Football: No substitute for firepower

Wimbledon 0 Bolton Wanderers 0 Attendance: 11,356

THESE relegation dogfights are supposed to be tense, nail-biting affairs. This one was not and the greatest injustice would have been if either side had won. Indeed, there is a good case to be argued that they did not even deserve a point apiece.

When the first half failed to produce a goal it was not expecting too much for somebody to have a rush of adrenalin and try to win the point outright. But that did not happen either and the most exciting moment was 20 minutes from time when the Wimbledon dugout flashed three substitution cards which hauled off Carl Leaburn, Jason Euell and Neal Ardley to be replaced by Marcus Gayle, Andy Clarke and Peter Fear.

Manager Joe Kinnear could not be blamed for this desperate throw of the dice as Leaburn had become a static liability by then and Euell, though more energetic, had failed with several clear chances.

Neil Sullivan in the Wimbledon goal was called on to make the only real save of the 90 minutes when Nathan Blake hurled a 20-yard volley straight at him after a sloppy clearance and lucky rebound had given the Bolton striker the scoring chance in the 19th minute.

Bolton's strikers, intelligently led most of the time by the mobile Blake, did cause occasional unrest while Alan Thompson and John Sheridan showed tantalising glimpses of thoughtful perception and passing skills that on another day might have produced a better harvest.

The visitors' main failing was a fixation with over-elaboration when the situation was crying out for someone to take the responsibility of having a go. As it was, when they did pluck up the courage to threaten Sullivan the shots flew high and wide.

Dean Holdsworth did little to mark his return to his old stamping ground although he did manage to open a hole in the Wimbledon defence for Per Frandsen five minutes from time, but it fell on the Dane's weaker left foot.

Two minutes after the restart Euell scuffed his shot in front of goal but the miskick almost caught Keith Branagan on the wrong foot but the keeper recovered to touch the ball over his crossbar.

The Dons still have some space between them and the Premiership's doomed, but many more performances like this and they will not have to plot elaborately their relocation to Dublin - they will be chased out of town.