EMILE Heskey wants to take the bumps and bruises again for Wanderers next season.

The former England international has opened the door to another year at the Macron Stadium, saying he “feels at home” playing under former team-mate Neil Lennon.

Despite recently turning 37, the striker has been among the Whites’ most consistent players of the last few months.

Lennon has stated he will sit down for talks with Heskey at the end of the season to see if he can negotiate an extended stay, alongside fellow veteran Eidur Gudjohnsen.

But Heskey saved him a job after featuring in Wanderers’ 2-1 defeat against Norwich on Saturday.

“I would love to stay - I have enjoyed it,” he said.

“The lads have taken to me really well and I feel at home.

“I have got a great feeling for the club and the legs feel good... ish.

“It’s all about enjoying my football at this time in my career and I’m enjoying putting on a Bolton shirt every week.”

Target man Heskey has put his body on the line for Wanderers since his arrival in December and admits he has to manage his post-match rehabilitation a little more than he did in his prime.

“It’s not necessarily about the game, it’s more about how you recover from it,” he said. “I can get through the 90 minutes reasonably well but then I need a bit of help to recover.

“I’ve taken a battering in the last few games but I’m used to that by now. I’m playing, that’s the most important part. I can’t complain.”

Gary Hooper struck in injury time for Norwich to leave the Whites empty-handed for only the second time since Lennon took charge.

That made it 12 points wasted in the 90th minute or more for the club this season – and Heskey admits it was a bitter pill to swallow.

“It was very hard to take when you look at the game in context,” he said. “We hard worked hard, done well to get back into the game at 1-1.

“Then it’s a real kick in the teeth when you consider how simple the winning goal was.”

Lennon revealed that skipper Matt Mills missed the game with an ankle injury but could feature in tomorrow’s home clash with Charlton Athletic.

“We gave him right up until the last minute but had to make a decision,” he added.