Wanderers 1 Aston Villa 1

TAMIR Cohen’s second-half equaliser edged Wanderers closer to Premier League safety and ensured Aston Villa’s winless run continued.

Gary Megson’s side are now seven points above the drop zone with just four games to go and have all but guaranteed their top-flight status for another season.

Ashley Young’s fortunate 43rd-minute opener – the winger’s cross catching out Jussi Jaaskelainen and sailing straight in – had put Villa, who have now gone 12 games without a victory, on course to end their dismal stretch of results.

But midfielder Cohen, making his first start of an injury-hit season, smashed home a 60th-minute equaliser from Andy O’Brien’s knockdown to earn Bolton a well-deserved share of the spoils in a forgettable encounter at the Reebok Stadium.