Former Ireland boss Mick McCarthy says the display by his Blackpool side in their FA Cup loss to Premier League outfit Southampton gives him confidence for the relegation battle ahead.
n his first game in charge, Blackpool exited the competition with a 2-1 loss away to the Saints, where Gavin Bazunu was rested by Southampton manager Dave Jones as veteran Willy Caballero played in goal.
“I’m encouraged by the display. I thought we played well, we were organized. I was pleased with the shape of the team,” McCarthy said after the loss as he prepared for his first league game.
“I said to the lads you can’t affect the result in the dressing room and you don’t know what’s going to happen because it could be a worldie that beats you, it could be a decision, it could be a mistake but what you can affect is the performance.
“I’ll take that performance, poor goals were conceded, the wall splitting was unforgivable for me. We’ve let people run and we’ve not done our jobs probably so that isn’t good so we’ll seek to address that but everything else in the game I was pleased with.
“There’s a lot to work on there, but first and foremost that graft, that endeavour, that organization was there, I thought the shape of the team was good.
“I’m disappointed we didn’t come away with a draw and a replay but it’s given us something to think about for the next 19 games, something to encourage us for sure,” added McCarthy, who handed a start to Irish players Andy Lyons and CJ Hamilton.