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Almost exactly half of the senior football played by George Johnston will have taken place during 2022 wearing a Bolton Wanderers shirt.
This has been a breakout year for the former Liverpool defender, who stands to make the 100th appearance of his career against Derby County on Tuesday.
Voted Bolton’s young player of the year in May, Johnston has quietly become a fixture in Ian Evatt’s side, playing more minutes in the league than any other outfield player at the club during the last 12 months.
Improvement, says the 24-year-old, has been made across the board.
“It has been a good year for me, and I think it has been a good one for the club too,” he told The Bolton News.
“We went on a great run, didn’t we, and finished last season strong. It wasn’t quite where we needed to be in the end, there was a bit too much to do, but we had a good off-season and felt really confident coming into this one.
“I think we have improved. We just need to keep working on a few things and I am sure there will be more to come in the second half of this season.”
Johnston set himself the pre-season target of improving his own physical strength to better deal with the challenges of League One but, boasting a similar outlook to team-mate Conor Bradley, he has also become smarter to the demands of his position.
“I think physically I am more streetwise to what my opponents are doing and how I can win the duel against them,” he said. “I think the gaffer and the coaching staff have been massive for me in that because when I first came here I wanted to win everything – but sometimes against these 6ft 5ins dinosaurs up top you are not going to do that.
“Sometimes you have to be clever, win the ball back another way.
“I think, going forward, sometimes I think Geth (Jones) can be more effective on the other side than I am, so I’d like to improve what I do, be more of a threat down both sides.
“But I think overall it has been a good year of progress for me, I’m pleased with it.”
This season has been hard to define at Wanderers, who have held on stubbornly and impressively to a place in the top six despite having patches of disappointing form.
Traditionally under Evatt the club has improved after the New Year, and with plans to bolster the first team with a few January signings Johnston is determined not to allow league position to drop.
“The mood around the training ground has always been to make sure we are firmly around the play-offs come January,” he said.
“We have done well in the last couple – the squad has always been stronger – so we don’t want to be on the fringes of things, seventh or eighth, we want to be right in there to make sure we are in a really good place.
“We don’t feel we have played our best football this season. There have been a few glimpses, second half against Fleetwood and stuff like that, but it is exciting that we are in this position but feel we have plenty more to give.”
Extra competition, says Johnston, is nothing to fear.
Back in the summer when Wanderers brought in Jack Iredale from Cambridge United, it was discussed whether his grip on a regular first team spot would be loosened.
But on 15 occasions this season both Iredale and Johnston have started in the same side, with the versatile Australian utilised as a wing-back, so his advice to any team-mate worried about new arrivals would be to carry on regardless.
“We can’t control it – that’s all down to the gaffer and Chris (Markham),” he said. “We just focus on ourselves and what we do day-in, day-out.
“Over the summer we had Jack (Iredale) come in and he has done great. One of my main aims this season was to play as many minutes as possible and I don’t think I can really ask for much more, because if you are playing regularly at Bolton then the manager trusts you.
“There have been a couple of blips, I know that. It is impossible for everyone to be eight or nine out of 10 every week but I feel I have been consistent and I have got to try and continue that now for the rest of the season, keep pushing on.”
Eoin Toal’s arrival in the previous window added more defensive competition.
The Northern Irishman had to wait patiently for his chance in the side but since Ricardo Santos and Gethin Jones became unavailable through illness and injury, Johnston has been impressed with the way he has stepped into the side.
“It is a very tough thing to do, train for three or four months without playing and then come in and put in a performance,” he said. “You have to give him full credit and hopefully as time goes on we can lean on him like we do Rico. He has really filled a void for us.”
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