Bolton Wanderers Res 1. Manchester City Res 4.

By Mark Heys
January 17 2007

Bolton reserves started the New Year on a low note earlier tonight as they lost a Manchester Senior Cup tie at home to local rivals Manchester City.

City struck two of their four goals for the evening within the first twelve minutes of the game when England youth international Daniel Sturridge took advantage of some laxed Bolton defending to beat goalkeeper Chris Howarth.

Howarth, who recently completed a loan spell with Oldham Athletic, proved to be the Wanderers saviour as he kept out a number of first half efforts from the likes of Sturridge and Marc Laird.

Laird had the ball in the net for the visitors but the match officials denied the City striker his first goal of the night as he was deemed to be standing in an offside position.

Bolton pulled a goal back on 70 minutes when Leslie Thompson fired a cross from substitute Kevin Wolze past Andreas Isaksson in the City goal. Any faint hopes of a comeback where shortlived however, as midfielder Michael Johnson fired home a killer third goal for the Citezens soonafter.

The dangerous Sturridge completed his hattrick on 78 minutes with a finish that his uncle Dean, the former Wolves and Derby forward, would have been very proud of but to their credit Bolton kept fighting to the very end and where unlucky not to have scored further goals through Chris Basham and Tom Brooks.

Bolton Wanderers Reserves: Chris Howarth, Matthew Cassidy, Scott Jamieson, Robert Sissons, Blazej Augustyn, Jaroslaw Fojut (Mark Ellis), James Sinclair, Chris Basham, Leslie Thompson, Nathan Wolfe (Kevin Wolze), Tom Brooks.

Manchester City Reserves: Andreas Isakson, Sun Jihai (Shaleum Logan), Sam Williamson (Ched Evans), Nathan D'Laryea, Matthew Mills, Didi Hamann (Ashley Grimes), Djamel Abdoun, Michael Johnson, Ishmael Miller, Daniel Sturridge, Marc Laird.


Attendance: 121