Brett Ormerod: I'd come back to Blackpool

Brett Ormerod was a hero at Blackpool FC and rivals Preston North End, and after the season has finished he has mixed emotions about their situations.

At the seaside, those at Bloomfield Road have had a campaign to forget. They have been constantly in and out of the papers, and never for anything good. From the chairman suing fans, to manager after manager leaving, to players going AWOL, it was thought their relegation could not get any worse.

But Ormerod believes it could only be the start. “Looking at the club at the moment from the outside it is heartbreaking to see what is happening," he said. "I do strongly believe that things could get even worse if things don’t change.”

The 38-year-old had two successful spells with the Tangerines, and in the second he scored the goal which saw them promoted to the Premier League. While he is still playing in the North West Counties League with Padiham he won’t be making a third return to Bloomfield Road: “I am definitely too old to return as a player now.”

He added, “I would never rule out coming back as part of a management team though.” Pool fans would love to see one of their Wembley heroes back at the club to hopefully bring back some of the sparkle which has been lost.

While it is unlikely Ormerod will be making an appearance at the club anytime soon, another Wembley favourite has been linked with a return. Former manager Ian Holloway is currently 2/1 to be the next manager at the club, and Ormerod would not be surprised if that happened, saying, “I could see Ian Holloway returning but only if he was given certain assurances from the chairman.”

The 38-year-old striker is not the only one who believes this. Stoke City’s Charlie Adam thinks there is only one man for the job. “Ollie is the only one who can bring the love back to the club. He is the only one who can rally the troops.”

At the other end of the spectrum, Blackpool’s closest rivals have managed to leap frog them as they got promoted to the Championship via the League One playoffs. Having failed in the playoffs nine times in the past, the Lilywhites made it tenth time lucky beating Swindon 4-1 with Jermaine Beckford scoring a hat-trick. Ormerod played for Preston for three years and is delighted for the club’s success.

The striker said, “I think Preston fully deserved their promotion. They have had a wonderful season and it was a great end to it.”

After Padiham were relegated at the end of the season, Ormerod is now focusing on their promotion push next campaign.