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Conor Bradley won’t waste time checking results elsewhere this weekend.
After Sheffield Wednesday, Bolton do not play again in League One until April 7 at Exeter City, by which time a lot will have changed in the table.
Seventh-placed Wycombe face Barnsley at home on Saturday, travel to Charlton and host MK Dons in that period, which gives them ample opportunity to claw back the three point cushion the Whites currently hold.
Bradley will be away with Northern Ireland hoping to feature against San Marino and Finland before the Papa Johns Trophy final, alongside team-mates Dion Charles and Eoin Toal.
“I just try and ignore it – chuck the Xbox on and keep my eyes off it,” he told The Bolton News.
“What we do over the next nine games has to be better than what the rest do, that’s all that matters. We can only focus on ourselves.”
Bradley was one of the few players who escaped major criticism after the defeat to Ipswich on Saturday but the Liverpool loanee has reflected on his own form and admitted he too must improve as the season draws to a close.
Morale has taken a hit during a spell where Bolton have taken one point from an available nine and dropped to sixth spot in the table, and Bradley admits it won’t fully return until the team puts in a performance which matches their high standards.
“It’s nearly impossible,” he said. “Confidence is a hard thing to get, it comes and goes throughout the season but mainly we just need to trust each other a bit more, play the way we were doing. I think it will come sooner rather than later.
“We were disappointed on Saturday and debriefed it all Tuesday but really we just wanted to put it all to bed.
“You have to learn from the things we didn’t do on the day, the passing patterns, but I feel like we have moved on and I’d hope we can put it to rest on Friday night.”
After qualifying for the Papa Johns Trophy final at the end of a hectic February, Wanderers have looked less effective than they had been at the turn of the year.
Despite the difficulties, Bradley is still enjoying his time at the UniBol and is confident the team can still achieve something this season.
“It has dropped a little bit but we need to get back to playing well, putting in good performances and then the results will come from there. We want to put it right.
“We were probably all knackered after the (Accrington) game, it was draining because there had been so much emotion, but to be honest I don’t think it has cost us. We have hit a little blip but I think we can bounce back.
“We know it will be tough at Sheffield Wednesday, they are 20-something unbeaten, and people might be writing us off but we will go and do the best we can and hopefully get a positive result.
“It probably takes a bit of pressure off us but we still want to go and win the game, we definitely believe we can win it.
“I’m still loving it. I feel like I thrive under pressure, so I am fine.
“I knew coming here that there would be ups and downs. I obviously hoped for more of the ups and the last few weeks have been tough but you just have to get over it and come out the other side.”
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