So we do like to be beside the seaside – and the Rovers fans’ day out on the coast ultimately proved a success.

The Pleasure Beach kindly offered half-price wristbands to Rovers fans intent on making a day of it, but the game itself proved enough of a rollercoaster ride, which thankfully ended in pleasure not pain, although it was cruel for the Pool.

After a decent start yet again when Rovers were gifted a goal, we reverted to type in throwing away a lead.

This has of course been a recurring theme.

Until a revitalised Brett Emerton popped up with that late winner to rock Blackpool, a comparison with Blackpool’s famous donkeys was going to feature prominently in this article.

“Revitalised” is an understatement when applied to Diouf the elder, who made a massive contribution.

His is a conversion akin to that of Lazarus. That strike was incidentally the first time this season we’d scored a goal in the last half-hour of a match.

Based on history, however, our confidence in regarding our Tangerine neighbours as Burnley in disguise was extremely misplaced.

In fact, in league clashes over the years Blackpool have positively towered over us.

Before Saturday, out of 21 previous meetings at Bloomfield Road, Rovers had won just one with 15 defeats.

The last time I was there personally was a Division Two clash in February 1978 ... and we were hammered 5-2, with a certain Bob Hatton bagging four goals for the Seasiders.

So that win, especially coming after the disappointment of our cup defeat at Villa (a phrase I’m getting heartily sick of repeating) illuminated a splendid day rounded off with a good night out at the Soul Event at King Georges Hall.

For those who stayed on and sampled the delights of a Saturday night in Blackpool I hope you all lived to tell the tale.

Meanwhile, our manager’s Nero complex has been surfacing yet again this week.

He is apparently supposed to have stated something along the lines of ‘there never has been and never will be another Sam Allardyce’.

This will undoubtedly be a source of great pleasure to Mr Wenger.

Sam may be right but I’d like to set him a little challenge which will really test his messianic credentials.

Alan Hansen seemed to me to be spot on in his summary of our team: “Rugged, determined and hard to beat” was his verdict.

Now if by next year the MOD pundits are describing us as “Attractive, exciting and hard to beat” I’ll be the first in the queue pushing for Sam to be knighted, canonised and voted the next England manager.

And if he doesn’t pull it off? Well “hard to beat” will have to do.