Eastbourne Borough can hold heads high - but Blackpool end their FA Cup run

Danny Bloor's side gave their all against the club who won the Cup in the 1953 but two goals from Gary Madine and a late third by Jerry Yates.

Viewers watching live on BT Sport will have been impressed at the way the Sports kept battling against Neil Critchley's team but there could be no complaints about the result on an afternoon when the league side carved out the majority of the clear chances.

Borough can hold their heads high - and be content with having earned more than £20,000 in prize money from this season's FA Cup, having come through qualifying round wins over Dorking, Sheppey and Dulwich Hamlet before this first round loss.

There was an early scare for Borough when Blackpool's Sullay Kaikai struck a post with a left-footed shot from the centre of the box after Jordan Lawrence-Gabriel teed him up.

Borough responded with some pressure of their own and Charlie Walker got a couple of headers in at goal but they didn't trouble the Pool keeper. Then Kaikai hit a post for a second time after a quick move down the right.

Borough's best chance of the opening stages came when James Ferry sent Greg Luer through with only keeper Chris Maxwell to beat but he was denied. Then home stopper Franco Ravizzoli did well to get in the way of a fierce drive by Kenny Dougall.

It was an end to end cup tie and Eastbourne were next to threaten when Walker forced a block from Daniel Grétarsson after Chris Whelpdale had set him up.

Just after the half hour mark arrived with the game still goalless, Madine was only just too high with a 30-yard effort for Blackpool - then Ravizzoli got down well to deny Yates as the visitors stepped up the pressure.

Madine and Yates were off-target with further efforts and Eastbourne were having trouble keeping hold of the ball for any length of time. Grétarsson couldn't get a header on target late in the half and the interval arrived with neither keeper having been beaten. HT 0-0

Blackpool began the second half as they'd ended the first - on the attack.

A blocked shot fell to Madine but he poked wide with only the keeper in his way. Then Yates was denied by Ravizzoli - and an offside flag.

Whelpdale's name became the first written in referee David Rock's notebook for a late challenge - there were no arguments with the decision. After committing another foul, Whelpdale was replaced a few minutes later by Charley Kendall.

Blackpool took the lead on 58 minutes. James Husband found room on the left and whipped the ball into Madine who took a touch before firing across Ravizzoli and into the far corner.

Bloor made a second change, introducing Joel Rollinson in place of Dean Cox with 25 minutes left. But Blackpool were soon 2-0 up and it was Borough's chief tormentor Madine with his own and his side's second after Yates headed the ball into his path.

It was a long way back from there for Borough but to their credit they kept battling. They won a free kick in a good area on the left but Hammond's low ball was held by Chris Maxwell. Minutes later sub Kendall broke through but he curled the ball just wide from the edge of the area.

Bloor made his final change with nine minutes left, bringing on Leone Gravata in place of Walker. The changes were not enough to give Eastbourne a way back into the game, though, and Luer picked up a booking as time ran out on the dream of a place in round two.

Blackpool sub Daniel Kemp also went into the book for a challenge on Gravata - but made up for it two minutes into stoppage time by setting up Blackpool's third, playing in Yeates for the goal that put the result beyond any doubt.

Eastbourne: Ravizzoli, Dickenson, James, Woollard-Innocent, Vaughan, Ferry, Hammond, Cox, Walker, Luer, Whelpdale. Substitutes: Kendall, Rollinson, Blackmore, Lambert, Gravata, Folarin, Glover.

Blackpool: Maxwell, Lawrence-Gabriel, Ekpiteta, Grétarsson, Husband, Hamilton, Dougall, Turton, Kaikai, Yates, Madine. Substitutes: Sims, Mitchell, Ward, Kemp, Antwi, Howe, Lubala.

Watch out for more from the game on this website later and in the coming days