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Wanderers came from behind to earn a point for the second time in as many games following a 1-1 draw with Portsmouth at the UniBol.
The visitors took the lead through Aiden O’Brien’s close-range effort early in the second half but the Whites hit back through Kieran Sadlier’s emphatic penalty.
Ian Evatt made three changes from the side that drew over the weekend, with Declan John returning from injury and Kyle Dempsey and Jon Dadi Bodvarsson also coming into the side in place of Will Aimson, MJ Williams and Elias Kachunga.
The opening 45 minutes was an even affair, with both sides enjoying possession in dangerous areas but ultimately struggling to find the final pass.
The first chance fell to Wanderers when Dion Charles found John in space in the box, but the Welshman failed to hit the target.
Sadlier, who was back on the right flank, then did well to get a cross in but Charles’ scuffed his shot and it was simple for Gavin Bazunu to deal with.
At the other end, Michael Jacobs had an effort blocked after some good hold-up play by George Hirst.
The forward caused the Bolton backline a few problems in the early stages as the visitors sent plenty of long balls his way.
Jacobs then found Sean Raggett with a deep free kick towards the far post but the defender’s header landed in the arms of James Trafford.
Hirst then sent an acrobatic volley over the bar after Wanderers had failed to deal with Joe Morrell’s in-swinging corner.
Sadlier then delivered an inviting low cross but Bazunu did well to cut out the danger, with a couple of Bolton forwards lining up to shoot.
Afolayan was then challenged on the edge of the box but the ball broke to Bodvarsson, who couldn’t keep his shot down.
Just after the half-hour mark, Marcus Harness drove forwards and tried his luck from distance but his strike wasn’t troubling Trafford.
Then came the biggest chance of the half, with Bazunu making a superb stop low to his left to deny Afolayan from close range after some good work by Sadlier, before Charles sent the rebound wide from a tight angle.
Bodvarsson then went for goal with a clever flick at the near post, but it hit a defender and fell to Bazunu.
Aaron Morley also had a decent chance on the stroke of half time after some good pressure by Charles to force an error, but the midfielder fired over from the edge of the box.
Wanderers were forced into a change at the break, with Will Aimson replacing captain Ricardo Santos in defence.
Portsmouth went in front early in the second half when O’Brien slotted home form close range after getting on the end of Harness’ cut-back.
The Bolton bench felt there was an offside in the build-up but the goal was given despite Evatt’s protests.
And Cowley’s men nearly doubled their lead moments later when Clark Robertson found space at the far post and sent a header across goal, but Trafford made a decent stop before the Whites managed to clear their lines.
Evatt’s men seemed to be missing Santos’ commanding presence at the heart of defence but needed to adapt quickly if they were to get something from the game.
Bodvarsson then went down in the box after battling with a defender but his appeals were waved away by referee Marc Edwards.
Wanderers were then caught out by a quick counter attack, which resulted in Trafford making a fairly comfortable stop to keep out Hirst’s effort.
Charles then tried his luck from a tight angle but Bazuna made another smart stop to deny the Northern Ireland international, and it started to feel like the next goal would be crucial.
Midway through the second half, Morrell found space on the left flank and his shot fell to Jacobs who was arriving late on the edge of the box, but George Johnston made a brave block to deny the Welsh international.
Harness, who was lively throughout for the visitors, then sent in a decent cross from the right but Trafford did well to anticipate the danger.
The Whites were then dealt another injury blow when Afolayan was forced off, with Elias Kachunga coming on in his place.
But the substitute made an immediate impact, winning a penalty after a foul from Raggett as Evatt’s men were handed a lifeline with 15 minutes to go.
Sadlier made no mistake from the spot, finding the bottom corner with an emphatic strike that gave Bazunu absolutely no chance.
Kachunga then dragged an effort wide of the post after a good run as Wanderers searched for a winner.
In the final stages, substitute MJ Williams had a curling effort saved by Bazunu after combining with Charles on the edge of the box.
Carter then had Trafford scrambling with a thumping strike from a tight angle but it flew just wide of the post.
The Whites are now unbeaten in their last three league matches and are back at the UniBol on Saturday afternoon as they take on promotion hopefuls Sheffield Wednesday.
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