FOLLOWING Wanderers away for the last decade has been a thankless task, and I get paid for it.

Since January 1, 2010, Bolton have won 45 games on the road, more than a quarter of which occurred in a single season under Phil Parkinson in 2016/17.

No other team in the 92 have taken fewer points on their travels during the last 10 years – not even close, in fact.

At time of writing, Bolton have managed 187 points from 235 games, a return of 0.79 per trip. To put that into some context, the next three clubs on that list are Stoke City (0.9), Sunderland (0.93) and QPR (0.94). Manchester City – who are top of the charts – managed an average of 1.84 per game.

Wanderers’ league away record over the last decade reads 45 wins, 133 draws and 230 defeats, of which I have missed a handful for honeymoons, holidays and the birth of my kids.

And yet still at Accrington today, the Whites have sold out every single ticket made available to them and will be backed by 2,800-or-so on their first-ever trip to the Wham Stadium. Quite staggering, considering the emotional pummelling those folks have taken in the last few years, in particular.

Home wins tend to coagulate in my memory. I can recall the really important ones but, let’s be honest, the ‘Teenies’ have not been a vintage decade. The UniBol, or its previous incarnations, always feels like the office but travelling around the country with the fine folk in the Bolton media is more like a school trip – especially when Jack Dearden is on point. Get well soon, my friend.

There have been some bleak, bleak journeys back to the North West. The 7-1 at Reading, the 6-0 at Bristol City, relegation at Stoke which was perversely followed by a Player of the Year ceremony back at the Reebok. All of those trips are done in the knowledge that when you return home the inquest begins, thousands and thousands of words scrutinising what went wrong when you would much rather forget it happened altogether.

Sometimes it isn’t even the football that spoils the trip. Snow-storms from Norwich, cows on the train tracks at Didcot on the way back from Millwall and the less said about M6 detours round Droitwich, the better.

I understand why I’m there, it’s my job – but I take my cap off to those who travel around the land to follow Wanderers based purely on a sense of duty and passion. I am jealous, at times, particularly when people are tucking into a pre-match pint but their dedication to the cause is exceptional and is one of the topics which has been remarked upon regardless of what division Wanderers have played in, or what calibre of player I have interviewed down the years.

Those wins on the road are the ones that really do stick in the mind.

West Ham, 3-1. Johan Elmander scored a couple but Kevin Davies just made Matthew Upson’s life an utter misery.

Wolves, 3-2, when Elmander produced a moment of magic I will never forget and Stu Holden scored his first goal for the club.

Leeds United, 5-1 – the reaction from the away end when Zat Knight got on the scoresheet.

A sun-kissed Easter weekend win at Cardiff when Eidur Gudjohnsen rolled back the years.

Fil Morais absolutely tearing Gillingham to shreds in 2017 en route to promotion.

And the celebratory pint of Oranjeboom afterwards with Messrs Dearden and Chris Price.

And Jem Karacan’s name appearing on the team sheet at Fleetwood when Wanderers grabbed a vital 4-2 win later the same season.

Port Vale, David Wheater’s header, and the press box going into pandemonium when the home fans decided to take issue with John McGinlay.

Beating West Brom on the opening day of last season with absolutely no clue of the horrors still to come, and then doing the same to Reading a few weeks later.

This season’s win at Bristol Rovers is too fresh in the mind to put into context but I would dearly love to think by next May it provides a starting point in an article describing the greatest escape from relegation this club has ever seen.

Here’s to another memory to add to the collection at Accrington this afternoon.