Stoke boss  Tony Pulis blasted referee Mike Pike after his late arrival forced the kick-off against Blackpool to be delayed by 30 minutes.

Leon Cort grabbed a late equaliser to earn a 1-1 draw that kept Stoke on top of the Championship after Ben Burgess had fired Blackpool ahead but afterwards Pulis vented his frustration at Pike.

The Seasiders team coach was also caught up in the heavy traffic after a serious accident on the M6 caused miles of tailbacks.

But Pulis believed Pike, who lives in Cumbria, should have stayed in Stoke on Friday night to make sure he was at the ground in good time.

He said: "It's a serious lack of professionalism by the referee and I'm amazed. He should have used his expenses and stayed here overnight.

"He chose to travel down the busiest road in the country on the day of the game during a holiday period. Astonishing.

"I had to drag my players in from the warm up, we were all sitting around for half an hour, and then I had to send them out again."