BOLTON Wanderers and police have hailed this weekend's Oasis concerts as a resounding success.

The concerts passed off without trouble and organisers say the months of planning which went into staging the stadium's first major rock concert were vindicated.

No public order offences were reported and despite a tiny number of petty thefts, police were this morning full of praise for the overwhelming majority of gig-goers.

"We are extremely pleased with the behaviour of the estimated 60,000 crowd over the two days," said a police spokesman. "There were no serious offences and it was extremely successful."

A Wanderers spokesman said the gig heralded the stadium's arrival as a premier league concert venue.

He said: "We are absolutely delighted with the way it went. The whole organisation has been tremendous.

"There are things we have learned which we know we can improve but the two concerts have well and truly put Bolton on the map as a venue.

"We have proved that we can handle these concerts and we are looking forward to more. There's no question about that. "It's not just great for the club, it's great for the whole town. We had reports from shops in Middlebrook that they have had exceptional sales over the two days.

"We have already had some conversations about future concerts but they will probably be next year now."

Special flooring installed over the pitch to protect the surface was being removed this morning. It is understood to have worked well but Wanderers representatives are planning to visit Wembley stadium to inspect an alternative type of covering used there.

The spokesman added: "We want to make sure we do everything we can to bring top bands to the Reebok."