WANDERERS are through to Round Two of the Carabao Cup and added a few extra pennies to their party kitty - but a flat performance against Barrow gave little cause for celebration.

Those fans who turned would have hoped Zac Ashworth’s free kick at the end of the first half would open up a game that had been farcically one-sided to that point.

Barrow had come to defend, and little more. And who could blame them?

But when the Cumbrians refused to budge after the break it was a little concerning to see how the ideas dried up for Bolton, who by the end of stoppage time were suddenly and unexpectedly forced on to the back foot to protect their own penalty box with their lives.

Cup football is all about the outcome, and Bolton will argue they got the job done with a second consecutive clean sheet and almost complete domination for 90-plus minutes. But convincing they most certainly were not, especially in the second half of the game.

Evatt made eight changes to the side that had coasted past Lincoln City on the opening day of the season giving a first start to Joel Coleman, Will Forrester, Ashworth, Paris Maghoma and Carlos Mendes Gomes.

The script was not hard to predict. The League Two Bluebirds came to camp on the edge of their box and frustrate wherever possible, relying on counters and set-pieces to try and get themselves a toehold in the game.

You might say Bolton’s struggle to break down the lowest of low blocks was also predictable but at least in the first half there was something to admire in the way they went about it, not least the fleet-footed Maghoma, whose enterprise on the ball provided some tantalising glimpses of what might be in store this season.

If anything, Wanderers had too much going on. With Maghoma, Gomes, Cameron Jerome and Dan Nlundulu all jostling for similar space, the old adage about too many chefs came to mind.

Until Ashworth broke the deadlock just before half time with a low free-kick, the game bore more of a resemblance to a training drill of attack versus defence. Evatt’s side had 80 per cent possession going into the break and had carved out a couple of presentable chances.

Nlundulu poked a shot straight at keeper Paul Farman five minutes in, Barrow having been carved open by some marvellous touches of skill from Maghoma.

And moments later the on-loan Brentford man was released down the right after a rapid succession of one-touch passes, his low cross picking out Gomes, who could not get his feet sorted in time.

Barrow’s only clear sight of goal came after a half-cleared corner fell to Junior Tiensia, whose blasts at goal then cannoned off his team-mate Courtney Duffus and wrong-footed Coleman, bouncing thankfully wide of the post.

That Wanderers managed to get themselves ahead will have taken a little of the urgency out of Evatt’s team-talk at the interval.

Jerome won the free-kick that led to Ashworth’s first senior goal – using every ounce of his experience to lean into marker George Ray and draw a soft foul 20 yards from goal. West Brom loanee Ashworth did the rest, earning a few bob for the players’ kitty in the process.

The second half began at a sluggish pace with Barrow showing little sign of coming out of their shell to pursue an equaliser.

As the game slowed, the atmosphere also descended into a hushed whisper. At one stage Nlundulu picked the ball up on halfway and his team-mate’s calls for a pass conjured up that famous meme of Alan Partridge calling across the car park. With such trivial things you sometimes must entertain yourself in the early cup rounds.

Ashworth continued to be a reliable outlet on the left, putting in a couple of good crosses. He also worked a corner out to Josh Dacres-Cogley, who sent a rare shot flying into the North Stand.

Evatt signalled his intent to try and put the result to bed early by sending on fresh legs in the shape of Dion Charles, Aaron Morley, Kyle Dempsey and Vic Adeboyejo with a good 15 minutes of time remaining.

At that point Wanderers never looked in danger of allowing the game to slip out of their grasp. Indeed, each time Barrow even contemplated putting a ball into the channel for a striker to chase, Ricardo Santos turned on the afterburners and dispensed with the danger in moments.

George Thomason may have been feeling sorry for Coleman’s lack of action, sending him at one point on a 30-yard sprint with a shanked back-pass to prevent a corner.

The few hundred travellers from Cumbria roared on every touch, grasping any positives they could for the long journey back north on a Tuesday night.

Bolton’s supporters were desperate for something to send them home happy from a second half that had provided very little entertainment value whatsoever.

Adeboyejo had a brief glimpse at the end of normal time after Wanderers had picked their way around the Barrow team bus but could only scoop a shot over the bar.

In seven minutes of stoppage time - which felt a little on the masochistic side - he brought a save out of keeper Farman after getting on the end of Morley cross from the right.

Suddenly in added time, Barrow found some attacking nous. Had sub David Worrall connected better with a 94th-minute shot, there really would have been an inquest into the Whites’ inability to put their opponents away. A string of late throws and crosses had the Whites penned in for the first time in the game – and while a penalty shootout would hardly have been deserved, it did not look completely impossible as Bolton’s defenders resorted to hacking the ball clear by the end.

Untidy? Yes. There may be some snobbery in expecting Wanderers to have scored a hatful but better will be expected at Cheltenham on Saturday where once again they will be under pressure to bring home the points.