Trotters skipper demands more grit

31 August 2009 13:08
Saturday's 3-2 defeat to Liverpool - in which Wanderers led twice - was the club's third successive loss and left them next-bottom of the Premier League, above only Portsmouth on goal difference. Davies believes the team have to learn how to hold onto leads when they get them, especially as Liverpool scored twice after Sean Davis' second-half sending-off. "We try to hang on and hang on but we need to be more resilient right throughout the side, not just the defenders or goalkeeper, everyone," he said. "At 1-0 or 2-1 we have to protect (goalkeeper) Jussi Jaaskelainen, especially the five in front of the back four, and work that little bit harder. "In the end, it's another hard luck story, similar to the one we have had in the last two games, but we have got to try to put it behind us as quickly as we can." An international break means Bolton now have to wait until September 12 for their next match, an already crucial-looking encounter at Portsmouth. Davies said the squad must remember what they did well against Liverpool and ensure they reproduce it in their next game. "We can take something from it (the Liverpool defeat)," he told the Bolton News. "We have scored two goals at home against one of the best sides in Europe but we need to believe in ourselves a little bit more that we can go on and win it. "It's about rolling our sleeves up now, being brave, and getting points." Manager Gary Megson is more interested in getting their season up and running than philosophising on the merits of a 3-2 home defeat. "There were positives but I'm not bothered about positives," he said. "I'd rather be talking about the fact we have played rubbish, there's no work-rate, this is right, that isn't right - oh and by the way, we have got a few points," he said. "We need to play a game that gets us results. We are not far off but that small amount, unless we find it, is going to cause us a huge amount of problems."

Source: Team_Talk