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Wanderers will be bringing along a few home comforts when they face Plymouth Argyle in the Papa Johns Trophy final.
After winning a virtual coin toss Ian Evatt’s side will take the East ‘home’ dressing room and wear their famous white shirts, with Plymouth changing to their third kit of mint and grey.
Furthermore, Wanderers’ owners will be kitting the dressing room out in exactly the same graphics and branding as the players are used to at the University of Bolton Stadium in an effort to make them feel as relaxed as possible.
Speaking to The Bolton News, Evatt explained that he also called in a favour from Brentford boss Thomas Frank to use their training facilities before the final.
“We have mapped out what we want to do,” he said. “I played at Wembley a few times and one of the things I think is really important is that the players get a chance to get a feel for the stadium before the game. You can’t just rock up in front of 70,000 fans at Wembley and be startled in the lights, especially as we have got some younger players.
“We’ll go down on the Friday and train at Brentford, which Thomas (Frank) has allowed us to do, which was wonderful of him. We’ll visit Wembley on Saturday and let the players get used to the surroundings.
“The board have kindly paid to have the dressing room fully Bolton Wanderers branded, so I think that can help the players settle into an uncomfortable scenario. After that it’s all ready for Sunday.”
Wanderers now have a clear run to the final on April 2, and players will get a couple of days off before playing a behind-closed-doors friendly on Friday, which will give George Johnston and MJ Williams some game time to prove their fitness in time for Wembley.
Evatt admits organising logistics alongside a busy schedule in League One has been difficult.
“It has been a pleasant distraction, but still a distraction,” he said. “Making those plans over the last couple of weeks has not been easy because all I wanted to do was focus on Ipswich, or Sheffield Wednesday, the league. And it has been a really tough run of serious fixtures, so there has been a lot of work to get through.”
Wanderers passed 32,000 tickets sold on Friday, meaning they will have a bigger following than they did back in 1989 when they last raised a trophy in a domestic knockout competition.
“It is really important that we look at the number of tickets sold for this game and reflect on what it says about the club,” Evatt said.
“I think the last time Bolton were down at Wembley was an FA Cup semi-final against Stoke and I’m told there were about 27,000 tickets sold.
“We’re well over 30,000 now and still going. As manager, or players, or staff at Bolton Wanderers I think we should really appreciate that support, it is wonderful.”
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