BOLTON ESCAPE IN TWO MAGIC MINUTES
BOLTON Wanderers celebrated a dramatic escape from relegation with two late goals that left manager Phil Parkinson and everyone else at the Macron Stadium in a state of near disbelief.
Defender David Wheater and 38-year-old striker Aaron Wilbraham scored in the 87th and 88th minutes to turn defeat into victory and send Barnsley and Burton through the Championship trapdoor instead.
After a nervous two minutes of injury time there was a joyous pitch invasion at the final whistle from fans who have seen their club go through administration, crippling debts, a transfer embargo and a change in ownership since their glory days under Sam Allardyce in the Premier League.
Parkinson, who led Bradford to a famous FA Cup win at Jose Mourinho’s Chelsea in 2015, said afterwards: ‘ It was a similar feeling to being on the pitch at Stamford Bridge, “Did it really happen?”
‘It was like that again because of the manner of our victory. It was surreal. This is so big for the club, I can’t tell you how important.
‘ We have competed in this division in unprecedented conditions. We haven’t spent one penny and sold our best striker in January (Gary Madine) to keep the club going. What drama, that is what football is all about.’
Bolton, who were promoted from League One a year ago, were minutes away from suffering an immediate return as they trailed 2-1, with Burton drawing against Preston at that stage.
Defender Wheater, one of the few survivors from Bolton’s Premier League era, was pressed forward as an emergency striker and scored his first goal of the season after 87 minutes with a finish from eight yards that looked slightly mis-hit.
Just 60 seconds later, Wilbraham — often barracked by Bolton fans this season — then stooped to head in Le Fondre’s cross for only his second goal in 27 appearances.
‘The team lack a focal point without him, they really do,’ said Parkinson, whose decision to stick with the veteran paid off. ‘ The supporters’ negativity towards Aaron is purely because he’s 38. I thought he was the best player on the pitch.’
At least one fan appears to have changed his mind now with Mark Yates tweeting during the game: ‘If Aaron Wilbraham scores the goal that keeps us up, I’m getting a tattoo of him on my leg.’
The nail-biting finale followed an afternoon of frustration for Bolton, with Wilbraham hitting the post in the first half with a free header.
The home side did break the deadlock with an instinctive finish from substitute Adam Le Fondre after 67 minutes but then collapsed as Forest hit back to score twice through Ben Osborn and Jack Colback. Both efforts from the edge of the box beat Mark Howard, a half-time replacement for injured keeper Ben Alnwick.
Though Forest had nothing to play for in one sense, they had wanted to help out one of their favourite sons, Burton manager Nigel Clough. They would have put Bolton to bed had England Under 19 striker Ben Brereton taken two close-range chances.
‘We wanted to respect the competition and I think we did well,’ said Forest boss Aitor Karanka, who wants signings to push for the top six next season. ‘ But they were fighting for their lives and when it’s like that, every ball is your life.’
For Bolton, simply staying in the Championship is a success, and they will want to take heart from a similar- sized club like Preston who have become competitive at this level.
‘This result means a lot because there are people in jobs around the training ground and the Macron Stadium, not just on the playing side, that can stay in work on the salaries they’ve been on this year,’ added Parkinson.
‘At the end, my assistant Steve Parkin said, “We’ve done it”. And I replied, “Are you sure?” I wanted to know the other games had finished. I think we’ll be having a few drinks — long into the night.’