BOLTON Wanderers are returning triumphant from their first European excursion on Friday - hungry for more.
They left it nerve-wrackingly late and it took a stroke of luck to overcome Lokomotiv Plovdiv in what proved a tough first round tie.
But they booked their place in next Tuesday's draw for the group phase of the UEFA Cup with a 4-2 aggregate victory over the Bulgarians. Trailing 1-0 with just 11 minutes to go, they came from behind, as they had done in the first leg at the Reebok Stadium two weeks earlier, to win the second leg 2-1 and guarantee themselves at least four more European ties - two at home and two away, all against different opponents.
It was a memorable night at the Naftex Stadium in Burgas on the Black Sea coast, where Wanderers, who looked like falling at the first hurdle, got lucky when Lokomotiv defender, Alexander Tunchev conceded a 79th minute own goal. That effectively sealed the home side's fate but Kevin Nolan made sure, wrapping up a 2-1 victory seven minutes later.
It was a performance of character rather than quality that brought Wanderers a winning debut in Europe, but it was also an experience that has whetted appetites as they look forward to the lucrative group stages that could be worth up to £3 million.
Chairman, Phil Gartside, reacted to the triumph with a mixture of relief, delight and anticipation.
"When you have a bit of this, you want more," he said. "You want more and more of it. You just can't resist it."
The man who has been at the helm for the last six years, masterminding Wanderers' rise from the lower reaches of the old First Division to the upper echelons of the Premiership and now into Europe, refuses to accept there are limits to what Sam Allardyce and his players can achieve.
"At the moment we are third in the league, and deserve to be there, and now into the UEFA Cup group system," he said.
"We need a good draw and we need a bit of luck, which we had last night, but who knows what we can achieve?"
Whatever they achieve on the European front, Gartside still sees success on the domestic front as the true yardstick to progress, whether that means challenging for a Champions League place or chasing success in one of the two main cup competitions.
"We got close to the Champions League last year, so that would be nice," he said. "But we'd like a domestic trophy. That would be important to us a bit of silverware in the cabinet for the first time in a long time. That's what we're after.
"But we have come a long way."
Wanderers continue to impress wealthier and more illustrious Premiership rivals with the success they have achieved on limited resources, respect Gartside believes has been hard earned
"It's about time somebody was envious of us," he said, "but we don't really care what anybody else thinks. This is an achievement for the 2,000 people who were with us last night and the 25,000 who will be there for the next home game, as well as all the people who work at the club.
"It's bout tight budgets, yes, but it's also about attention to detail. And it's no just about the playing staff, it's about all aspects of the club."
And in a swipe at the critics who have been putting down the quality of football, the Bolton chief added: "There's nothing wrong with football when you can njoy stuff like that last night."
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