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Josh Sheehan believes Wanderers can cope with anything that League One can throw at them, provided they continue to play ‘their way’.
Buoyed by his recall to the Wales squad, the midfielder put in one of his finest performances at Bolton to help them record a 2-1 win against Derby County which returned them to the automatic promotion spots.
There had seemingly been a lot riding on the game, which had come off the back of a heavy home defeat against Wigan, a divisive draw at Burton and a Carabao Cup exit at the hands of Middlesbrough. Despite going into the weekend in third spot, Sheehan knew the team still had something to prove.
“It was the perfect end to the week,” he said. “The results we’d had before were hurtful for us, for the fans, so coming into this against a big rival, a big crowd, people probably questioned us and wondered whether we were up for it. But from minute one, when we play like that, I don’t think many teams in this league can match us.”
The 4-0 loss against Wigan had prompted a mass inquest, focussed largely on whether Wanderers could expect to challenge at the top of the table playing expansive possession football without the physical element possessed by many of their direct rivals.
“When a defeat comes like that, there will always be loads of questions – whether we can handle the occasion, whether we are strong enough, or physical enough,” Sheehan reasoned. “But I think we showed against Derby that being a physical team doesn’t matter if they can’t get close to us, the way we play. If we played their way then we probably will lose a lot of the battles. If we play our way then I am confident we will win more than we lose.
“You look back at the Wigan result and we know the performance wasn’t good enough. You want to win every game, so do the fans, but sometimes it is the manner you lose them. We can’t let that happen again.
“But I think we have showed there that we can battle with the biggest and the best, and as long as we do it our way then I don’t think we will have any problems.”
Bolton’s strategy on the ball is high risk, high reward, and as one of the players tasked with moving the ball through a tight, condensed midfield at pace, Sheehan appreciates that it can cause a few nervous moments among those watching in the crowd.
“It is just the way we play,” he said. “We kind of put ourselves under pressure but we feel as a team, as a club, that it will benefit us in the long term. Players like me, Demps, Thomo in midfield, we want the ball to feet even when there are players behind and around us. We don’t mind.
“Fans might be a bit worried we will lose it but it is what we work on every day, playing in the tight spaces and getting on the ball.”
Wanderers struck the right chord early on against Derby, which generated a hugely positive atmosphere around the Toughsheet Stadium, continuing even after they went a goal down.
“Straight away we contributed to that when we started so well,” Sheehan said. “We get them behind us and I feel like it lifts us even more. It was electric.
“We need to make sure when the place is like that we take our chances because teams will backpedal even more.
“When they went down to 10 it was tough because they had everyone back in the box, there wasn’t much space at all.
“They were a solid defensive team but thankfully Josh got his goal. I don’t know if he meant it… but no way.”
Wanderers now sit second on goal difference alongside three other clubs who have taken 13 points from the first six games.
Sheehan is happy with how things have gone so far, and fixtures resume in the league on September 16 with a trip to Reading, but still believes there is room for improvement.
“It has been a decent start but I do feel like we should have more points, being honest,” he said.
“We should have beaten Burton and then the Wigan result was something else all together, we have to forget about that one.
“It has been a solid start but I think there is more to come from us, really, even doing 90-minute performances rather than 60 or 70-minute ones. We want to make sure we are dominant through the whole game.”
Tuesday night sees Wanderers make a start to their defence of the EFL Trophy, welcoming League Two Salford City in the opening group game.
Sheehan will then link up with the Wales squad hoping to add to the three international caps he currently owns, and believes the team can pick up where it left off on Saturday.
“We want to win every game – especially the cup we won last year, we want to do the same again this year, no doubt about it,” he said.
“The boys will have a weekend off to get recharged and ready for the league after that, so we can put everything into the cup game.”
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