news-engine

'A bit of a keeper hater' - Blackpool boss makes brutal admission after man of the match display for ex-Birmingham City man Blackpool progressed to the second round of the EFL Cup with a 3-1 victory over Grimsby Town in their first outing of the 2026/27 season. Ian Evatt states he’s hard to impress when it comes to goalkeeper saves - but was happy to praise one heroic moment from Bailey Peacock-Farrell against Grimsby Town. The Seasiders claimed a 3-1 victory at Blundell Park in the opening round of the EFL Cup. Niall Ennis’ early opener gave the Seasiders the advantage in the tie, with Josh Bowler and Kylian Kouassi ensuring the win with second half goals either side of one from Harvey Rodgers. Ex-Birmingham City shot-stopper Peacock-Farrell was chiefly responsible for getting Evatt’s side through with a number of impressive saves, before being beaten in stoppage time. “I thought there was one ‘wow’ save in the second half which showed what a top keeper he is,” the Blackpool boss said. “I’m a centre back so I’m a bit of a keeper hater. They’re there to save them, and he’s in the team to save it. Most of them were ones he’d expect to make himself. “There was one in the second half that was a ‘wow’ save where you thought: ‘That’s Bailey, he’s a top, top keeper. “I’m not undervaluing Bailey in any way, because I love him, but that was the wow moment, and in terms of performance, he did what he needed to do.”