A SECOND HALF strike from John Hills knocks Cardiff off the top of the table and revitalises Pool's promotion campaign.

After the disappointment of QPR last Monday, Pool put on one of their best performances this season, showing they can compete with the best of the division.

Goalscorer Hills was the official man of the match on the day but in fact the award could have gone to any number of players in Tangerine shirts.

The defence, in opposition to one of the best attacking forces in the division,stood strong and never looked threatened even when they had to scrap their way through a late barrage.

On-loan defender Peter Clarke made highly-rated Welsh international Robert Earnshaw look pretty normal, keeping the striker under-wraps the entire game.

In midfield, Pool showed much better promise, passing with precision at times and tracking back to help stop the many Cardiff counter-attacks.

Up front the partnership of John Murphy and Scott Taylor could have made the game more comfortable if their finishing was improved but nevertheless neither of them stopped working the entire game.

The game itself was very entertaining with end to end action throughout. Pool's best chances of the first half came from the two strikers Murphy and Taylor.

On seven minutes Dalglish centred for Murphy who could only head over when he was all alone in the box. Then on 35 minutes somehard work from Hills resulted in Taylor being put through on gaol by Murphy.

But like his strike partner Taylor failed to make the chance count and it was easy pickings for keeper Neil Alexander.

At the other end didn't start threatening until there 12th minute then a couple of corners sprung the Welshman into life and got the 1,600 away support into full voice.

During the rest of the half the visitors came closest with two free kicks from Graham Kavanagh. The first, on 26 minutes whistled past Phil Barnes' left post and the second ten minutes later was parried by Barnes and scrambled clear.

The first five minutes of the second half weren't promising from a Blackpool point of view. Cardiff seemed to have received a roasting at half time as they came out with a higher tempo and hunger for the game.

But just as the visitors began to grab a hold on the game, Hills got that vital opener. It started from a counter attack from Paul Dalglish on theright hand side.

He squared the ball towards Murphy in the centre of the field but instead of receiving Murphy dummied for Hills who had raced down the left hand side.

Hills charged towards the by-line where everyone including the Cardiff keeper was expected a cut back to Murphy or Dalglish in the box. But Hills' cross deflected of a trailing leg and somehow ricocheted straight into the bottom corner.

Aside from a long range effort from Jaszczun it was all Cardiff from then on. But despite the Welshmen having the lions share of possession, Pool were never really in danger.

The nearest Cardiff got was when Robert Earnshaw twisted and turned in the box to create room for shot. But it was one of those days for the Welsh striker and his subsequent effort ballooned over the bar.

After an anxious three minutes of injury time, Bloomfield Road erupted in delight at the sound of the final whistle.

Pool maintained and broke two records with the win - making sure 34-year unbeaten run against Cardiff on home soil continued and breaking Cardiff's unbeaten away record during this campaign.

Blackpool 1 Cardiff 0