THE fanfare was muted when two of Wanderers’ longest-serving lieutenants waved apologetic goodbyes to the fans, knowing their story would not get the glorious conclusion they had hoped it would.
In truth, nobody in the squad had shouldered more of the post play-off final pain than Ricardo Santos and Gethin Jones, and because of their long service to Ian Evatt, no two players were perhaps more guilty by association.
A last walk around the stadium after Saturday’s 1-1 draw with Stevenage was a saddening moment. The pair had racked up close to 400 games between them in the last five seasons, had been just 90 minutes away from Championship football, but the last chapter had been a taxing one that underlined just how harsh footballing fortunes can be.
The decision to release Santos, Jones and indeed former number one Nathan Baxter at the end of their current contract signals the club’s intention to move on – not only from the disappointment of the current campaign, but also from the Evatt era.
Some argue the shift in direction is 12 months too late, and that realising last May that things had reached a natural conclusion could have allowed for quicker regeneration. That is now the stuff of barroom debate, and it falls on Steven Schumacher to reshape Bolton into a team that can again put themselves within touching distance of the second tier.
For Santos and Jones, their fifth season at the club has – professionally at least – been the most challenging.
It had all started on a sweltering sunny day in an empty non-league stadium. A team comprised mainly of trialists competed against Atherton Colls in the Covid scarred summer of 2020, the club unable to even confirm a game was taking place, such were the rules on gathering crowds at the time.
Santos and Jones were two of the more recognisable faces and would, 12 months down the line, become the ‘leadership group’ established by Evatt after promotion to League One.
Both had played a key part in that crazy, soulless season. Santos had been plucked from obscurity on a free transfer having briefly considered taking up a part-time role as a delivery driver to supplement his income during lockdown. Jones had passed up the chance to stay with Carlisle United to join a project which bears absolutely no resemblance to the slick, professional club which stands before us today. Though the name Bolton Wanderers carries with it a certain cache, those who experienced the first 12 months of new ownership under Football Ventures will know the learning curve was a steep one.
The late-season charge is now the stuff of legend. Santos had slowly gained in confidence, helped by the reassuring presence of old campaigners Alex Baptiste and Matt Gilks, and Jones recovered from a nasty ankle injury to cement his place as a wing-back, even adding goals, including a priceless winner at Port Vale.
It wasn’t until the following season that Santos and Jones would really come to the fore, however, as a high-profile bust-up between Evatt and his then-captain Antoni Sarcevic led to the midfielder leaving the club. Santos was thrust into the captain’s role and, when Eoin Doyle also left Bolton to return to Ireland, Jones was promoted to the dressing room’s second in command.
For Jones, Wanderers had also provided a support network after his mum, Karen, was diagnosed with Motor Neurone Disease. The club rallied to put on a legends match to raise money for treatment and research which saw the likes of Jay Jay Okocha, Sam Allardyce, Ricardo Gardner, Ivan Campo, Kevin Davies, Stelios, John McGinlay, Jussi Jaaskelainen and Gudni Bergsson take part. The game was attended by more than 13,000 supporters, and though Mrs Jones sadly passed away four months later, the way the club rallied around the family was never forgotten and truly did stand as a testament to how it takes care of its own.
Santos – or Rico, as he is universally known – had quietly become the first name on Evatt’s team-sheet. His hulking aerial presence and ability to defend one-on-one made him a lynchpin for the manager’s tactical plan and, for a while at least, it seemed the whole of League One looked on at him with envy.
The Evatt era culminated in two play-off campaigns. The first ended on a stale night in Barnsley, a semi-final defeat over two legs which did not feel like the end of the world at the time, more an appetiser for a more concerted push the following year. With hindsight, that fresh, energetic team, containing two young Premier League loan talents in James Trafford and Conor Bradley might just have been the zenith.
It had triumphed against Steven Schumacher’s Plymouth Argyle at Wembley to win the Papa Johns Trophy – Jones grabbing one of four goals on the day and looking to the skies in memory of his mum as he celebrated in front of 35,000 Bolton fans. Santos had given so much to the cause he could barely haul himself up the famous steps to the Royal Box to lift the trophy.
The Whites had gone close and were sure they would return stronger. Santos and Jones flew the flag for Brand Evatt and before the turn of 2024, there seemed nothing stopping Bolton from returning to the Championship for the first time in five years.
Jones accepted an offer to play for Australia, the country of his birth, having played youth football for Wales. Excited by the chance of playing international football, with a World Cup on the horizon, he was also given a chance to play at the AFC Asian Cup in Qatar, which meant missing several games in a busy January.
Unfortunately for all concerned, injuries also started to pile up at that point. Jones returned – flying overnight to reach a midweek game at Cambridge in early February which was abandoned after a deluge five minutes after kick-off. In the brief moments of play, Nathan Baxter also aggravated a wrist injury which meant he missed a significant chunk of the remainder of the season, during which too much ground was ceded to Portsmouth and Derby in the race for the top two.
Santos also suffered a calf injury, returning before the play-offs but looking off his normal pace. And though he and the team had enough to beat Barnsley over two legs in the semi-final this time around, Oxford United’s pace and Wembley’s unforgiving pitch left the captain struggling way before the medals were handed out.
Jones – who had endured an arduous day chasing U’s winger Josh Murphy – braved up to the press in the mixed zone, hardly able to form his thoughts with emotion so high after a 2-0 defeat. He knew how close they had been, and how far their standards had dropped on the day.
Santos got criticised for not speaking directly after the game despite it being the club’s decision which of their players faced the media. And from there, the hero worship turned into something more troubling for the big defender.
When Wanderers opted to stick with Evatt, the backlash against his style of football was already immovable. Jones picked up a knee injury in the summer and did not return to action until mid-November. Santos played on with a recurring pelvic issue and as both his and the club’s form stuttered, the post play-off frustration started to centre of him, above all others.
At times, the boundary between acceptable critique and outright abuse was breached, particularly online, where the player’s family were also dragged into the mess.
Evatt gave the captaincy to George Thomason, hoping to reduce the pressure, but a light had gone out in Santos and his relationship with supporters would unfortunately never be the same again.
When the terrace toxicity hit its peak, Santos had finally succumbed to the injury, watching from the sidelines in Evatt’s last game in charge against Charlton. He was unable to return to full training for months, which scuppered his chances under Schumacher and meant his contract ticked down with a gloomy sense of inevitability. One solitary start in the 4-1 defeat at Barnsley proved conclusively that he was not in the right condition to return.
While the squad broke down with injuries and unavailability in the last few weeks, Jones got his head down and played out the remainder of the campaign, knowing his own fate was probably sealed. When substituted in the second half against Stevenage there was a heartening show of respect from the home fans, who stood to applaud him as he jogged off the pitch.
Jones finishes his Bolton career with 188 appearances, Santos, with 207, joining a list of just 84 other players to top 200 in the club’s history. The last – over a much longer period – was David Wheater.
Longevity is not common in modern football, least of all a club like Bolton which has been on a run of reinvention and rebuilding. Santos and Jones have been constants at a time when the place needed stability, two differing characters who have appreciated what the club has done for them.
There have been highs and lows during their five years in a white shirt but in the decades to come, their names will be synonymous with the start of a journey will we hope will eventually lead all the way back to the top.
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