Could Jay Lynch Be the Answer to Bolton's Goalkeeper Question?

Who should be Bolton's number one is a common source of debate among the Wanderers faithful.

Adam Bogdan is highly rated within the club and is relatively young for a goalkeeper at 26. He is also capable of some outstanding saves, but his lapses of concentration and errors are very frustrating to watch.

Then there's Andy Lonergan. He deputised well for Bogdan last season, keeping three clean sheets in five games. There are question marks over his positioning but the defence did seem more comfortable playing in front of him. However, there are also strong rumours that he and Dougie Freedman don't see eye to eye.

Then there's Jay Lynch, the 20-year-old who despite the club website's claims, stands under 6 foot. He is small for a goalkeeper but his agility is incredible, allowing him to make outstanding saves on a regular basis despite only playing at reserve level.

I have it on strong authority that the club have offered him out on loan but managers of other clubs are put off by his height without actually seeing him play. This is a great shame and I believe he would have easily been capped by England at youth level if he was playing regular football in the lower leagues.

This leads to quite the predicament. We either need to find a loan for Jay Lynch somewhere or throw him into the first team picture. I don't believe that throwing a 20-year-old into a Championship game with absolutely no first team experience is the wisest move so the FA Cup in January may be the best opportunity to blood him.

That raises questions about Andy Lonergan though, who had been a first choice for practically his whole career before coming to Bolton and would be further disillusioned if he fell behind a youngster in the pecking order (albeit, one he described as 'absolutely class' when I spoke to him at a recent reserve game).

Not forgetting Adam Bogdan, whose confidence is probably not the best after his recent dropping from the Hungary team for former Crystal Palace, tracksuit bottom wearing keeper Gabor Kiraly.

It's a dilemma for Dougie Freedman and the continued form of Jay Lynch just makes it that bit more difficult. But even if Lynch doesn't get his chance this season, I think we might end up seeing him sooner rather than later.