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Ian Evatt hopes to make Saturday’s trip to Peterborough United memorable in more ways than one.
Wanderers will play their 5,000th league match this weekend, a milestone which has only previously been achieved by Burnley, Derby County, Preston North End and Wolves.
Looking to spoil the occasion, a Posh side which has come into good form since the return of Darren Ferguson as manager in January.
Whilst Evatt will have to contend with a number of absent players, including suspended pair Conor Bradley and Elias Kachunga, he feels there has been a confidence coursing around his whole squad in the last few weeks which will stand them in good stead.
“Peterborough will be a very tough game, one where we will have to be at our absolute best to get a result,” he told The Bolton News. “But the pleasing thing for me at the moment is that we are finding different ways to win football matches now. I think the mentality of the whole group has improved.
“Walking off the field (on Saturday) and speaking to Rico, games against Cheltenham have always been tight this last few years. They always make it difficult for us.
“We are dominating possession and trying to create in that type of game but sometimes you just have to wait for that moment to come along, and take it.
“The next one will be different again, but we have to find different solutions to get the three points.”
Wanderers, one of the founder members of the Football League, played their first league game on September 8, 1888, against Derby at Pike’s Lane – a game which kicked-off 30 minutes later than the 3.15pm scheduled time because the Rams turned up late.
Bolton’s Kenny Davenport famously scored the first-ever goal in the Football League, though Wanderers lost the game 6-3.
The 1,000th game arrived in January 1922, a 2-0 defeat at Chelsea’s Stamford Bridge.
Nearly 30 years later, Bolton played their 2,000th game, with Willie Moir, Nat Lofthouse and Harold Hassall (2) scoring in a 4-2 win against Newcastle United at Burnden Park.
By August 1976 Wanderers had reached the 3,000 mark, beating Leyton Orient 2-0 in their second game of the season courtesy of goals from Paul Jones (pen) and Steve Taylor.
And the 4,000th league game was an action packed affair, the Whites sharing six goals with Swindon Town at the County Ground on March 6, 1999. Mark Fish, Claus Jensen and Eidur Gudjohnsen scored the Bolton goals.
Wanderers will hope their 5,000th game is far less frustrating than their 4,999th – a 1-0 win against Cheltenham Town which is still being discussed among the fans for the sheer amount of time wasted on the day.
Including stoppage time – with nine minutes played across both halves – the ball was in play for a paltry 47 minutes, or 45 per cent of the total match.
“I looked at the possession stats and somehow we ended up with less,” Evatt remarked. “I can only imagine that is because when the ball is out of play or they are waiting to take throw ins or free kicks it is still their possession. It’s mad, crazy.
“It is one of those things that creeps up on us in football, time management, game management, and it’ll happen again, we know that. We just have to find the right solutions.”
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