A note from the Chairman

Everybody here at Bolton Wanderers is heading into this weekend's Sky Bet Championship encounter with Barnsley with renewed vigour and determination after last Saturday's defeat at Molineux.

Like myself, I am sure the overriding feeling following our last game against Wolves was one of abject disappointment, but now that a little time has passed, with the opportunity to reflect and review, everybody has to move forward and put that result to bed.

As the manager said following the final whistle, Wolves are a side who will certainly be there or thereabouts come the end of the campaign and I am sure there will be plenty more teams who will fall to defeat against them this term.

After a result like that in football however, it is imperative to bounce back as quickly as possible and having spoken with Phil Parkinson, I know that the hours and hard work put in by the players on the training ground since that match is proof of their determination to do just that and the spirit, camaraderie and belief of the players is palpable when you visit our Lostock base.

Prior to last Saturday, we were seven games unbeaten in the Sky Bet Championship – a statistic which, given our start to the campaign, was incredibly pleasing.

Also, in our last nine matches, we have added 11 points to our tally, followed by Birmingham City (eight), Sunderland (seven) and Burton Albion (five) – I would like to thank The Bolton News’ Marc Iles for bringing that fact to my attention.

These results have been brought about by concentration, focus and application and the never-say-die attitude of the entire squad. If we can continue along these lines, we will start to climb out of the relegation zone as the season continues.

It is down to the players now however to dust themselves off and restore the pride that you have all felt whilst leaving our games in recent weeks.

Success is something that comes when everybody works in tandem and that is never truer than in football. It also breed confidence and that is what we need to focus on again.

When everybody is singing from the same hymn sheet and the belief is there across the board, anything is possible.

Your support truly is imperative to our success this season as it was at crucial times in 2016/17 and you have proven on many occasions just how influential you can all be with your vociferous backing from the start and throughout our games.

It truly does make the world of difference and you can be the twelfth man this Saturday for a hugely important game with your vociferous support. 

It really is crucial that you get behind the team in your numbers – ultimately, our games throughout December could prove key in terms of giving us a realistic chance of climbing up the league standings and starting another unbeaten run this weekend could be the catalyst for just that as we bid to retain our Sky Bet Championship status come May.

Off the field, we were delighted earlier this week to confirm that Little Mix will be performing here at Macron Stadium on Saturday 14 July as part of their Summer Hits tour, thus marking our return as a leading concert venue in the North West.

I’d like to thank everybody at the club for all their hard work in making this happen, with us having experienced unprecedented demand for tickets.

A limited number are still on sale via various outlets, confirmation of which can be found at www.bwfc.co.uk, but I would encourage you all to act quickly to avoid disappointment. 

We also have some of our fantastic hospitality packages available for the concert, details of which can be found here.

Concerts are a very valuable revenue stream going forward for the business and it’s fantastic that we are now back on the map in this regard. We are also working hard to secure more events in the future and we will keep you posted on this.

I truly believe that if everyone in and around the town comes along and supports the club and hotel events, then we will slowly, but surely, get back to where this great club once was and will be a force to be reckoned with once again, not forgetting the help it gives in returning us to a financially sustainable basis.

This coming Monday meanwhile, there will see a number of events taking place at Macron Stadium, with the club’s annual Carol Service being held in the Premier Suite from 7pm onwards, tickets for which cost just £1 and can be purchased from our retail outlet.

There will also be a number of first team players in attendance prior to the service itself for a signing session in Bolton Central – details of which are available on our website and social media outlets.

Your support of the football club in many different ways however is wholly appreciated and will ultimately play its part in helping the players out there on the field. 

As always, let’s be loud, let’s be proud and let’s get behind the team this weekend.

Kind regards,

Ken 

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