Crawley boss Scott Lindsey paid tribute to “new heroes” after his side began life back in League One with victory.
First-half goals from Rushian Hepburn-Murphy and Junior Quitirna earned a 2-1 win over Blackpool, who replied late on through substitute Ashley Fletcher.
Crawley went into the game with only two survivors from the side that beat Crewe in the League Two play-off final and Lindsey went out of his way afterwards to stress the identity he has built will remain exactly the same.
He said: “It’s a great start for us against a Blackpool side that finished only three points outside the play-offs, so it’s a good benchmark.
“I’m really pleased with the result and the performance as it shows we are capable of playing at this level.”
Lindsey heaped praise on midfielders Max Anderson and Cam Bragg and defender Josh Flint, who made their league debuts, and he added: “It’s never nice to see a group of players go out of the door.
“But I enjoy moulding fresh talent and our fans will enjoy watching new heroes.
“There were only two players surviving from Wembley, but the identity is exactly the same.”
Blackpool manager Neil Critchley felt the second goal from midfielder Quitirna was the key moment but was pleased with his team’s performance.
He said: “Crawley scored with their first attack, but we responded well, got on top again, but their second goal was the turning point – it was a big deflection.
“In the end it was the deciding factor. We came back and dominated for long spells.
“We were not aggressive enough sometimes, especially in the middle of the park.
“Crawley passed well and we didn’t respond as we should have done. Even so, we made them play a game they didn’t want to play in the second half,”
There was a crowd of nearly 5,000 for Crawley’s first third-tier game since 2015 and Critchley felt his men coped with the occasion.
He added: “When you are playing a team that has just been promoted you know the crowd will be behind them and build up momentum, but we managed that well.
“But the only disappointment for me is the result. It’s only one game, there’s 45 to go. For long periods I was pleased with what we produced.”
