We have profiled three players who have played for both Bolton Wanderers and Southend United.
Michael Ricketts
Born in Birmingham, Ricketts came through the youth ranks with nearby Walsall and scored 15 times in 90 appearances before a £400,000 move to Bolton Wanderers in July 2000.
He enjoyed a great deal of success during his time with Wanderers and even earned a call-up into the England team. Scoring 46 goals in 112 appearances, he moved to Middlesbrough in January 2003 for a fee of £3.5 Million.
Most of the forward’s 18 months in the North East saw him used as a substitute and he never hit great heights for the Teesside club – scoring just 4 goals in 38 appearances. Signing for Leeds United on a free transfer in June 2004, he made 29 appearances (2 goals) for the club during a two-year stay, and during that time he had loan spells with Stoke City, Cardiff City, and Burnley before signing for Southend United in June 2006.
Making just two appearances for the Shrimpers during their time in the Championship, Ricketts left for Preston North End after just six months at Roots Hall and he would go on to have stints with Oldham Athletic, Walsall, and Tranmere Rovers before his eventual retirement from professional football.
Anthony Barness
Coming through the ranks at Charlton Athletic, the full-back earned a move to Chelsea pretty early on in his career – moving to Stamford Bridge in September 1992. Spending almost four years with the Blues, he made just 19 appearances but during that time he had loan spells with Middlesbrough and Southend United.
During his brief time at Roots Hall, Barness made five appearances for the club during the second half of the 1995/96 season and in August 1996 he returned to Charlton Athletic on a permanent basis.
Establishing himself during a four-year period at the Valley, he made a total of 109 appearances (3 goals) before a move to Bolton Wanderers in July 2000 on a free transfer. Playing his part in Bolton’s promotion to the Premier League in 2001, he also featured plenty for the club during their time in the top flight.
Spending a total of five years at the Reebok Stadium as it was then known, Barness made 116 appearances under the management of Sam Allardyce before signing for Plymouth Argyle in June 2005. He went onto have spells with Grays Athletic and Lewes before his retirement in 2011.
Ethan Hamilton
Joining Wanderers as an energetic young midfielder on loan from Manchester United, Hamilton arrived at Bolton Wanderers in January 2020 – linking up with Keith Hill, a manager he had worked with previously during a loan spell at Rochdale.
Brought to England from Scotland by United in 2015 after playing youth football at the famed Hutchinson Vale in Edinburgh, Hamilton made 14 appearances (4 goals) for Rochdale during the second half of the 2018/19 season – his first loan away from Old Trafford.
Spending the first half of last season on loan at Southend United, Hamilton made 18 appearances (1 goal) during his time at Roots Hall and during a relatively short stay with Wanderers, he made 12 appearances. He scored once for the club in a 2-2 draw at Burton Albion – the final game before the March lockdown.
In August, he joined Sky Bet League One promotion contenders Peterborough United on a free transfer.