Ian Evatt candidly admits he has a 'useless' record as a manager in cup competitions at Bolton Wanderers and is aiming to improve on his record this evening when Salford City visit in the first round of the Carabao Cup.
The Whites take on the Ammies at the University of Bolton Stadium this evening. It will be the first time the two sides have played since the 2020/21 season, where Wanderers came out on top in the two clashes in League Two.
Evatt has a promotion and a ninth placed finish with Wanderers in league action during his two full seasons in charge of the club. The Whites have not fared anywhere near as well in cup competitions during that time.
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In his first season in charge, Evatt's side were dumped out of both the FA Cup and Carabao Cup at the first round stage. They exited the EFL Trophy at the group stage.
Last season saw a slight improvement, with Wanderers reaching the second round of the Carabao Cup following a penalty shootout win over Barnsley, only to exit the competition via the same method at the hands of Wigan Athletic. Bolton were knocked out of the FA Cup following a first round replay against Stokcport County.
In the Papa John's Trophy, as it is now know, Wanderers were knocked out by League Two side Hartlepool following a goalkeeping error by Joel Dixon. Evatt is aiming to improve his record in cup competitions this season and insists the record is not by design.
He felt Wanderers were unlucky with their exit in the Carabao Cup and Papa John's Trophy last season. After a positive start to the season, Evatt knows Wanderers cannot rest on their laurels as he knows full well from last campaign how form can turn.
He said: “There’s no denying it, I have been useless in the cups. I have no idea why – it isn’t by design. I don’t want to be out of them.
“Last season I thought we were unlucky, to be honest, losing the Wigan game on penalties was disappointing having beaten a Championship side here in the first round. We thought we were on a good roll in the Papa John’s then Joel passed straight to a centre forward at Hartlepool and we were out again.
“It wasn’t that bad – the FA Cup the less said about that, the better – but it isn’t by design. We want to go through, I want to do better and the club and the board want that too because financially it could be a huge thing for us.
“They look that way but things change pretty quickly in football. I was looking at last season’s results, early on, and they were pretty good until October, November and December, but then it was a disaster.
“We can’t rest on our laurels. It is always about how you manage the downs because when things are going well, everyone is happy, things are easy. That’s the way it is now after Saturday and the expectancy has gone through the roof. It is up to us to keep feet on the ground, stay humble and keep improving."
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