Luke O'Nien is relieved to be a teammate of Dan Ballard's this season rather than an opponent - after admitting there was just no way past the former Arsenal man last time they met. Northern Ireland defender Ballard joined Sunderland from Arsenal a fortnight ago, but the Black Cats came up against him when he was on loan at Blackpool the season before last.
They faced the Tangerines twice in the space of 10 days, and on both occasions Ballard helped the Lancashire club keep a clean sheet in 1-0 wins home and away. Ultimately, those results contributed towards Blackpool finishing third in the League One table - one place and three points above the Wearsiders - and going on to achieve promotion through the play-offs.
"We've been playing together in training this week out here in Portugal, I imagine because we were going to play together against Rangers [last Saturday]," said O'Nien, who partnered Ballard at centre-back against the Scottish side, before the game was abandoned at half-time due to a powercut. "I've built up a really good relationship with him.
