FINALLY ... They made a meal of it, but half way through October, Wanderers eventually registered their first home win of the season.

It was never going to be an easy ride against the Stoke battering ram, whose no nonsense approach rivals the Bolton teams of old under Big Sam.

If the Potters intimidated teams last season, then the addition of man mountain Kenwyne Jones has made them just plain scary – Zat Knight had a torrid time of it but dealt with Jones admirably.

Wanderers’ task wasn’t made any easier by ref Peter Walton, who seemed intent on “letting the game flow”, turning a blind eye to countless fouls by both teams.

That approach to refereeing can work, but not with teams like Stoke City and Bolton Wanderers.

His refusal to blow up for some of the softer challenges led to more and more reckless tackles flying in from both sides. In light of the debate this week over dangerous challenges – sparked by Danny Murphy’s comments midweek – Walton’s relaxed attitude was irresponsible and caused the match to boil over.

He lost control, but having said that, he let us off the hook in the first half, when he decided to ignore what was a blatant, if accidental, handball by Knight in his own penalty area. Stoke manager Tony Pulis was apoplectic – it was hilarious.

Fresh from his international exploits, Super Kev had a relatively quiet game, but he was always in the mix and played a part in both goals.

Great goal from Chungy. I told a couple of people I thought he’d score – sadly neither of them was called William Hill.

Martin Petrov had an okay game, but it was a daft back heel in his own half which led to the Stoke corner that they scored from.

Then came the clown prince Ivan Klasnic’s crazy 10-minute cameo – a cracking instinctive finish in injury time, followed by a comedic yellow card and a dubious red.

I think he got himself sent off just so he could have his own personal standing ovation before the final whistle blew – what a legend!