Sam Smith’s late leveller snatched two precious points from Wanderers’ grasp in the 95th minute of a tense Bank Holiday clash at the UniBol.

Declan John had put Ian Evatt’s side on course for victory with a goal midway through the second half but the relegation-threatened U’s, who had fought valiantly to stay on level terms early in the game, came back with a second wave of attack at the death.

The crowd of 24,377 was the club’s third highest as a third-tier club and third-highest since they dropped out of the Premier League 11 years ago. The sight of four sides of Bolton support conjured up images of those heady days at football’s top table.

Their recent Wembley excursion excluded, the accompanying pressure of a larger crowd has not always sat well with the Whites, especially against a side so content to sit deep and absorb pressure as Cambridge.

Whether you describe it in the modern term of ‘a low block’ or the old-fashioned idiom of ‘parking the bus,’ the U’s were quite content to tuck in and wait for chances on the break, however frustrating a sight it was for the bumper crowd to watch.

For the whole of the first half, Wanderers only occasionally played at the sort of tempo to test the visitors’ steely resolve. Their best chance fell to overlapping wing-back John, picked out by a well-weighted ball from George Johnston, the Welshman fizzed a shot to the near post which was blocked well by Dimitar Mitov. Had he looked up, he may have concluded that rolling a ball across goal for an unmarked George Thomason would have been the better option. His time would come, however, but not without a few more moans and grumbles.

Restored to the side at number 10, Shola Shoretire had struggled to link up with new front two Cameron Jerome – making his first start – and Vic Adeboyejo.

Frustration around the ground was audible at times, as was the nervousness when Cambridge did abandon their tight-knit formation. Indeed, Mark Bonner’s side had the best chances of the half when they showed some attacking intent.

Smith headed against the post with James Trafford beaten 15 minutes in, and Harvey Knibbs twice gave marker Gethin Jones the slip to deliver dangerous crosses from the left, mistakes that, thankfully, remained unpunished.

John’s one burst aside, Wanderers had not been able to get enough width into their own game. Conor Bradley remained a peripheral figure until the first few moments of the second half when John and Thomason combined to send in a dangerous cross for the young Liverpool loanee, who got clattered by Steve Seddon as he put a brave header off target.

Moments after Smith has curled a free kick narrowly wide for Cambridge, Evatt played his trump card from the bench, making a triple substitution. Dion Charles, Kieran Lee and Aaron Morley replaced Jerome, Shoretire and Sheehan, instantly raising the volume levels in the crowd as they did so.

Cambridge’s gameplan had been worked perfectly for an hour but now we were moving into the territory where Wanderers had gained so many points under Evatt against tiring opposition.

Results elsewhere had dropped he Whites to seventh in the table, they were in desperate need of some inspiration. On 68 minutes it arrived from a quite unexpected source.

Bradley’s cross from the right fell perfectly for Johnston – and though his shot pushed away impressively by Mitov, John’s follow up was clinical.

It has been a topsy-turvy campaign for the former Cardiff City man, whose Bolton future looked anything but secure at Christmas. This was his first goal since the final day of last season and just reward for an epic return to favour at the UniBol.

Cambridge – desperate for points in the relegation zone – were then forced to abandon some of their defensive structure.

But the extra space also afforded Bolton a chance to go for the kill. Charles bounced a shot off the post after racing on to Morley’s through ball, then Kieran Lee and Dan Nlundulu – on for Adeboyejo – had goal-bound shots blocked, the second of which came with a hearty appeal for handball against Michael Morrison.

The visitors continued to fight – sub Joe Ironside skimming a header wide and Smith driving a shot into side netting, potentially with a touch from Trafford’s glove en route.

The number “six” echoed around the stadium as the fourth official conjured an improbable amount of stoppage time and this time it was Bolton who were camped in their own penalty box, defending a result.

Luke Mbete’s clumsy challenge on Fejiri Okenabirhie had Cambridge appealing wildly for a penalty – but referee David Rock judged that the foul had happened less than a foot from the line.

The real punishment was still to arrive – Jack Lankester swung in a dangerous ball and Smith was able to nod it into the net to send Cambridge’s 400-or-so fans into ecstasy, the Bolton players sinking to their haunches.

Derby’s result against MK Dons means the Whites do not drop out of the top six but the margin of error has been whittled down just about as far as it will go.