It was a massive night for Bolton Wanderers as they booked their place in the EFL Trophy final, securing their first visit to Wembley since 2011.
Beating Accrington Stanley 2-0 on the road with a quickfire pair of goals from Elias Kachunga and Aaron Morley in the 82nd and 84th, the Trotters managed to book themself into the Papa Johns Trophy final 100 years on from their first-ever trip to the iconic English stadium.
The hosts were forced to play with 10 men after just 20 minutes or so which might sound like an advantage for Bolton, but it also made for a very tense and defensive display, meaning they had to battle for a win at the Wham.
Nevertheless, Ian Evatt’s side managed to break down the low block in some stunning scenes.
Set to face off against fellow League One club Plymouth Argyle on April 2, this will be Bolton’s 14th showing at Wembley in their nearly 150-year history. Last time they were there they got pumped 5-0 by Stoke City in the FA Cup semi-final.
ADVERTISEMENT
As one of the oldest clubs in the world (1874) and one of the founding members of the football league in 1888, their recent history has been a turbulent one, to say the least, nearly going bust altogether back in 2019 and only being saved by the taxpayer, pandemic loans and a last-minute buyout.
That being said, it’s no wonder that the fans erupted in ecstasy when the full-time whistle blew and an almost requisite pitch invasion ensued.
ADVERTISEMENT
Bolton fans celebrating a win at Accrington Stanley pitch. The Trotters booked trip to Wembley. #bwfcpic.twitter.com/infYZ7SQ64
Speaking after the game, Evatt admitted: “This is probably the most nervous I’ve ever been in my career. This is the first time I’ve felt a bit of pressure because I wanted it so much for so many people.
“Most importantly, the fans. They’ve been through so much and now, to have a Wembley cup final is something to be incredibly proud of.”
It isn’t the only big news for Bolton this week, though, as on Monday the Wanderers finally announced the new name for their iconic stadium. Safe to say it’s tickled a few…
Details released of Andy Burnham’s meetings with Manchester City owners while Mayor
Emily Sergeant
Details of Andy Burnham’s meetings with Manchester City owners during his tenure as Mayor of Greater Manchester have been released.
In case you need bringing up to speed on the situation a little first, Manchester City was found guilty back in September all of its charges related to the Premier League’s financial rules over a nine-season period, and on top of that, was also found guilty of the majority of charges in relation to its failure to co-operate with the League’s investigation.
According to the Premier League, the independent Commission found that Manchester City had arranged so-called ‘sham’ commercial deals with a number of its sponsors.
These were part of a disguised funding scheme – with those sponsors only required to pay a portion of the relevant sponsorship fees.
The remainder was then funded by Abu Dhabi United Group Investment & Development Ltd (ADUG), which owned the club.
The Commission also concluded, as quoted by the Premier League, that the club had ‘made concerted efforts to stop and frustrate the Premier League investigation’.
Within the past week or so, it has since come to light that now-Prime Minister Andy Burnham had dealings with Manchester City during his tenure as Greater Manchester Mayor, and Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) has now issued a public statement, giving details on the matter and what these ‘dealings’ entailed.
A spokesperson for GMCA confirmed that Burnham had a ‘formal meeting’ with Man City Chairman, Khaldoon Al Mubarak, back in October 2021.
The statement reads in full: “In October 2021, Andy Burnham, in his role as Mayor of Greater Manchester, had a formal meeting with Khaldoon Al Mubarak at the UK Government’s Global Investment Summit arranged by the Department for International Trade.
“In his capacity as Mayor, he was a guest of Manchester City FC at home matches on a small number of occasions, including attending Vincent Kompany’s testimonial match in September 2019, where he met the Chairman informally in the stands. These have been declared in the usual way.
“Also during his time as Mayor, representatives of Greater Manchester sporting clubs would routinely join business delegations as part of Mayoral international visits.
“This included representatives from Manchester United travelling to Austin and Dublin, Lancashire Cricket Club joining a delegation to India, and Manchester City FC staff supporting visits to China and Japan.”
Featured Image – Lauren Hurley / Number 10 Downing Street (Press Image via Flickr)
Sport
Multiple arrests made for ‘tragedy chanting’ and police officer assault as Man City defeated Liverpool
Emily Sergeant
Multiple people were arrested over the weekend as Manchester City defeated Liverpool in a Premier League clash.
Merseyside Police have confirmed that a total of 10 people were arrested during the policing operation at Liverpool’s home ground of Anfield as they hosted Manchester City on Sunday 11 October.
One man was arrested on suspicion of assaulting a police constable, five were on suspicion of tragedy chanting, one on suspicion of being drunk and disorderly, two for affray, and one on suspicion of throwing items onto the pitch.
Police are now appealing to the public, and are particularly looking to speak to witnesses of the assault of the officer.
At around 6:35pm, as fans left the stadium, a police officer sustained a ‘serious facial injury’ during the arrest of a man on Anfield Road, and was subsequently taken to hospital for treatment but is now recovering at home.
Investigating officers are now conducting enquiries, speaking to witnesses, and analysing CCTV and camera phone footage.
Chief Inspector Leanne Hobin said it’s ‘extremely disappointing’ that an officer has sustained a serious injury while carrying out their duty.
“I hope the arrests send a clear message and act as a deterrent to others,” Chief Inspector Hobin continued. “Anyone who engages in this abhorrent behaviour risks ending up in custody and getting a criminal record.
“Despite the actions of a few, the overwhelming majority of the 60,000 fans in attendance behaved well and I want to thank them for their co-operation.”
Manchester City ended up defeated Liverpool 3-0 during the Premier League clash at Anfield.
Danny Jones -
23rd February 2023 
