Ian Evatt accuses Blackpool of having mental weakness in difficult moments

Ian Evatt accused Blackpool of being mentally weak in difficult moments after they fell to a 4-1 League One defeat against AFC Wimbledon at the Cherry Red Records Stadium.

The Dons went 2-0 up thanks to goals from Ryan Johnson and Matty Stevens. The visitors thought they had discovered a way back into the game after Niall Ennis found the back of the net with a delightful chip.

However, Zack Nelson and Omar Bugiel scored to secure all three points for the hosts.

Blackpool are now in the relegation zone on points difference and Evatt believes his side are making a habit of capitulating when times are tough.

“That has been a theme for us, it was the same at Lincoln the other week,” he said. “We were in the game, really competitive and we have a few moments of madness.

“This is a theme, when things go against us, we are very mentally fragile, we end up conceding and we can’t reset.

“We have spoken about it, we have had lots of honest conversations about it, but the same thing keeps recurring.

“We have to do something different – it was Groundhog Day, really.

“We just didn’t give ourselves a chance in the game. We got the goal, we were in the ascendancy and it was us trying to push.

“Then, when we are trying to open the game up in the last few minutes, we concede another awful goal from a wayward pass.

“Confidence goes, everything else goes and we end up conceding a fourth.”

The win means the Dons are now just six points off a play-off place.

Johnnie Jackson says his side wants to see where their recent run of good form can take them.

“I think you have to be realistic,” he said. “We went on a tough run and we got closer to the bottom four, but we always had a decent buffer because we picked up a lot of points early.

“Obviously, you need to reverse the run and we have done that.

“We’re putting markers down every week, but we haven’t achieved anything yet.

“I just keep talking to the boys, we need to keep pushing hard, keep delivering performances like that and see where it takes us.

“It was really good, we showed different sides to us again and we showed some real quality to score four goals.

“It was always tough. There were moments where we had to dig in as well.

“The scoreline is going to read 4-1, but that doesn’t tell the tale of the game because for a long time that was up in the air.

“We had to defend and put our bodies on the line as well.”