Bolton Wanderers must 'get the job done' at Grimsby Town, says Ian Evatt

The Bolton boss will take his side to Grimsby Town at the weekend knowing four wins from the final five games will guarantee League One football next season.

Wanderers had to work hard for victory at Salford City on Tuesday night but the manner of the performance left a delighted Evatt willing them over the finishing line.

“To a man we chucked ourselves in front of balls, defended with our lives, put our head in where it hurts, tackled everything,” he said. “Our sprint distancing, the distance we covered, was magnificent. I am so, so proud of them.

“They deserve this more than any group I have ever worked with. We have been through a lot together this season, but the job is not done, and we need to make sure we get the job done.”

Evatt has already highlighted the dangers of Saturday’s opponents Grimsby, who had gone eight games without defeat before last weekend when they were beaten by Bradford City.

The Mariners are seven points adrift of safety at the foot of the table but Evatt does not want any of his players to lower their guard after Tuesday night’s efforts.

“It is difficult to pick a team sometimes,” he said. “But when they play like that it is not as difficult.

“Even the lads that came off the bench, their work ethic was outstanding. Shaun (Miller) and Zack (Elbouzedi) were brilliant, Nathan (Delfouneso) chucking his body on the line – it is great to see.

“But we have to regather now for Grimsby and do it all again. We haven’t achieved anything yet. They were unbeaten for a long run of games before Saturday and they are fighting for their lives to stay in this division, so we have to go there with the right attitude.

“We can do that - this team has kept quite a large number of clean sheets in this run of form we’ve been on and that’s not just down to the back four, even though they’ve been outstanding and the goalkeeper too. But it’s the way we defend as a team and that has got to continue.”