Bolton Wanderers’ record-breaking season

A season of severe lows at Bolton Wanderers ends with the current crop of players setting a hat-trick of wholly unwanted all-time club records and equalling another.

Not only have The Trotters suffered a record number of league defeats in a season, they’ve also set new club records for the most home league defeats and the least home goals scored in a campaign, as well as tying the record for least home wins.

A deluge of defeats

With one match remaining in this grim season, at Nottingham Forest on Sunday, Bolton have already smashed the club record for most league defeats in a season. With 29 losses thus far, we’re already well beyond the previous record of 26 set during the The Championship relegation campaign in 2015/16.

The “1-0 defeat at home to Brentford” also extends the club record for home league defeats to 15, easily surpassing the previous record of 11 set when suffering relegation from the Premier League back in 2011/12.

For what it’s worth, we also came within one goal of equalling the all-time club records for home and away defeats this season. The 4-0 thrashing at home to Norwich City in February was one short of the 5-0 home defeat Bolton have suffered six times in their history. While the 6-0 spanking at Hull City on New Year’s Day came close to matching the 7-0 defeats at at Burnley in March 1890, at Sheffield Wednesday in March 1915 and at Manchester City in March 1936.

All-time home win low

Bolton’s four home wins this season matches the all-time club record low, which was also previously set in 2011/12. Birmingham City, Derby County, Rotherham United and Millwall ought to be hanging their heads in shame.

But hey, at least we managed to win away this season, which we failed to achieve last time we were relegated from The Championship and in 1979/80 and 1949/50. Not only did we win once, but four times - so thanks to West Bromwich Albion, Reading, Queens Park Rangers and Birmingham for their generosity. But seriously, how bad must Birmingham be for us to do the double over them?

We’ll score when we want... we just don’t want to

Probably the most shocking of all the statistics from this absolute shocker of a season is that Bolton only managed to score 13 home league goals in “23” matches. That smashes the 116-year club record low of 18 home league goals, which had previously been achieved on three occasions in 1902/03, 1897/98 and 1893/94.

Bolton’s away goal-scoring record was positively lethal in comparison, with the tally of 16 goals - until we bag a hat-full at Forest - not even close to threatening the club record low of 10 away goals scored back in 1897/98. However, it only bettered The Championship’s bottom club Ipswich Town’s shambolic 14 away goals.

The combined home and away tally of 29 is already one goal ahead of Bolton’s all-time record low of 28 goals scored in a campaign, which was set in what must have been a terrible 1897/98 season.

However, However, Rotherham, who also suffered relegation to League One this week, managed to score more home goals (31) than Bolton’s total home and away league tally (29). Furthermore, 16 of the other 22 teams in The Championship scored as many or more home league goals than Bolton managed home and away combined.

Some tonic for the defence

The almost slightly good news is that Bolton’s defence managed not to break any unwanted club records. The 35 home goals conceded wasn’t quite as bad the 39 conceded back in 2011/12 - although it’s lucky the EFL didn’t decide to dish out a 5-0, or worse, in the Brentford game. While the 42 away goals conceded doesn’t even come close to the dreadful 59 leaked back in 1932/33.

It’s safe to say it’s not been a season to remember for The Whites and, judging on the shenanigans of the last 24 hours, the pain isn’t even close to stopping for Wanderers fans.