Bristol Rovers boss Joey Barton admits his side were under “loads of pressure” during the second half of their 1-1 draw against Wanderers.
It looked like Josh Coburn’s early opener would be enough to see Barton’s side secure all three points on the road.
But Dion Charles scored a superb equaliser in the fourth minute of stoppage time as the Whites’ pressure finally paid off.
Barton admitted he was “gutted” to concede so late but felt there were positives to take from his side’s defensive display.
He said: " We were a minute or so away from getting the job done. It's a kick in the proverbials, but credit to Bolton. They had us under loads of pressure in the second half and we found it tough to get out of our half and clear our lines.
"While we defended superbly in there, I still think we needed a bit more quality on the transition and if you sit back too deep and they keep putting the ball in your box, eventually they will land with a chance.
"I've watched the goal back and I think there will be a couple of people disappointed with their part in it, it’s part of our learning. It's a sucker punch for us but we came here and we knew in the past couple of games, we were going to play sides who were top eight or top 10 in the division.
"Coming to this stadium today off the back of the FA Cup defeat, we were probably not as confident as we could be but we got off to a great start.
"I don't think we've played particularly well. We've had little spells in there but we're disappointed with our level of performance.
"We've defended superbly at times and we were disciplined in that regard but we can play so much more football.”
The result keeps Wanderers fifth in the League One table, although they did miss an opportunity to close the gap on a couple of the sides above them.
Ian Evatt’s men are back in action on Saturday, December 10 when they travel to New Meadow to take on Shrewsbury.
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 The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.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 hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel