LAWRIE Wilson refuses to believe that Wanderers will spend this season looking over their shoulders at the relegation zone.

Despite being written off by the majority of the tipsters, there was lots to admire about a gritty 0-0 draw against Derby, a team regarded by many as favourites to lift the Championship trophy next May.

New signing Wilson was delighted to take a clean sheet and a point from his debut but more so to strike an early blow against the nay-sayers.

“When I came in I think we were second favourites to go down,” he told The Bolton News. “But when you look at that performance it doesn’t look like a side that is going to get relegated. It looks like a team full of players who are willing to fight and prove people wrong.

“That’s what you have to do as footballers, people will constantly try and put you down but you need to get back up and show people that you’re not just there to roll over.

“Before the game the gaffer was on us saying we had to win our tackles, be committed, and play on the front foot and we showed it.

“Derby are a team that a lot of people think will go and win the title. I think we matched them in all areas.”

Wilson is yet to sort out his own home in the North West after a whirlwind summer in which a move to Rotherham United collapsed and a deal at Wanderers came out of the blue.

The 27-year-old had been expecting to continue his long association with Charlton until midway through last season when a change of ownership and management signalled the end of his time at The Valley.

He was loaned to Rotherham, and then nearly signed full-time with the Millers until three weeks before the start of the season when the move to South Yorkshire collapsed.

Lennon acted quickly to bring the former Stevenage defender in on trial and he turned out in a pre-season friendly against Morecambe less than 48 hours later.

“I gave everything I had,” he said. “I’m over the moon to come and sign for a club like Bolton. It’s a wonderful place.

“The training ground, the stadium – everything is here to make you a better player.

“I’d been training on my own for most of the summer. It’s hard and for all the running you can do, or the ball work on your own, nothing really compares to when you get on the training ground and work with other players.

“So I’m playing catch-up, I know that, but I’m determined to do here at Bolton what I did at Charlton and play 150-odd games and feature every week. It’s a great move for me and I’m determined to make it a success.”

Wilson was also impressed with another defensive debutant in Prince-Desir Gourano, who had spent just 24 hours at Wanderers before being plunged in against the Rams.

“He came in Thursday, trained Friday and then played 90 minutes – for him to get through that was an achievement in itself,” he said.

“He was absolutely brilliant. I’m sure he will get better as he gets used to the players around him and it’s the same as me.

“It’s a new back four here and we’re all trying to adapt.”