Dave Jones was magnanimous in defeat on Saturday, facing a barrage of questions at a time while nerves were still raw for all associated with Cardiff City following the disappointment of defeat at Wembley.
"I wish Ian and Blackpool all the best, while we have to take it on the chin and try to bounce back," he said. "We'll live to fight another day. Ollie has got the prize. We went close but not close enough.
"I've been in finals before, having won them and lost them. I know the nicer feeling of the two, but we have to take it on the chin and bounce back. I'll sit down with the board and see where we go from here. We all know that we have to rebuild and start again."
It was a game that saw Cardiff start so well, but the response to going behind from Blackpool was immediate on both occasions, followed by a first half stoppage time goal that would eventually seal our fate.
On the match Dave said, "We made mistakes at vital times, and that's something that we have to put a stop to. In a game like this you shouldn't go ahead twice and then let them go up the other end and score straight away.
"Losing Jay was a blow, the free-kick for their first goal looked a little harsh. We had some good chances. With a bit more care in front of goal maybe, we hit the bar too.
"I could go on and on and on, but we just want to wish Olly and Blackpool all the best because they are the ones who are there and sometimes it doesn't matter how you do it. We will look at all of that, but now isn't the time and the place.
"We are all disappointed and it's an emotional game - the lads in the dressing room are all devastated. For us to build on this we will have to make decisions that are clear and precise, not based on emotions.
"I do feel for the fans because everyone has been brilliant this year. But with everything that's been going on off the field, it's a fantastic achievement.
"It was basically that we were not good enough on the day. But we are getting closer. I can't change what's happened now, but maybe I can next season. When you consider all that's been going on this season, Blackpool are probably a more stable club than us. They have a chairman who stabilised them.
"Hopefully now we can grow from here and it won't be on sandy ground it will be on solid ground. Last year we were knocking on the door and we got that little bit closer this time, but we did not go close enough."
