James Trafford believes the saves he made in the draw against Cambridge United are just part of his job for Bolton Wanderers as he feels Ian Evatt's side are developing as a team.
In a first half which did not sparkle, Wanderers came closest to taking the lead firstly through Jack Iredale's deflected effort which Amadou Bakayoko almost got on the end of. Then Elias Kachunga volleyed over from the edge of the box as the deadlock remained at the break.
Early in the second half, Trafford produced a marvellous save to deny Harvey Knibbs the opener. Wanderers broke forward not long after and Dion Charles eventually blasted over, while Gethin Jones nodded wide from close range from a set piece which could have seen Wanderers go ahead.
READ MORE: Bolton Wanderers player ratings vs Cambridge United - James Trafford & Ricardo Santos good in draw
Kyle Dempsey was given his marching orders with 15 minutes to go after bringing Knibbs down, following an earlier booking on Jack Lankester. And Knibbs saw an effort savd by Trafford from eight yards out with the last act of the game as the spoils were shared and Bolton ended the game with 10 men.
Trafford and his team-mates picked up a point and a clean sheet in the encounter. The Manchester City loanee analysed his saves he made in the clash, but believes that is merely his job, as he believes Wanderers have developed as a team which helped them get something from the clash.
He said: “I thought it was a really good game, to be honest, both teams had chances. On another day we put them away but it is just part and parcel of the game.
“It’s my job, to be honest, I’m not going to let them in. The ball is there, I save it, but the defenders made lots of blocks, the midfielders and strikers press, it is a team effort.
“The last one, the ball got flicked back in, their guy ran on and I knew I couldn’t win the ball, so I just had to block him. It came off my leg and went wide.
“Nothing can really got through your mind in that half a second.
“I feel like we are developing as a team. We did well to hold on to the point but it isn’t like we sat in and protected a point. We created chances and anything could have happened.
“It is pleasing we didn’t cave in. But then we know we can do that.
“Last season at Morecambe we got a point, then this season we played for much longer in hot weather and still got a point at Port Vale. It isn’t anything we don’t know."
Dempsey was shown a second yellow card with 15 minutes of normal time remaining. It appeared to be a harsh one, with Dempsey and Knibbs merely appearing to run into one another. However, referee Darren Drysdale deemed it worthy of brandishing a second yellow card, which means Dempsey will be suspended for next Saturday's clash against Fleetwood Town.
Trafford was in a similar collision earlier in the game when he picked up a dead leg. Giving his verdict on the sending off, he is unsure what his team-mate could have done differently in the incident.
He added: "I genuinely don’t know what he (Dempsey) could have done. The guy ran into him and went down."
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