A note from the Chairman

Tuesday evening’s game against Reading was certainly one of conflicting emotions for all involved with Bolton Wanderers.

To go from the high of being two goals ahead to the disappointment of being pegged back at two apiece, before then coming agonisingly close to snatching all three points at the death only to be forced to settle for a solitary point – it was a true rollercoaster of emotions.

As the manager Phil Parkinson said in his post-match interview, there were plenty of positives to take from the game, but overall the general feeling come the final whistle was unfortunately one of frustration that we hadn’t managed to take all three points.

That said, there is still a lot of football to be played and as I have mentioned previously, our upcoming fixtures in December against a number of teams who are in a ‘mini-league’ with us in the form of Barnsley and Burton Albion will undoubtedly be dubbed as six-pointers.

It is imperative that everybody does not dwell on Tuesday’s result – in hindsight, we are a point better off than we were at the start of the game and the players must build on that as we head towards the crucial Christmas period.

For those of you inside Macron Stadium last night, although you will have left feeling ultimately disappointed, I am sure that having woken up this morning and in the cold light of day, you will be able to reflect on the positives from the match – one being your superb support.

We had hoped that more fans would have taken advantage of our reduced prices for the clash, especially with the weather being somewhat mild for this time of year which I know can sometimes play its part for those with young families, and so the attendance was a little disheartening.

It’s absolutely necessary to increase numbers to help in our quest to retain Championship football, as every penny brought in through the gates will help us to strengthen our squad.

Last night’s attendance was the lowest this season, so it proves that lowering the price is not the answer.

When l talk with supporters generally and see comments on social media, everyone is quite rightly positive about retaining our status in the Sky Bet Championship and bringing in new players in January, but we really need for them to come along and support us if we are to have a chance of achieving this.

It is somewhat concerning that we have crowds of some 10,000 less in the Championship than what we had towards the end of last season in League One. 

We now move on, however, and look towards our next league encounter with Wolves on Saturday – a game which will be a tough test for the team given Wolves’ form so far this season.

I have every faith, as I am sure you all do, that if the players perform to the best of their ability, then there is no reason at all why we cannot get a result at Molineux.

Elsewhere, I thoroughly enjoyed the Q&A session which was held in Reflections prior to the game on Tuesday evening and I would like to thank the supporters who were in attendance.

I have always stressed that I am determined to be as open and transparent as possible with you, our fantastic supporters – ultimately, you are the heartbeat of this football club and I want you to feel that you have a say in matters at BWFC.

I hope that those of you in attendance found the event beneficial and that I was able to answer some questions that you may have had prior to it.

I will also be visiting the hospitality suites prior to our upcoming home game against Barnsley on Saturday 2 December where I will be happy to answer your questions.

To book your places for our award-winning hospitality, please CLICK HERE, call our Corporate Sales team on 01204 673 761 or email sales@bwfc.co.uk.

Your support of the football club across the board is hugely important and is very much appreciated.

Kind regards,

Ken

Read Time: 4 mins