THE timer is running down, the pressure is on, but has Dougie Freedman already solved the conundrum?
Look up momentum in the dictionary and there may well be mention of Bolton Wanderers, who are now going like the proverbial steam train after a fifth successive win.
If anyone was doubting their play-off credentials prior to facing Brighton, then this kind of gritty show should have won them over.
Marcos Alonso gave Wanderers a lead they never considered surrendering, and while the Whites have looked more fluent in recent weeks, they have rarely had this steely look of a team smack bang in form.
It is a numbers game at this stage of the season – nine games remaining, 27 points to play for. And though Cardiff, Palace, Watford and Hull are battling to be the “two from the top,” there now appears to be two play-off places up for grabs for those who want to take them.
Freedman is not getting excited. It is not his style. But the Whites boss definitely knows he is on to something.
For a good few months Wanderers fans were questioning the club's direction, and in fact whether a relegation scrap was more likely than one for the top six.
And it was at that stage, on the breezy pitches at Euxton, that Freedman believes he laid the groundwork for what is happening right now.
“I know when it happened,” the manager said. “It was done on a cold November afternoon when everyone was watching Countdown. We were there training.”
Slowly but surely, it seems the Freedman message is sinking in with the supporters too.
Whereas early in his tenure defensive substitutions were being treated with a level of disdain, the second-half arrival of Medo and David Wheater to shore things up was well received.
The difference-maker, of course, has been the fact that the Whites are now winning games and backing up the managers words with points on the board.
Brighton, a side that look more than capable of finishing in the top six, exerted plenty of pressure and saw lots of the ball. Thanks to the tireless defensive work in midfield from the likes of Jay Spearing and Darren Pratley, that never amounted to a huge problem but there were a few lapses in marking early on that gave the Seagulls a chance.
Had it not been for Andy Lonergan’s reactions, Wanderers would definitely have found themselves a goal down.
He athletically pushed away a cannonball shot from David Lopez before blocking another goal-bound effort from Ashley Barnes with his foot.
The Whites broke almost immediately and when Alonso found space on the left to drive towards the penalty box, he sent a low shot bouncing into the bottom corner past Tomasz Kuszczak for his third goal of the season.
David Ngog should have doubled the lead just before the break, stabbing Alonso’s cross wide from close in. But it would be in the second half that Wanderers would really need to dig in.
Lopez, Vicente and Adam El-Abd all sent efforts whizzing over Lonergan’s crossbar without the ex-Leeds keeper needing to work.
There was one big chance at the other end for the Whites to settle their nerves as Ngog hit the post with an angled shot and both Chung-Yong Lee and Spearing had shots blocked on the line.
Would they be made to pay? It seemed the Wanderers goal was leading a charmed life when Leonardo Ulloa headed over from point blank range and then sub Will Buckley fluffed his lines after finding himself unmarked at the far post from Vicente’s cross.
Brighton sent on every available attacker, prompting Freedman to send on the defensive reinforcements too.
Those chilly hours doing overload work at Euxton are starting to pay off, however, and there was no loss in continuity late on as the visitors continued their assault.
Liam Bridcutt rolled a volley just wide of the post in the first minute of stoppage time, but that would prove the last time that Lonergan's goal was tested.
Instead, Brighton – and more specifically Barnes – rather lost the plot.
As Spearing clattered into his umpteenth challenge on the touchline, the Seagulls front man was involved in some sort of exchange with referee Nigel Miller that had him reaching straight for his red card.
It seemed a matter of dissent at the time but rumours around the Reebok after the final whistle suggest the 23-year-old may have tripped the official deliberately.
His dismissal did not affect the outcome and proved to be the last incident before Miller relieved the tension completely with the final whistle.
Wanderers had not been at their best but they had been at their most resolute. Another positive result against Ipswich next weekend and the players will have earned a chance to put their feet up for a couple of days and watch some afternoon game shows.
The only fitting nine-letter word that springs to mind right now is “promotion.”
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article