The cameras focussed on the story, and that was Barnsley, a heavyweight with granite-like fists who had beaten Bolton into submission over two legs of football.

Fans poured on to the pitch despite futile messages asking them to refrain. Nobody was going to deny them a moment to savour a victory which booked a South Yorkshire derby against Sheffield Wednesday in just over a week’s time.

But high up in the North Stand stood defiant a 2,000-strong army of Bolton Wanderers supporters, serenading a team that had been beaten but were unbowed. This was not the way they wanted it to end but they will be there again next season at Stevenage, Northampton, Charlton or Portsmouth, and they would be there in number.

It had been a passionate night with volume levels turned up high but that reduced allocation had merely amplified what those fans were capable of producing. They were representing the thousands back at home, and they did a sterling job of it too.

Bolton’s failure on the night – or more accurately over two legs – had also been an exaggeration of problems which had occurred throughout the campaign. A general lack of precision and poise in front of goal, an element of know-how and grit in midfield, perhaps even a touch of experience missing via some of the injured players on the night.

Why the Whites did not get promoted will be discussed in minute detail in the weeks to come. But the general mood after the final whistle on Friday night was not one of negativity, it was one of pride, and of recognising that it was not the end.

Of course, there were tears. In Conor Bradley and James Trafford Bolton had managed to secure two talents who should grace the game’s highest level for years to come. They each have Premier League contracts, both valued highly by their parent clubs, but their obvious dismay said everything about how much they had invested in their time with Bolton. Both leave in the highest regard, having represented themselves and their family proudly.

The pandemonium on the Oakwell pitch made it difficult for Wanderers’ players to truly show their appreciation – but suffice it to say, they recognise just what backing they have received this season.

From the 34,000 who followed the Whites down to Wembley to the hardy folk who dragged themselves to MK Dons, Cheltenham, Portsmouth or Burton on a Tuesday night, they are the inspiration for Ian Evatt and his players to make progress this summer.

Season tickets have already hit record numbers, commercially, Bolton are doing as well as they have since the Premier League days. And credit must go to the way the club is now managed from ground level, up to the boardroom. Whatever progress has been made in the last few years has been on good foundations.

And what of a manager, who has also grown up in front of our eyes since July 2020.

Ian Evatt does not hide emotion well. His frustration was anchored in the fact the group of young players he had assembled, backed repeatedly in some tough times over the previous 10 months, had not performed to the standard he believed they could.

He does not ‘do losing’ especially well, either. And while there were congratulations paid to Barnsley and to their organised, effective style, they felt somewhat placatory.

Evatt’s preferred brand of football has won many fans at Wanderers and in the wider world but it would be wrong to say it is universally popular, especially on an occasion such as Friday night when plan was picked apart at the seams by opposition who just seemed to boast more street smarts.

His task is now to prove that to get out of this division you can have the best of both worlds.

He truly believes that Bolton can play winning and expansive possession football and retain the defensive stability they have improved so dramatically this season, moreover on the budget he has been presented by the club’s board.

Wanderers fans can handle heartache. Compared to the pain of watching your club lose over two legs against Aldershot and topple into the bottom division for the first time ever, Friday night’s narrow defeat was a cakewalk. But make no mistake, there will be expectancy next season. Evatt knows it.

Up and down the land, the team will get the same outstanding support. Their big task now is to prove they can step up to the next level.