Josh Dacres-Cogley on first pre-season at Bolton Wanderers

Dacres-Cogley joined on a free transfer earlier this summer after his deal at League Two Tranmere expired.

The pacy wing-back is eager to play his part over the coming season as Ian Evatt’s men aim to build on last term’s fifth-place finish in League One.

“It is really exciting,” he told The Bolton News. “From when I first signed, it was pure excitement to be part of this club and hopefully push for automatic promotion.

“That is the aim - that is what is in my head and everybody’s heads in the dressing room. That is what we are going for this year.”

Dacres-Cogley added: “Bolton speaks for itself. The club’s history, the size of the club and speaking with the manager, it was a no-brainer for me to come and join the boys to help them try to get promoted.”

The 27-year-old was an important figure for Tranmere last season, making 52 appearances in all competitions last season as the club finished 12th in League Two.

Prior to his time on Merseyside, he came through the ranks at Birmingham City and also had a stint on loan at Crawley.

The wing-back has made a positive impression during his first pre-season with Wanderers and was on target in the 3-1 win at Curzon Ashton earlier this month.

He relishes opportunities to contribute in the final third and he reckons the Whites’ system is a natural fit for his game.

“I relish that role of being able to go forward and get in behind, even coming back to help Geth (Jones) defend,” the former Tranmere man continued.

“It has been a massive positive for me. I am still learning from the team so it can only improve from here.

“(Goals and assists) are something I want to improve on even more so I can contribute to the team. It will come with time with the boys seeing what runs I am making and things like that.”

There is plenty of competition in the Bolton squad heading into the new campaign and the likes of Gethin Jones, Randell Williams and Kieran Sadlier have all played at right wing-back at times.

Dacres-Cogley knows it will not be easy to nail down a place in the side but is determined to show what he is capable of in the coming weeks and months.

“It is always healthy to have good competition because you are always on your toes,” he explained. “You know you need to perform and you want to be at your best every game.

“Sometimes when you have got a smaller squad, some lads might take it a bit easy if they know they are going to play each week.

“But that is not the case here, everyone knows they need to work hard in training to prove they deserve a spot on Saturday.”

The wing-back got to experience playing at the Toughsheet Community Stadium for the first time during the goalless draw against Everton on Tuesday night.

He enjoyed the challenge of coming up against Premier League opposition and is confident it will stand the squad in good stead ahead of their curtain raiser against Lincoln City on Saturday, August 5.

“I think it was a good overall performance, a good workout for the boys against Premier League opposition. It is something to build on towards the season,” the 27-year-old stated.

“You know it is going to be tough when you are playing against Premier League players and we knew that before that game started.

“We just tried to do the best we could as a team and stay together. Obviously, we kept it 0-0 so it is a good result.”

Before the league campaign gets under way, Wanderers also have a tough test against Championship outfit West Brom in their final pre-season outing.

“That will be a similar kind of test,” Dacres-Cogley explained. “Obviously, we want to go one better and try to score some goals and give the fans something to cheer.

“Hopefully, we can take that into the following Saturday for the start of the season.

“For any player you would ask in the dressing room, you just want to get the season started now.

“It feels like we have been in pre-season for a while, so we are raring to get the league started and obviously try to get as many wins as possible to push up the table.”