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The hero of Wanderers’ miraculous escape from relegation has vowed to keep on playing for a good while longer.
Aaron Wilbraham - whose goal against Nottingham Forest last weekend secured Bolton’s Championship position for next season - is one of a dozen first teamers out of contract at the Macron.
The striker, who will turn 39 in October, had seen his first team chances restricted before his surprise inclusion on the last day.
But Wilbraham says his work on the training ground shows he is well capable of handling the workload and he has no plans to hang up his boots.
“I want to go to 40,” he told The Bolton News. “I definitely want to carry on - I mean, would you really want to stop after an experience like that?
“I don’t miss a single training day. I’m not one of those players who gets told he only has to train for a couple of days, and has bad knees or ankles.
“I never take days off if I am offered them because I want the lads in the group to know that they can rely on me. I don’t want them to see me as an older player who gets preferential treatment. I want them to know if they train hard, I’m training hard. If they do 10 runs, I’ll do 10 runs. Then the boys look at me and think ‘fair play’ and know when they play with me, they can trust me.”
Wilbraham was signed on a free last August from Bristol City as cover for Gary Madine but took time to prove himself to the Wanderers fans after missing pre-season with an injury.
“I always felt like I’d have a say in the season,” he said. “But I have to admit it was tough. I lost a bit of weight because I was a bit heavy when I came to Bolton. I’d had a problem with my knee last summer at Bristol, so I wasn’t in the best shape.
“I had to get fit in front of the fans. They probably thought ‘he doesn’t look the sharpest’ but I knew it would take a few months. It’s harder when you are not playing too, you can just sit there and eat a load of rubbish. But I kept myself going and it paid off.”
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Aaron Wilbraham - whose goal against Nottingham Forest last weekend secured Bolton’s Championship position for next season - is one of a dozen first teamers out of contract at the Macron.
The striker, who will turn 39 in October, had seen his first team chances restricted before his surprise inclusion on the last day.
But Wilbraham says his work on the training ground shows he is well capable of handling the workload and he has no plans to hang up his boots.
“I want to go to 40,” he told The Bolton News. “I definitely want to carry on - I mean, would you really want to stop after an experience like that?
“I don’t miss a single training day. I’m not one of those players who gets told he only has to train for a couple of days, and has bad knees or ankles.
“I never take days off if I am offered them because I want the lads in the group to know that they can rely on me. I don’t want them to see me as an older player who gets preferential treatment. I want them to know if they train hard, I’m training hard. If they do 10 runs, I’ll do 10 runs. Then the boys look at me and think ‘fair play’ and know when they play with me, they can trust me.”
Wilbraham was signed on a free last August from Bristol City as cover for Gary Madine but took time to prove himself to the Wanderers fans after missing pre-season with an injury.
“I always felt like I’d have a say in the season,” he said. “But I have to admit it was tough. I lost a bit of weight because I was a bit heavy when I came to Bolton. I’d had a problem with my knee last summer at Bristol, so I wasn’t in the best shape.
“I had to get fit in front of the fans. They probably thought ‘he doesn’t look the sharpest’ but I knew it would take a few months. It’s harder when you are not playing too, you can just sit there and eat a load of rubbish. But I kept myself going and it paid off.”
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