All Rhodes lead to Blackpool for Carlisle United and their fans today – where one of League One’s most established goalscorers lies in wait.
Some 2,000 Blues supporters will make the relatively short trip to Bloomfield Road to cheer on Paul Simpson’s side.
And the Blues face a serious test against a home side for whom Jordan Rhodes is a real threat in attack.
The experienced frontman has 11 goals already this season and Simpson says the Huddersfield loanee is just one of several players United must watch out for.
“I remember when he scored a hat-trick [for Brentford] against my Shrewsbury team when he was on loan from Ipswich,” Simpson said of the 33-year-old.
“His record speaks for itself.
“But I think they’ve got other good players. You look at the goalkeeper [Dan Grimshaw], he’s a good young keeper who came through the young England teams.
“You’ve got experienced centre-backs in people like Matty Pennington. They’ve got attacking wing-backs in CJ Hamilton and Owen Dale. I think Jake Beesley’s doing really well for them and the young lad [Karamoko] Dembele who’s a real talented player. They’ve got good players.
“We’ve got to make sure we go and stand up to the challenge. We believe we’ve got players who can compete in League One level but there’s no point in thinking it, we have to go and do it.”
Simpson made a personal check on his former club on Tuesday when he watched a much-changed Blackpool side defeat Barnsley in the Bristol Street Motors Trophy at Bloomfield Road.
He acknowledged League One’s eighth-placed team will be tough hosts – but reckons he has spotted areas where third-bottom Carlisle can hurt them.
“They’ve got a good style of play that Neil [Critchley] has got them playing with,” he added.
“But I’ve watched three of their games, and I watched them live the other night, and I think there are areas where we can cause problems.
“What I would say is if we play like we did at Reading then we’re going to be in for a tough afternoon, but if we perform like we believe the players are capable of, and have shown in patches that we’re capable of, we can make it a good afternoon for ourselves.”
Simpson has Joe Garner available today after the striker recovered from a deep gash to his leg in the 5-1 defeat at Reading last week. Blackpool are without Kylian Kouassi and Shayne Lavery while Ollie Norburn is close to a return.
Today’s game begins a cluster of short away trips for United, who also go to Fleetwood Town and Wigan Athletic this month.
A lively away-day atmosphere is guaranteed at Blackpool thanks to Carlisle’s sell-out travelling support, who have backed Simpson’s side in their numbers all over the country already in 2023/24.
“They’ve been fantastic, they really have,” said the manager.
“We’ve got to try and make it a similar sort of day that these numbers had at Bolton when we went there.
“That was a brilliant day for the supporters. And this could be a brilliant day if we go and perform properly.
“But it all comes down to the football – we’ve got to perform right. They’re going for a day out at Blackpool but it will be a really good day if the football’s right.”
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