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Will Aimson says he has enjoyed being Wanderers’ Mr Fix It this season.
The dependable defender, picked up last summer after a spell with Plymouth Argyle, has played alongside virtually every permutation of centre-back in the Bolton squad.
His versatility has proven especially useful after Gethin Jones was given compassionate leave following the sad passing of his mother Karen, and Aimson was with the full squad, coaching staff and chairman, Sharon Brittan, yesterday to attend the funeral in North Wales.
Aimson has started seven of Wanderers’ last 10 league games and but has shown impressive professionalism as he filled in numerous roles and positions.
“I have had to be patient at times, which is what happens when you have got this type of strength in the squad,” he said.
“You have to be ready. You don’t know what is around the corner and you don’t know if you are not in the team when you might be back in there.
“I want to play every game I can. But at the same time I understand we have got a lot of strength in depth, so there are times when you have to be more patient.
“With the run of games we have had, a lot of Tuesdays, you can be in and out a little bit, so you have got to stay on top of everything, keep focussed and stay concentrated.”
Wanderers look to respond from last weekend’s disappointment against Aimson’s former club with a short trip to Crewe, where the defender will be given nearly 2,300 reminders why he is happy to now call Bolton home.
“I am really enjoying it here,” he told the club. “The boys and the staff, I have really taken to them well. It is one of the biggest clubs I have played for and you really feel that when you see the attendances and the travelling support every week.
“Even the amount of fans we took to Gillingham was unbelievable and it really gives you that incentive when you walk out on the pitch.”
Aimson has good footballing heritage in the North West, with his grandfather, Paul, a player with Manchester City and Bury in the 1960s.
Sadly, Paul passed away a few years before his grandson began playing for Eastleigh, quickly joining Hull City and starting a professional career which would also take him to Gigg Lane, via Blackpool.
“He sadly passed away and I was gutted he never had a chance to see me play at professional level,” Aimson said of his grandfather.
“He wouldn’t miss a game when I was a kid growing up but it is gutting for him not to be able to see me play now in stadiums like Bolton’s, with the fans we get.
“It’s the old saying, I feel like he is looking down on me and he definitely would have been proud.
“He is always in my thoughts and always in my family’s thoughts.
“He was a big influence. I actually used to play up front until I was about 14 and he would argue with my dad over what position I should be playing.
“Maybe my dad (Gary) made the right call putting me to the back because it hasn’t turned out too badly.”
Dorset-born, Aimson has grown accustomed to living away from his south coast roots, now in his 10th year as a professional.
“Since leaving Eastleigh at 17 I have been up north ever since, really – touring the M62 from coast to coast,” he said.
“Being back down at Plymouth was nice. It was the first time I had really been able to get home quite frequently and see the family.
“But I do like it up here. I’m used to being up here. I have got a lot of friends I have met in football up here so I don’t feel too far away from home.”
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