The Bolton Wanderers Big Interview with manager Ian Evatt

Whereas playing on their own doorstep often looked inconvenient for Bolton in the manager’s first season in charge, the situation has changed completely in their two full years in League One.

The empty stands that had looked so daunting during lockdown, echoing to the sound of a team struggling to settle, are now well-stocked with supporters who have turned up in record numbers.

Another healthy crowd is expected today for the visit of Lincoln City on the opening day of the season, a first step on what Evatt hopes will be a successful journey to Championship football.

In the past two seasons Bolton have avoided defeat in 82.6 per cent of the league games at home, winning 56.5 per cent. And though Evatt has himself admitted that not having the fans’ expectant gaze on him during those difficult early days was probably a blessing, he knows what a big impact they have made during the better times.

“It has changed 100 per cent because the fans are back in the building now; they are absolutely unbelievable,” he told The Bolton News. “The support at this club is simply magnificent and we appreciate it.

“Having them back in the building made and makes such a difference to the team, the club and the manager, simple as that.

“Our away fans are fantastic but when everyone turns up here and gets the place rocking they have made it a really hard place for teams to come and play.

“They have made a huge impact for us and long may that continue.

“I think 10 of the first 15 games are at home – and that is a brilliant way for us to open the season because our form here has been very, very good.

“The biggest thing for me is that people spend their hard-earned money to watch us play, so I want to make sure they are entertained and go home happy.”

Since that patched together squad first took the field against Bradford City in the summer of 2020 close to 100 different players have circulated in the first team dressing room and just three – George Thomason, Gethin Jones and Ricardo Santos – have stayed the course.

Evatt, now in his sixth full season as a manager and incredibly in possession of the 12th longest reign in all four divisions, looks back on those early days and believes the job is becoming more enjoyable.

Eoin Doyle goes for goal in Ian Evatt's first match in charge against Bradford City (Image: Camerasport)

“For me it is a lot easier than that first six months, in the middle of a pandemic, having no supporters in the stadium, having a squad of players which I didn’t deem fit for purpose,” he said.

“I think I am in a much stronger position now to get more out of my players, more out of the team, and more consistent results.

“I think I’m getting better. From where I was when I first came here and when I first started that journey as a manager I have improved in loads of different aspects – my personal life, I have matured as a person and character, my coaching and my information is a lot better now, more detailed, but I won’t stop striving for improvement.

“Having the pressure I do at this wonderful football club is great because it means we have done a lot of things right. People are expectant now, which is fantastic, but as I’ve said quite a lot this week entitlement and ambition are two totally different things and we have to stay on the right side of it. Yes, we want the best, we’ll try hard to be the best, but it is not a given by any stretch.

“I don’t think I have made it easy for myself progressing, statistically, every year as a manager so I know what is expected. It is a reputation I have earned, a right I have earned.

“The players are in a very good space. The ones who have been with me for a while have improved again, the ones who have joined us are offering us something completely different to what we have had before.

“We have a balanced squad of players now and the window isn’t shut yet, so we will always look to improve, but standing here for the first game of the season I am very happy with where we are at.”

Evatt and his side face some different challenges this season. Not only will they be expected to lead from the front but the annual refereeing thinktank has produced some new guidelines for officials in the Premier League and EFL which could make a big difference, particularly in the early games.

Ian Evatt shows his frustration in Wanderers' game against Burton Albion last season (Image: Camerasport)

Friday night’s Championship game between Sheffield Wednesday and Southampton highlighted the pressure on referees to punish dissent – for example, kicking the ball away or delaying a free-kick – with a yellow card. Equally, behaviour in the technical area is being monitored with only one member of staff supposed to be allowed to occupy the box at once.

If a manager is sent off during the game, he will also be prevented from doing post-match press conferences, The Bolton News has learned.

Players who require treatment for an injury will have to leave the field for a mandatory 30 seconds or face a yellow card. And referees have been given different procedures to follow on exactly when they should stop play, and for what type of injury.

The headline-grabbing changes are designed to prevent timewasting, which has been a bugbear of Evatt’s for some time.

Officials have been given clear guidance on how much time must be added on for stoppages or delays, and that is likely to mean extended injury time, similar to the approach used at the Qatar World Cup.

Evatt has spoken directly to EFL ref’s chief Mike Jones and been given a full briefing on the rule changes which he feels could benefit his players.

“Number one, I think the general product will be better for the paying fan,” he said. “I have just had a meeting with the PGMOL about the new rules and regulations, stamping out timewasting and making sure we get that magic number of 60 minutes of playing time as best we can. Sometimes there will be 10, 12, 14 minutes added on – and that theoretically suits us because we score lots of late goals. We are a hard team to manage over that length of time.

“Hopefully some of the shenanigans are being taken out of the game and we can focus on making sure the best team wins on any given day.

“There are 92 football managers in this country and I am very fortunate to be at a club where we are expected to win every week, and have a squad of players which is capable of winning every week. We want to be at the top end of the table.

“I won’t be disrespectful to the managers who are fighting for points to stay up, and in some cases staying up is a massive achievement for their football club, so sometimes you have to do whatever you can to get results.

“But I think it is a positive that the PGMOL, Howard Webb and the referees have come up with these new rules which will hopefully enable a fairer game, and that’s what everyone wants, really.”