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Wanderers will hope their latest first-team graduate really does prove a chip off the old block.
George Newell became the latest young talent pushed into the senior domain by Jimmy Phillips and Peter Reid on Saturday, replacing the vastly more experienced Emile Heskey for the final half hour of the 1-0 victory over Hull City.
Football fans of a certain vintage may know the Formby-born teenager comes from famous stock, his father Mike holding a Premier League title medal with Blackburn Rovers, the highlight of a goal-laden career with the likes of Leicester City, Everton and Luton Town.
The physical similarities are there too, except Newell Snr believes his youngest son is ahead of him in terms of ability.
“He’s an absolute clone of me,” he told The Bolton News. “We were born on the same day and I can gauge where he’s up to at the minute, and if anything he’s ahead of where I was at his age.
“I was delighted for him to get a debut. I’ve got five kids and I’m proud of them all – but George is my youngest and I know what it’s like to do something you love for a living, so it was a special day for him.
“He knows he’s got a long way to go. He’ll have to work hard, get a little bit of luck along the way but he’s a good lad. He has got a chance.”
George was on the books of Everton from the age of 12 until a serious ankle injury forced him to rethink his career path.
“Everton offered him to stay six months beyond his scholarship to see how he got on after the injury but there had already been some interest from Bolton,” said his dad, who also managed Hartlepool, Luton and Grimsby Town. “He couldn’t play in the Under-18s and he didn’t see himself featuring for the Under-21s.
“I was very sceptical because I thought he needed to make sure he had somewhere to train and get himself right again.
“But George was adamant he wanted to give Bolton a go, and thankfully he’s been shown to be entirely right so far. They have been brilliant with him.
“Iain Brunskill has really looked after him, Andy Hughes as well before he left the club, and he’s coming along well at the moment.
“They have shown some faith in him and for him to get a game before the end of the season was brilliant.”
Wanderers’ graduation towards youth in the last few months has been born out of necessity, the club’s financial situation ensuring they must look closer to home for the mainstay of the squad next season.
But Newell believes young players like his son must be patient and learn their trade carefully before expecting regular football at senior level.
“I’m sure the third division isn’t where Bolton Wanderers want to be,” he said. “Things have been tough for the club recently and sometimes putting younger players into that situation isn’t always the best thing for their career or their development.
“Ideally, you want to be putting them into a team doing well, building them up, and I’m sure that’s what the coaching staff at Bolton will want to achieve in the future.
“George has had a great first year but it’s always a case of learning to walk before you run in football.”
If all goes well for father and son in the next few months, we could get the intriguing possibility of the pair facing each other next season.
Mike has worked with John Coleman and Jimmy Bell at Accrington Stanley for the last 18 months as a coach and if the Lancashire club beat Stevenage on Saturday, they would secure promotion to League One.
That would set up another local derby for Wanderers – and Newell believes it would be just reward for the job done at the Wham Stadium.
“It would be amazing,” he said. “But honestly, it’s no less than John and Jimmy deserve because I don’t think they get enough recognition for the job they’ve done here, apart from locally.
“There aren’t many resources or facilities and you know if you get a good player he’ll be nicked off you somewhere down the line but considering the club was on the verge of relegation when they came in, it’s quite amazing they could be playing against Bolton Wanderers next season.”
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George Newell became the latest young talent pushed into the senior domain by Jimmy Phillips and Peter Reid on Saturday, replacing the vastly more experienced Emile Heskey for the final half hour of the 1-0 victory over Hull City.
Football fans of a certain vintage may know the Formby-born teenager comes from famous stock, his father Mike holding a Premier League title medal with Blackburn Rovers, the highlight of a goal-laden career with the likes of Leicester City, Everton and Luton Town.
The physical similarities are there too, except Newell Snr believes his youngest son is ahead of him in terms of ability.
“He’s an absolute clone of me,” he told The Bolton News. “We were born on the same day and I can gauge where he’s up to at the minute, and if anything he’s ahead of where I was at his age.
“I was delighted for him to get a debut. I’ve got five kids and I’m proud of them all – but George is my youngest and I know what it’s like to do something you love for a living, so it was a special day for him.
“He knows he’s got a long way to go. He’ll have to work hard, get a little bit of luck along the way but he’s a good lad. He has got a chance.”
George was on the books of Everton from the age of 12 until a serious ankle injury forced him to rethink his career path.
“Everton offered him to stay six months beyond his scholarship to see how he got on after the injury but there had already been some interest from Bolton,” said his dad, who also managed Hartlepool, Luton and Grimsby Town. “He couldn’t play in the Under-18s and he didn’t see himself featuring for the Under-21s.
“I was very sceptical because I thought he needed to make sure he had somewhere to train and get himself right again.
“But George was adamant he wanted to give Bolton a go, and thankfully he’s been shown to be entirely right so far. They have been brilliant with him.
“Iain Brunskill has really looked after him, Andy Hughes as well before he left the club, and he’s coming along well at the moment.
“They have shown some faith in him and for him to get a game before the end of the season was brilliant.”
Wanderers’ graduation towards youth in the last few months has been born out of necessity, the club’s financial situation ensuring they must look closer to home for the mainstay of the squad next season.
But Newell believes young players like his son must be patient and learn their trade carefully before expecting regular football at senior level.
“I’m sure the third division isn’t where Bolton Wanderers want to be,” he said. “Things have been tough for the club recently and sometimes putting younger players into that situation isn’t always the best thing for their career or their development.
“Ideally, you want to be putting them into a team doing well, building them up, and I’m sure that’s what the coaching staff at Bolton will want to achieve in the future.
“George has had a great first year but it’s always a case of learning to walk before you run in football.”
If all goes well for father and son in the next few months, we could get the intriguing possibility of the pair facing each other next season.
Mike has worked with John Coleman and Jimmy Bell at Accrington Stanley for the last 18 months as a coach and if the Lancashire club beat Stevenage on Saturday, they would secure promotion to League One.
That would set up another local derby for Wanderers – and Newell believes it would be just reward for the job done at the Wham Stadium.
“It would be amazing,” he said. “But honestly, it’s no less than John and Jimmy deserve because I don’t think they get enough recognition for the job they’ve done here, apart from locally.
“There aren’t many resources or facilities and you know if you get a good player he’ll be nicked off you somewhere down the line but considering the club was on the verge of relegation when they came in, it’s quite amazing they could be playing against Bolton Wanderers next season.”
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