LIAM Trotter delivered a damning verdict on Wanderers after defeat against Preston North End, admitting: Fans are right to be upset.

The midfielder, whose first-half goal appeared to have put the Whites en route to victory at the Macron, empathises with supporters who are angry at the club’s rapid decline in the last 12 months.

Wanderers are now 11 points adrift of safety with nine games remaining and survival hope all-but evaporated. Though a new era began with new ownership on Saturday, Trotter believes fans were within their rights to make their disappointment known at what has gone before.

“We think about the fans because they pay a lot of money to watch us,” he told The Bolton News.

“They have put their cash into this club over the years and no-one knows where it has gone. The club is in a bad financial state.

“They have the most right to be upset because their money has been misused.

“Of course we feel for them. They have been very understanding and have supported us through every single game. Since I have been back, this was probably the first time we’ve been booed.

“It is a credit to them. This isn’t for us, we need to keep going for them.”

Wanderers’ players have been given some leeway by supporters during the financial crisis with demonstrations of discontent far less common than at many other clubs.

“This is a unique situation,” Trotter said. “The fans appreciate it has been tough for the team.

“Not getting paid and then being in an embargo and not being able to sign players. It might sound strange a player wanting his club to make more signings – but you want the competition, you want the best players around you. We want players to come in on loan.

“I hope they know that this is not because of a lack of effort or workrate, unfortunately this is just sometimes a lack of quality.”

Trotter won’t give up on the idea that Wanderers could still be playing in the Championship this season but accepts the signs do not look good.

“It looks grim but you never throw the towel in,” he said. “We are professional footballers and if we did that as kids we’d never have made it.

“Of course it will be difficult. The one positive we can take is that our performances have been good.

“I wasn’t here for the first half of the season so I can’t comment on that, but the way we played against Preston was probably one of the worst performances we’ve turned in.

“We still have a positive mindset. Maybe we will get that bit of luck. Maybe that first win turns into two or three?

“We won’t give up until it’s mathematically certain that we’re down.”

Saturday’s defeat against Preston was a familiar story for Whites fans this season but Trotter maintains referee Paul Tierney made errors that did not help their cause.

“We had chances to finish the game off but I think there was a penalty for a foul on Sparky,” he said of Bradley Wright’s second-half challenge.

“He got clipped from behind as he was running. And at that pace it doesn’t take a lot to send you sprawling. The ref has bottled it, he didn’t want to make a decision and give a red card. It’s a tough decision and he didn’t make the right one.”