Jack Iredale believes Bolton Wanderers cannot use the pitch as an excuse for a tough second half display in the win over Chorley and believes they will have difficult surfaces they must deal with playing on in the upcoming campaign if they want to be successful.
Wanderers were in action this afternoon against the National League North side for their second pre-season friendly. They travelled to Victory Park on the back of a 9-0 win over Longridge Town on Tuesday evening.
They went in 2-0 up at the break thanks to goals from Dion Charles and Jon Dadi Bodvarsson. Elias Kachunga added a third after the break and Connor Hall grabbed one back for the Magpies before full-time in a 3-1 victory.
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A different Wanderers team emerged after the break, which Iredale was part of, and was unable to carve out chances in the final third, aside from the set piece which Kachunga scored from. The pitch, which boasted longer grass than usually would be expected, did not help the usual slick passing style Wanderers like to play.
But Iredale believes this season that he and his team mates will have times this campaign where they will have difficult playing surfaces on the road and they must deal with that and sides sitting in a low block. He is pleased with the progress he has has made at Wanderers since joining this summer and is looking forward to kicking on with the club in the upcoming campaign.
He said: “The pitch made it difficult but we can’t use it as an excuse, we are going to go to places this season where we will have a tough surface to play on. We have to come up with better ways to deal with it.
“The last one we played on in pre-season was a bit better, so that was a new experience, but we definitely could have dealt with it better and we will do in the future.
“When a team is in a low block – and we will come up against that plenty of times this season – it is up to us to move the ball around with more urgency because it is the only way we are going to break them down. That is the information we have been given so we take that on board and do it next time. We know what we didn’t do well enough.
“Pre-season is always tough but there will be blocks during the season where you play Saturday-Tuesday a few weeks on the bounce, you’ll be fatigued, but it is something we have to deal with if we are going to be successful.
“I feel the benefit of it right now. I felt really good in the game on Tuesday and since then there has been a lot of work, a lot of information has been coming my way as I’m trying to adapt to a new formation. It is tough but I feel like I am learning a lot and I am adapting quite well.
“The sun is out today – and I don’t think that will happen once during the actual season. We’ll have sideways rain and all sorts of other conditions to deal with.
“The point of a good team is to deal with all those conditions and to find ways to win. This was a lesson and it is one we have learned already and can move on to the next game.
“My experience of football at past clubs is that I have been able to defend as part of the team but also to get on the ball and attack. This is a perfect opportunity to combine both of those and progress my career.
“I am really happy to be at a club of this size and to get an opportunity from the gaffer and the coaching staff to come into this team and show what I can do. I’m looking forward to getting the season started, getting some consistency and some momentum.”
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