a third of the season for us to attempt to get to 10 points, maybe a win on Saturday, the slight closing of the gap to those above us and a much needed morale boosting victory may yet mean this season remains alive a bit longer.

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