[Amelia Chaffinch]

    

The Cock-up Kings v T'rotters

Sunday 28th December 2014

3 pm kick-off

Welcome to the last match thread of 2014. Presented to you by AmChaff because no one else wanted to do it. Ordinarily I wouldn't be at this match because I have to work Sundays and there is a holiday ban most of December and January. However, I begged my colleague for a shift swap and, once she realised it would give her 4 days off in a row instead of 3 over Christmas, she snapped my hand off. So I will be in work from 3pm to 10pm  on Saturday so that I can go. The things we do for this club! Will they give me a win to make up for it? What have you done to get time off for a match when you have needed to? 

It doesn't seem two minutes since our last match thread v the Trotters probably because, comparatively speaking, it wasn't. Our away fixture was only on 29th November which was just 29 days ago. That was a 1-0 win to the Wanderers, Craig Davies the scorer. I'm not going to bang on about history, etc because it was covered only a few weeks ago by Snoots, not that he gives TMI or anything*.     

We come into this match having blown a 2-0 lead against Rotherham (bastards**) to draw 2-2. All was looking rosy; Vaughan returned to the starting line-up and scored, followed by a super goal from Coady. We were left wondering how we could throw it away. 

Bolton, on the other hand, are riding high after winning 5 of their last 8. The other 3 were draws. Not too shabby for a team that were in trouble not so long back.

Bolton born and bred ...

Sara Cox (Radio 2 DJ), Johnny Ball (Zoe's dad), Vernon Kay (Mr Tess Daley), Stu Francis (Crack-er-jack!), Hilary Devey (dragon), Fred Dibnah (does it work?), Hylda Baker (has he been?), Peter Kay (it's the future), Paddy McGuinness (ding dang do), Mark Radcliffe (Mark and Lard), Dave Spikey (Jerry St Clair), David Flitcroft (manager of Barnsley at the time of those remarkable end of season scenes at the JSS) and loads more!

Famous Bolton Wanderers fans include Vernon Kay, Paddy McGuinness and Amir Khan. 

Did you know that ...

Most disposable bedpans in the world are made in Bolton by Vernacare?



The pub Ye Olde Man and Scythe is one of the 10 oldest pubs in Britain?



It's Titanic connections? Captain Stanley of the SS Californian, the one nearest to the Titanic when she went down, and Sir Arthur Royston who was captain of RMS Carpathia, the one that answered to SOS of the Titanic, were both from Bolton!


Captain Stanley and the SS Californian (I think!)


Sir Arthur's grave (random photo selection, I know!)


FL72 ...

No, not the 72 clubs in the league, the combined ages of Eidur Gudjohnsen and Emile Heskey who have both, at 36, signed for Bolton Wanderers. Heskey came on as sub at 46' against Blackburn on Boxing Day and scored an equaliser on 59'. 




Lennon and Heskey at Leicester

Other team news ...

Jermaine Beckford won't be bothering us because he is back under the wing of Simon Grayson as a loanee at PNE until the end of the season.

It will be Grant Holt's last match for us as our loanee, as he goes back to Wigan following this and, oddly enough, his return match for them will be against Bolton in the FA Cup! Or will we have seen the last of him already as he went off with an injured knee against Rotherham on Boxing Day?

My team ...

Based on injuries, the fact that Powell obviously favours Wallace to Gerrard, Vaughan appears to be fully fit (she says with fingers crossed behind her back), my team would be:

And to all Town fans and welcome visitors to this board I wish you a  :)

* Actually, they are good but don't tell him I said that. 
** you will need to be a Beiderbecke Trilogy fan to understand this