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Ian Evatt couldn’t help nodding along to the words of Stockport boss Dave Challinor in midweek as he described the highs and lows of his profession in the light of a brutal 5-0 defeat against Wycombe.
Two promotions in the last three years and a bright start to the League One campaign hadn’t spared him the fans’ ire – at least on the night – at Edgeley Park.
And it is a situation Evatt knows only too well. Just a couple of months ago he too stood bowed on the edge of his technical area as the criticism rained down from the terraces, the security of his own job suddenly up for discussion in the public eye.
He walks into today’s game at Stockport in a calmer environment, recognising still that a bad result or performance could make this another awkward international break.
The departure of Mark Robins at Coventry City this week nudged Evatt to fifth spot in the list of longest-serving managers in the EFL and Premier League, and he remains the youngest in the top 12. Reminded of that fact, a knowing grin spread across his face.
“Yeah, thanks for that,” he told The Bolton News. “I try not to look at some stats, and that’s one of them, because you never know when it is going to change.
“I saw one the other day about league wins since 2020 and we were 20 clear of everyone else, and sometimes it is nice when people send you that stuff because you can lose perspective. Football is all about the here and now.
“What we have done here is win consistently, and sometimes that can be taken for granted.
“We know what we are in, we know the industry and what we are letting ourselves in for. These tough moments in football are a regular thing and you have to be able to adapt and overcome, and I think we have managed to do that.
“But you and I both know we are only one defeat from that all returning again.”
The stat in question related to the man placed sixth on the longest-serving list, Nigel Clough. Since his appointment at Mansfield Town he has chalked up an impressive 101 victories, a total matched only by Peterborough United… And surpassed by some distance by Bolton (121).
Some will be quick to counter any celebration of those figures, pointing out that Bolton ‘should’ be winning more games at this level of football, given their budget and stature.
And it is on those thin margins that Evatt treads this season. Success no longer desired or wished but expected in League One after two near-misses in the play-offs.
“We just have to keep our heads down and working hard to try and get this club back to where we think it belongs,” the manager said, reviewing the progress which has been made since the 4-0 home defeat to Huddersfield Town in mid-September, which left Bolton 21st in the table.
“A positive result on Saturday is a really successful block which involved some very, very tough games.
“I think we have done well to be in there pitching again, accepting that we still have some ground to make up because we are not where we want to be at this moment in time.
“It will be a chance to reflect and look at what we have done right, where we can make some improvement, and then learn for the next block. And when I look at that one, it’s just as difficult.
“We have some local rivals coming up and we know we have got to start doing better in those games.
“It never gets any easier but for one week at least we will be able to sit back and do some reflecting on what we have done so far.”
Football’s brutality showed itself this week with the sacking of Robins at Evatt’s hometown club of Coventry after nearly eight years in charge.
Paying for a poor start in the Championship, his previous two promotions, EFL Trophy and sterling work reviving a once-nomadic club to within an inch of the FA Cup final and the Premier League ultimately amounted to nothing in the eyes of his club’s ownership.
“I am a Coventry lad, and, yeah… It’s a hard job sometimes, isn’t it?” said Evatt, struggling to find the words.
“Seven years of service, seven years of building that club up to where I knew it could be. I knew it could reach that level because it is so close to home for me.
“I guess it’s going back to what Dave Challinor said, it’s the life of a football manager. It is a short-sighted job, run by people with short memories. I think Mark will go on and get another job and be extremely successful. As a Coventry lad I am very appreciative of what he has done for the city and the club, a lot of my family and friends are big fans of him, so I wish him all the best.”
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