‘I should’ve buried it and won the match'

4:58pm Tuesday 18th April 2006

KEVIN Nolan left The Hawthorns last night "absolutely devastated" after missing the last-gasp sitter that cost Wanderers two vital points in their quest for Europe.

With only seconds to go in a dour stalemate, Albion defender Curtis Davies embarrassingly miscued a simple clearance to let Ricardo Vaz Te's cross run through to Bolton's "Captain Fantastic".

With the goal at his mercy and three points in sight, he contrived to scoop the ball over the bar from just six yards.

No one could believe the 11-goal midfielder could squander such a chance least of all himself.

"I'm absolutely gutted," he said. "I can't think of too many occasions, if any, when I've missed from there.

"It just came behind me and I haven't reacted the way I should, probably because I'm low on confidence after not having had any chances over the last five games.

"But I'm not going to blame it on that. I should have buried it. I should have been celebrating a win for Bolton Wanderers. Instead, I'm absolutely devastated."

The miss cost Wanderers the chance to move to within three points of Blackburn Rovers, who currently hold sixth place in the Premiership, and left them chasing three wins from their four remaining games to have a fighting chance of qualifying for the UEFA Cup.

Come the final reckoning, taking just a point from relegation favourites Albion might cost them dear, but a draw at least brought some respite after a run of five successive defeats that sapped confidence and threatened to end any hope of a European place.

"We're still in touching distance," Nolan said, defiantly. "It was absolutely vital that we got a point on the board. It's given everybody a lift and now we're all looking forward to playing Charlton at home on Saturday and getting back to Fortress Reebok.

"That's the first of three home games we've got left and we've got to make sure we get nine points out of them. Hopefully that will be enough to see us into Europe."

Sam Allardyce was philosophical. "A point was satisfying and, on the night, a pretty fair result," the Wanderers boss said.

"But, when you miss a chance that's so easy, so late on, you end up kicking yourself.

"Irrespective of what had happened in the previous 93 minutes, we should have won it."

What actually happened in those 93 minutes was hardly worthy of note.

There was no shortage of effort but precious little quality from two sides whose confidence had taken a battering at the weekend Albion losing at Arsenal and stumbling ever closer to the Premiership precipice, Wanderers having bowed to Chelsea and seeing their European hopes fade.

Goalmouth action, let alone scoring chances, were at a premium.

Bryan Robson's survival squad's best chance of claiming the victory they so desperately needed came in the first half from a long throw by Steve Watson that ended with Zoltan Gera's header pin-balling off Abdoulaye Faye and into Jussi Jaaskelainen's chest before Nicky Hunt hooked it clear of the onrushing Andy Johnson.

The dithering Diomansy Kamara squandered their only other chance in second half when he miscued at close range.

The very fact that Wanderers did not manage a single shot or header on target in the entire game tells its own story.

They always looked comfortable, were never stretched and in Faye and Bruno N'Gotty had a centre-back pairing that was just too strong and too determined for Kamara and Kevin Campbell.

But it was not until Allardyce sent on Vaz Te in the 83rd minute that they asked any questions of the Albion defence.

With his first touch, the young Portuguese striker sliced a volley wide from eight yards and proceeded to run Robson's men ragged.

"He went on when everybody was tired and ripped the backside out of West Brom," Allardyce said of his young charge.

"He created enough opportunities for himself and for others to have won the game, even before Nolan's chance. But we just couldn't find the finishing touch, whoever the ball fell to."