Kioso highlights the importance of increasing Town's points tally with Blackpool draw

Although frustrated with the 1-1 draw against Blackpool on Saturday, Town defender Peter Kioso knew that increasing the Hatters’ points tally could well prove crucial in the battle for a top six berth going into the final two games.

Having taken the lead inside two minutes through Elijah Adebayo, the hosts were pegged back early in the second half when Gary Madine netted a penalty following Dan Potts’ foul on CJ Hamilton.

The result was enough to ensure Swansea and Coventry could no longer overtake the Hatters, with QPR’s defeat at Stoke meaning Mark Warburton’s side also are now too far behind.

However, Town couldn’t secure a top six berth, with Millwall, Middlesbrough and Sheffield United all still within sight, along with Blackburn Rovers, who hammered Preston North End 4-1 on Monday night.

When asked for his reactions to the draw, Kioso said: “It’s a bit of both, the boys are frustrated in there as they know we could have shown better quality, but at the same time, we still got a point.

"We’re always on about increasing our points tally, the gaffer says it and the boys say it every week.

"We’ve done that again, we’ve increased our points tally and at the end of the day, what we’re trying to do, we’re still on the right track.

"So it’s just about staying on track, keeping our heads focused and making sure we concentrate on the next two games to get us over the line.”

With Blackpool safe from relegation, the Tangerines played with a real freedom at Kenilworth Road, as they threw men forward and with Madine upfront, always looked a threat.

Kioso continued: “Fair play to them, they played well.

"They got the ball down and played as much as they could, but I’m not surprised, we have something to play for, they don’t, so they can express themselves as much as they can.

"I’m not going to batter them, they’ve done what they needed to, but we know on a personal level that us as boys, we need to show better quality.

“The second half was a little bit of a weird one, it wasn’t as smooth as we wanted the game to be, but there’s loads to take.

"We’ve increased our points tally, so we know the quality could be better, that’s something we’re going to fix next game, but it’s still positives to take from the game.”

Adebayo’s goal, which took a deflection off experienced defender Richard Keogh on its way into the bottom corner was his 17th of an increasingly prolific season.

The top scorer did go off in stoppage time with a hamstring injury, but speaking about his team-mate, Kioso added: “Eli’s a great guy and a great player.

"I think everyone forgets how young he is as well.

"Eli is going to go on and be an even better player than he is now, but I think the most important thing is doing what he’s doing, concentrating on where we are now.

"That’s what he’s doing, week in week out he’s performing, that’s the most important thing.”