BLACKPOOL's Jekyll and Hyde-style season continued with a much improved performance against Chesterfield on Saturday (March 28).

It was hard to believe that this was the same side destroyed by Fulham last week.

Let's not get carried away, the Seasiders have a lot of work yet to do, but this was a much healthier looking performance.

Those who thought a Tangerine side without Banks and Butler would be a disaster would have been pleasantly surprised to see Tony Caig and Julian Watts make confident debuts.

Caig was wearing tangerine colours for just eight minutes before he was tested.

Jason Lee found himself on the end of a perfect through-ball but Caig was quick to block his shot.

Chesterfield made the better start, with Clarkson and Carlisle called on to make last-ditch tackles and Caig to save on the line.

Blackpool's first goal came against the run of play on 14 minutes when on-loan striker Sturridge finally put his name on the scoresheet.

Phil Clarkson, back in winning form, played the ball into the right hand side of the box and Sturridge was the quickest to react, slotting the ball past Billy Mercer.

From then until the end of the half, it was the Junior Bent roadshow.

The winger was nothing short of spectacular, running the Chesterfield defence off the pitch.

He could have had a hat-trick in the space of ten minutes when first he placed Adam Nowland's well-timed cross just wide, Mercer managed to collect his second attempt and he was denied by the upright for the third.

And the upright proved a stumbling block for Pool again on 40 minutes when Nowland's solo run had the whole of the Chesterfield defence in a spin only to see his left-footed shot come back towards him.

Marvin Bryan, replacing hamstring victim Andy Couzens, was the instigator of the second goal.

He stormed from his own box to the halfway line before making an inch-perfect 25-yard pass to Sturridge.

He took the ball down the left before unselfishly passing for Clarkson to neatly score into the left corner of the net for a 2-0 scoreline.

The next 35 minutes saw mounting pressure from an increasingly confident home side.

Caig was again called on to make a last-ditch save and denied David Reeves from point blank range 12 minutes from time.

Jason Lee put Chesterfield back in contention on 80 minutes with an inch-perfect header down past Caig but the Tangerines were more than able to hold the points - and deservedly so.

Blackpool travel to Walsall on this Saturday.

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