Cardiff City 1-1 Blackpool: Joel Bagan earns point for Bluebirds

Joel Bagan had not scored a senior goal until last Saturday's 2-1 loss at Millwall, and now has three in three games

Joel Bagan's third goal in three games earned Cardiff City a draw with Blackpool in a blustery Championship encounter in the Welsh capital.

Playing with the wind in the first half, Blackpool led through captain Marvin Ekpiteta's 11th-minute header.

Bagan levelled for the much-improved home side early in the second half as he tapped in from fellow wing-back Cody Drameh's fine cross.

The draw keeps Blackpool in 15th place in the table, while Cardiff stay 19th.

As south Wales felt the residual effects of Storm Eunice, a swirling wind around Cardiff City Stadium made for tricky playing conditions, particularly when the ball was in the air.

Blackpool's opening goal was all the more impressive because of it, as Charlie Kirk showed excellent control to guide his volleyed cross into the penalty area, where Ekpiteta timed his jump perfectly and headed into the top corner.

Kirk almost doubled the visitors' lead soon afterwards when another cross caught a gust and had to be tipped over by Alex Smithies, as Blackpool goalkeeper Daniel Grimshaw had been forced to do from a cross by Drameh earlier in the match.

Cardiff's best chances of the first half came from set-pieces - with Jordan Hugill heading over from Will Vaulks' long throw - but it was not until the early stages of the second half that Steve Morison's side came to life.

The Bluebirds' equaliser was made by one wing-back and finished by the other as Drameh drilled a low ball across the box, where Bagan snuck in from the left to tap in.

Bagan, who did not have a senior goal to his name a week earlier, then almost scored his fourth in three games, but pulled his half-volley well wide.

With Cardiff back in the game and both sides battling with increasing intensity, tempers flared as tackles became more aggressive to raise the temperature on and off the field.

Blackpool were furious when they were denied a penalty on 65 minutes, as Josh Bowler fell under a challenge from former Blackpool loanee Ryan Wintle - only for referee Darren Bond to show Bowler a yellow card for simulation.

The teams' late attempts to find a winner were full of endeavour but lacking quality, with Vaulks volleying wide and Cardiff substitute Uche Ikpeazu having a header blocked.

Cardiff manager Steve Morison: "It was one that showed how far we've come as a group. We didn't start as intensely as we wanted to and they didn't really have any chances in the first half other than the goal.

"We dominated the ball but didn't hurt them too much - everything was slightly off - and then at half-time we made some tweaks and asked them to be more intense.

"In the first 20 minutes of the second half, I thought we were fantastic and it would have been great if we could have got one more goal. It was a 1-1 game and the group being disappointed with that is good."

Blackpool head coach Neil Critchley: "We were the better team in the first half, in control of the game and quite comfortable. In the second half I was disappointed.

"We knew there would be a reaction from Cardiff because I thought they would come out and play with a bit more intensity, which they did.

"We fought well, we scrapped well but it became an ugly game and that didn't really suit us. I think a point was a fair reflection of the game but the game was there to be won."

On Blackpool's second-half penalty appeal, Critchley said: "I thought it was a stonewall penalty. I thought at the time it was a penalty, I've seen it back and it's a penalty.

"Josh does what he does, drives into the box and ironically it's Mr Wintle with the contact in the back, and Josh goes to ground. Why would he [voluntarily] go to ground in that situation? He's about to shoot.

"Then he gets booked for it. It's an unbelievable decision. That was a big decision at a critical moment, a big decision the referee has got wrong in my opinion."