Ian Evatt is backing his players to keep handling the pressure as his in-form team looks to stay on a roll, writes Pete Oliver.
Wanderers go to Bristol Rovers on Saturday in search of a ninth win in their last 13 League One games.
Despite some criticism, that run has taken Evatt’s men to within goal difference of the top six and a place firmly in the chasing pack.
And after a comeback win over Mansfield Town in mid-week the manager is preparing his men for another weekend in the spotlight as they bid for a fifth away win of the campaign at Bristol Rovers.
“We're on a good run. Twenty-six points from 12 games is a good return but we're hungry for more we want more,” said Evatt, who marked his 250th game as Bolton boss with his 126th victory.
“We understand there's pressure and that pressure is not going anywhere anytime soon, so we have to be able to perform under that scrutiny and that pressure. So far, we've managed to do that and we need to keep doing that and that goes again for the game on Saturday.
“That's the nature of the industry we’re in and the club that we're at. We are always under scrutiny and under huge pressure and we have to be able to cope with it and deal with it.
“But as I've said to the players that can be a huge positive. In society nowadays, resilience, how to deal with adversity, how to combat bad times, dark times, is really poignant.
“We've shown that we can do that and it will stand the players in football and in life in good stead for the future. We'll keep working hard to try and perform as best we can under the pressure and scrutiny we're all under.”
Wanderers kicked off a big December with three late goals to overpower the Stags on Tuesday night and make it five wins and a draw from their last six games at the Toughsheet Community Stadium.
Huddersfield (in the Vertu Trophy) and local rivals Wigan Athletic are next up at home but first Wanderers will be looking to add to their points’ tally on the road against a Rovers’ side with just one win in their last six league games but with manager Matt Taylor back at the helm following a leave of absence for family reasons.
“In terms of the league table on league standings we're not where we want to be but we are bang there and bang in touch,” added Evatt, who will have captain George Thomason back from a ban but will have to assess midfield colleague Josh Sheehan, who has undergone a scan on a possible hamstring issue.
“We know we haven't played our best football yet. We've played good football. We've done it in spells in games, but we haven't done it consistently enough for my liking so far which I see as a positive because if we can get to those levels more consistently, we're going to continue to win games because we have proved we can. We are winning games at the moment and we have to keep going.
“We've won eight out of the last 12 which is a pretty good record. Just our mindset at the moment is focused on the next game and on Bristol Rovers.
“We know they had a disappointing result on Tuesday. Wounded animals are always the most dangerous so we expect a reaction, especially in front of their own fans, and we have to make sure we are ready for that and do all we can to get another very important three points.”
Watch the full pre-match interview with the manager and hear from ever-present wing-back Josh Dacres-Cogley on Wanderers TV