Bolton Wanderers: Disappointing days in a lost season

Article by e-Bolton Wanderers Correspondent Alan Houghton

Follow e-Bolton Wanderers on Twitter!

The curtain has come down on what has been a hugely disappointing season for Bolton Wanderers. We started as one of the bookie’s favourites to get promoted and yet we spent most of the season recovering from the disastrous start and at one period looked like we might be getting out of the Championship but in the wrong direction.

The signs were there pre-season as we failed to beat any lower league opposition in the friendlies and the only striker who impressed, Marvin Sordell was loaned out to Charlton Athletic for the season. Alex Baptiste, Marc Tierney and Jermaine Beckford were brought in.

The season started promisingly at Burnley where we got a draw against one of the better teams but then, things went downhill rapidly. We didn’t register our first win in the championship until October when we managed to beat Birmingham City away in the eleventh league match of the season. We were hammered at Blackburn, Notts Forest and Brighton. We struggled at home, where we didn’t get our first win until Millwall obliged in the second week of November.

After the decent end to the previous season, the worst start of any Bolton Wanderers team for over a century was a huge shock. Many fans were calling for Dougie Freedman to go. Something had to be done and in October, three loan players arrived to give the team a much needed boost. Neil Danns, Liam Feeney and Kevin MacNaughton played with confidence, something the rest of the squad had lost completely. Their arrival coincided with the first good spell of the season and we went seven matches unbeaten. Sadly Liam Feeney had to return early due to financial misunderstandings when Millwall thought we should buy him. Joe Mason arrived from Cardiff City and in his first loan spell struggled up front on his own. Jermaine Beckford found his goal scoring touch but then promptly lost it after missing a last minute penalty at Middlesbrough. Matt Mills and Tim Ream formed a secure partnership at the heart of the defence, losing only once when they played together in the middle.

The loan players returned to their clubs at the end of December and our form plummeted again culminating in the infamous seven-one debacle at Reading. Neil Danns was brought back as was Joe Mason. Lukas Jutkiewicz arrived from Middlesbrough and provided what we had been missing all season, a target man up front. Suddenly, the rest of the team had someone to aim at, something not seen since Super Kevin Davies’ departure to Preston. Craig Davies followed Kevin Davies to Preston on loan to fund more incoming loan players. David Ngog briefly impressed during the January transfer window and secured his departure to Swansea, much to everybody’s, and not least Dougie Freedman’s relief. The Swansea manager Michael Laudrup was sacked the week after signing David Ngog, although there is nothing to prove the two events were connected.

Results began to improve and we only lost twice in the last fifteen matches. There were impressive wins over Watford, Blackburn Rovers and best of all, away at Leeds United. Alan Hutton and Liam Trotter joined the fold late on and we ended the season with a promising run of results.

However, it was too late to achieve anything. The fans had been singing “we’re not going down, we’re not going up” for weeks. The season ended with us never having been in the top half of the table. We finished in fourteenth place. We failed to beat any of the top seven teams, managing four only miserable draws. Our away record was better than our home record, where we only managed to win six matches all season. We failed to impress in either cup competition, losing to Tranmere Rovers and Cardiff City. The only two good spells were inspired by loan players. It feels like we are in the same position as last season. It feels like we lost a season.

So, what of the future? The jury is still out on Dougie Freedman. Turning the club around was never going to be an overnight job. He’s got the chance to get rid of the players he doesn’t want and bring in the players that he does. Chris Eagles, Zat Knight and Tyrone Mears have been released, easing the wage bill considerably. Hopefully buyers can be found for Keith Andrews, Craig Davies and Marvin Sordell, otherwise they will walk away for nothing at the end of next season. Dougie Freedman has already secured Neil Danns and Liam Trotter permanently. He has stated that he wants to do his business early and that he has agreed his recruitment plans with Eddie Davies and Phil Gartside. He managed to blood a few youngsters, like Oscar Threlkeld and Andy Kellett in the last few matches and he has had others out on loan at lower league clubs to gain experience. Josh Vela looks the most promising of these. Mark Davies will be back next season and Stuart Holden may be. There are unknowns like other clubs coming in for our better players such as Adam Bogdan, Tim Ream or Mark Davies and one of these may have to be sacrificed to fund incoming players. So, the close season should prove more interesting than the season just gone. It is imperative that we get off to a good start if we are to make the challenge for promotion that I expect next season. I’m not sure that we will quite make it next season but I would certainly back us for the following season.

© e-Football 2014 All rights reserved no part of this document or this website may be reproduced without consent of e-Football