I HAVE been saying for some time now that the Wanderers needed a lucky break or two to earn them the points their performances have deserved — and they got it on Saturday.

I’m not saying it was a lucky win because it wasn’t but Wolves did hit the woodwork twice — and when you’re struggling, they are the things that seem to always go against you. Anyway, I reckon Jussi Jaaskelainen had both efforts covered!

It all made for a great weekend, with both Burnley and Wigan both losing. What a difference a win makes when the league is so tight.

We have three more six-pointers coming up — West Ham and Sunderland away then Wigan here at the Reebok — and, if we can get maximum points from those three games, we could be looking just about safe within a month. That’s how close it is.

We’re not out of the woods just yet, though, but those three points will have made a lot of difference to the mood and the confidence of the players.

I was made up for Zat Knight getting the goal because since Gary Cahill’s injury he and Sam Ricketts have stepped up to the plate and been working hard; I was chuffed too for Stuart Holden and Jack Wilshere who both did well on their Reebok debuts.

One player I did feel a bit sorry for was Matty Taylor. He was left out of the starting line-up and when he came on as sub for the last 10 minutes or so he got a bit of stick from the fans.

We don’t need that. I have the utmost respect for the fans; they pay their money and they are entitled to criticise, but in difficult times everyone should be united, we should all be linking arms.

I had a word with Matty after the game because we’ve all been through something similar, but he made it clear he didn’t want my sympathy or anybody else’s. He’s a big character in the dressing room and I’m backing him to play his way through it and be all the stronger for the experience.

Back on the plus side, another clean sheet will have done a lot for the confidence of Jussi and his defenders and everybody got a lift seeing Gary Cahill back at the ground the day after we got the good news that he should be back much sooner than we’d expected.

The lads who have been holding the fort in his absence have done well, but Gary is a smashing player and he has been missed.

The sooner he is back to full fitness and available for selection again, the better.

I know it’s obviously going to work to Bolton’s advantage in that it will account for one of the three relegation places, but I was saddened to hear that Portsmouth had been forced into administration — not for the club as such, but for the supporters.

Pompey fans have always struck me as being decent types and they don’t deserve to suffer just because the club has been run so badly in recent times.

Situations like that help you appreciate that, with Eddie Davies, Phil Gartside and the directors running the business here, Bolton Wanderers are unlikely to suffer similar problems.