Wanderers failed to build on the drama of their last two games by slipping to a drab defeat at the hands of struggling Oxford United.

Dion Charles briefly gave Bolton some hope of a comeback, pulling a goal back after Djavan Anderson and Ciaron Brown had given suspended U’s manager Karl Robinson something to smile about in the stands.

But Steve Seddon’s header made the game safe with plenty of time to spare, lifting Oxford four points clear of the relegation zone with only their second win in eight league games.

Wanderers seemed to suffer from stage fright in a horrible, bitty first half, and went in at the break a goal down when Djavan Anderson scored his first goal for Oxford, pouncing on a loose ball after Kyle Joseph’s cross fell his way in the six-yard box.

It summed up what was a scruffy 45 minutes of football in which Ian Evatt’s side could claim to have played the better football and manufactured the better chances – with little to show for them.

So much of the game seemed to be played in transition, one penalty box to the other. And so often it would be the final pass or decision that let the Whites down.

Referee Ollie Yates looked like he had left his yellow cards in the dressing room after failing to punish a couple of early cynical challenges and after he finally broke his duck – booking MJ Williams for his first foul of the game – Bolton let their frustration get the better of them, conceding just a couple of moments later.

Oxford broke down the left through Joseph, with Bolton’s defenders slow to react to his low cross and former Lazio man Anderson able to poke the ball home in his first league start for the club.

Wanderers reacted well enough and should have drawn level with the best passing move of the game to that point, Jones’s cross passed towards goal by Josh Sheehan – making his first league start in nearly a year – but keeper Simon Eastwood managed to get his feet in the way. Dion Charles looped his follow-up on to the crossbar and the chance was gone.

Other chances to hit on the break were wasted with poor touches and over-hit passes, and Bolton finished the half queueing up to take a shot at the Oxford goal. Gethin Jones eventually stepped up, only for his effort to be blocked.

Evatt brought on some extra attacking firepower at the interval, swapping Jack Iredale for Dapo Afolayan. The game rather meandered at the start of the second half until Ciaran Brown conjured a bit of magic from nowhere, drilling a shot into the bottom corner after Conor Bradley had been shrugged off deep into Wanderers territory.

Wanderers threw on Jon Dadi Bodvarsson and Kyle Dempsey to change up the approach, knowing there was still half an hour left to rescue something from the game.

Icelander Bodvarsson could have worked immediate magic, swiping at fresh air after getting on the end of Jones’s right-wing cross. He chased the ball down ahead of keeper Eastwood and brought it back into the penalty box but could only clear the bar with his second effort.

Wanderers looked fresh out of ideas but after another double switch – Kieran Sadlier and Aaron Morley entering the game – the tempo suddenly picked up again.

Bradley and Sadlier combined to slip Charles through, and he tucked a sixth goal of the season under the body of Eastwood to reignite hopes.

Unfortunately, the good times lasted just six minutes. Charles came within a whisker of diverting Morley’s cross over the line, signalling what we thought would be another late attacking onslaught. Instead, a soft close-range header from sub Steve Seddon silenced the home support and left the Whites facing some familiar questions about the potency of their attack.