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I can still remember the moment Premier League relegation came into sharp focus.
It was not at Stoke City’s Britannia Stadium, even though that is where the act itself played out in May 2012, it was a week earlier when Owen Coyle’s Wanderers lost a two-goal lead against West Brom.
The game itself had been a poor one. Martin Petrov had put the Whites ahead and Billy Jones scored a comical own goal, triggering strains of Great Escape from the terraces around the (then) Reebok Stadium. Even when Chris Brunt pulled one back you couldn’t honestly see Roy Hodgson’s side getting back into it.
And then, bang!
Djibril Cisse scored a goal to put QPR ahead against Stoke City, news which reverberated in nervous whispers around the stadium about a minute before James Morrison poked in the equaliser for the Baggies. In the space of 60 seconds the mood shifted from joy to dread. And given what happened in the intervening years, I would wager there have been few more costly minutes in the grand history of Bolton Wanderers.
You can debate the Stoke game, and decisions made by Chris Foy all day long. The real damage was done on home turf. Had Coyle shored up defences or experienced players taken charge on the pitch to see out the game, the season could have ended very differently the following weekend in the Potteries.
Worryingly, I had the same feeling of trepidation watching Wanderers during the second half against Millwall on Tuesday night.
Thankfully, this time, there is more time to regroup. Four defeats in a row have certainly made things more tense and nervous than they needed to be – but survival is still very much within reach, and will not be decided one way or another at Oakwell this afternoon.
Before the international break Phil Parkinson was doing an interview on the touchline at Sheffield Wednesday when someone suggested his team was “nearly safe” after gaining a point which preserved a six-point gap on the bottom three. The manager shot said journalist a look which could have stripped wallpaper.
Perhaps after beating Aston Villa the players had similar thoughts? Other teams seemed to be in crisis and that finishing line did not appear to be too far away.
With any luck the frustration which poured out of the Macron stands at the final whistle on Tuesday night will have re-focussed minds a little. For the first time in a long while you could detect a real anger in the air, and it was understandable at the time.
In the days after the Millwall defeat it seems everyone has been looking for someone to blame. But there is no one reason why results have gone awry and I am not sure it is a particularly healthy mentality with four games to go.
Whether it is the manager, Parkinson, the chairman , Ken Anderson, or the players - the success or failures of everyone involved will be judged on whether this club stays in the Championship, nothing more.
Wanderers can take charge of their destiny this afternoon at Barnsley and ensure in years to come we are not talking about the season they worked so hard to rectify a nightmarish start, only to blow it. They can be remembered as the team which beat 1,500/1 odds. Now is a time for calm minds and strong hearts.
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It was not at Stoke City’s Britannia Stadium, even though that is where the act itself played out in May 2012, it was a week earlier when Owen Coyle’s Wanderers lost a two-goal lead against West Brom.
The game itself had been a poor one. Martin Petrov had put the Whites ahead and Billy Jones scored a comical own goal, triggering strains of Great Escape from the terraces around the (then) Reebok Stadium. Even when Chris Brunt pulled one back you couldn’t honestly see Roy Hodgson’s side getting back into it.
And then, bang!
Djibril Cisse scored a goal to put QPR ahead against Stoke City, news which reverberated in nervous whispers around the stadium about a minute before James Morrison poked in the equaliser for the Baggies. In the space of 60 seconds the mood shifted from joy to dread. And given what happened in the intervening years, I would wager there have been few more costly minutes in the grand history of Bolton Wanderers.
You can debate the Stoke game, and decisions made by Chris Foy all day long. The real damage was done on home turf. Had Coyle shored up defences or experienced players taken charge on the pitch to see out the game, the season could have ended very differently the following weekend in the Potteries.
Worryingly, I had the same feeling of trepidation watching Wanderers during the second half against Millwall on Tuesday night.
Thankfully, this time, there is more time to regroup. Four defeats in a row have certainly made things more tense and nervous than they needed to be – but survival is still very much within reach, and will not be decided one way or another at Oakwell this afternoon.
Before the international break Phil Parkinson was doing an interview on the touchline at Sheffield Wednesday when someone suggested his team was “nearly safe” after gaining a point which preserved a six-point gap on the bottom three. The manager shot said journalist a look which could have stripped wallpaper.
Perhaps after beating Aston Villa the players had similar thoughts? Other teams seemed to be in crisis and that finishing line did not appear to be too far away.
With any luck the frustration which poured out of the Macron stands at the final whistle on Tuesday night will have re-focussed minds a little. For the first time in a long while you could detect a real anger in the air, and it was understandable at the time.
In the days after the Millwall defeat it seems everyone has been looking for someone to blame. But there is no one reason why results have gone awry and I am not sure it is a particularly healthy mentality with four games to go.
Whether it is the manager, Parkinson, the chairman , Ken Anderson, or the players - the success or failures of everyone involved will be judged on whether this club stays in the Championship, nothing more.
Wanderers can take charge of their destiny this afternoon at Barnsley and ensure in years to come we are not talking about the season they worked so hard to rectify a nightmarish start, only to blow it. They can be remembered as the team which beat 1,500/1 odds. Now is a time for calm minds and strong hearts.
Source