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Wanderers edged past Morecambe with a slender 1-0 win at the UniBol – but Ian Evatt insisted he was sitting comfortably in his seat.
Suspended and watching from the directors’ box, the Bolton boss was happy to see his side score first against the Shrimps through Conor Bradley.
And though there were a few nervous moments later on when the Whites failed to capitalise on their domination, Evatt says the result was never in serious doubt.
“I think it was exactly what I predicted it would be like in the pre-match press,” he said. “They always make it difficult, that low block is really challenging to break through. Chances were limited but the most important thing was we got that first goal. After that we controlled it.
“We had one or two opportunities, moments where we could have probably passed with a bit more detail in the final third and then Baka had a big chance.
“Then the last 10 minutes you get a bit nervous. But other than the one set-play where we didn’t mark properly, I don’t think they created anything of note. I don’t think Traff has had a lot to do. I thought we managed the game superbly well.”
Wanderers have now kept three straight clean sheets in the league and the defensive organisation was one of the aspects that most pleased Evatt on the night.
“I thought the back three managed it superbly well,” he said. “Will stepped in and was magnificent. Young Conor just keeps going from strength and strength.
“So a good team performance on the back of a difficult Saturday - 60 minutes with 10 men in that heat.
“To come out and show that grit and determination to see the game through was excellent. Now we have got a big week coming up.”
Evatt made five changes to the side that drew at Port Vale – but insisted he had planned for them way before Saturday’s sunshine-soaked goalless draw.
“I am pleased now we have won the game because I know what everybody is like out there and if we don’t win I’m going to get slaughtered, if we do I’m a genius!” he said of the changes. “As I have said many times, I trust them all to step in and play the way we want to play. Today has been no different. The ones that came in did really well. A good win, a hard-fought win but onto Saturday.”
A crowd of more than 17,000 packed into the UniBol to see Bolton climb to fourth.
“It is absolutely brilliant that our fans have come on a Tuesday night and shown the players their support. It makes a big difference to us. Hopefully, it is reciprocated with how we are performing and the results we are having at the moment. But it is still early days, we have got a long way to go.”
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