BLACKPOOL'S campaign finally ended with a 1-1 draw against Chesterfield -- and many Tangerine followers could not have waited any longer for the season to end.

The Seasiders finished on a dismal run of 12 games without a win and dropped to end up in the bottom half of the table.

All eyes are now on Steve McMahon as he looks to replace the eight players departing this summer with some much needed quality.

The game itself was at least an entertaining one to take into the summer, although it would have been nicer to have grabbed the win.

Steve McMahon stuck to a similar mixture of youth and departing players. One particular deportee was Ian Hughes who to the dismay of many Blackpool fans will leave the club after five years.

He was given a well-deserved rapturous round of applause at the start of what would be his last game in tangerine.

Disappointingly, there was no Bloomfield Road farewell from John Hills, who wasn't even named on the bench.

Unlike their opponents Chesterfield had much more to play for than just pride. The Spireites had to get a better result than Cheltenham or face relegation to the third.

So it was no surprise to see the visitors look hungrier for the game in the first half.

Pool keeper Phil Barnes was having an awful time with his clearances but in the end it was a mistake by Richie Wellens which gave Chesterfield the lead.

Caught in the left-back slot, Wellens chose an awful pass across his own six yard box which was intercepted by Glynn Hurst.

Hurst's shot was well blocked by Barnes but John Douglas was on hand to thrash in the rebound from close range.

The Tangerines started the second half much better. Pool were rampant around the hour mark and Chesterfield keeper Carl Muggleton was single-handedly keeping the Spireites in the match.

But Muggleton could do nothing about a quick-thinking corner which resulted in the equaliser for Blackpool on 64 minutes. Quick-thinking Martin Bullock slipped the ball to the feet of Scott Taylor who guided a shot into the far corner.

Muggleton was again in top form to deny attempts at gaining the lead by a shot from substitute, Paul Robinson, and later a ricocheted effort from Ian Hughes.

But perhaps Blackpool's best chance of a winner was denied by the referee when what seemed the most blatant penalty of the season was turned down.

Sub Richard Walker was taken out by an awful lunge in the box but to the amazement of the Blackpool players and a furious Steve McMahon, the ref deemed the tackle fair and waved play-on.

The decision was made worse from a Blackpool point of view when, ten minutes later, Chesterfield were themselves appealing for a penalty and this time the ref got the decision right and awarded it.

A rare mistake from Stephen McMahon gave Mark Hudson the chance to go one on one with Barnes only for the Blackpool keeper to blatantly upend him for a certain pen.

But Barnes superbly redeemed himself with a wonderful tip onto the post from David Reeves' shot and Blackpool were let off the hook.

From the emphatic cheering at the away end of the ground it was clear that news had spread of a Notts County goal at Cheltenham which meant Chesterfield would stay up regardless of the result at Bloomfield Road.

Therefore Chesterfield looked quite comfortable to hang onto the lead and despite a few subs Blackpool rarely mounted any pressure either.

The game ended with the traditional, peaceful end-of-season pitch invasion and a brief re-appearance by the players of both sides, who thanked their fans for the support this season.

Blackpool 1-1 Chesterfield