2014 is about to come to an end- here is a year in reflection at Vital Bolton
So, I guess this’ll be a bit similar to the guest ‘Vital Bolton Christmas Dinner’ poem. I’ll be looking at all the best moments on this site and at the club about which we write.
I might not be the best person to be doing this, having only become editor 4-5 months ago. However, I’ve read this site for years and I hope I do everyone and everything justice.
So now, the awards…
Best Goal of 2014
We’ve had a few crackers this year- Lukas Jutkiewicz against Bournemouth and even Darren Pratley’s goal against Huddesfield stand out among many. However, I’m going to praise a man who’s come in for a lot of stick (deserved to be fair)- that would be Liam Trotter’s goal against Sheffield Wednesday. I still have no idea how we did that…
Best Player of 2014
This was very hard. To stand out among 20 or so other players as the best for a whole year requires consistency. It also helps if you’re at the club for most of this time and so I’m awarding this to Neil Danns. He had a bit of a rough patch earlier on this season, though I feel his contribution last season and since Neil Lennon came in deserves him this award. The likes of Tim Ream came close, though he’s played in too many positions to allow him consistency.
Best Signing of 2014
This was very very hard- Max Clayton, Joe Mason, Neil Danns, Eidur and Emile Ivanhoe Heskey all came into contention. However, I really struggled to find anyone who made a bigger impact than Lukas Jutkiewicz. Well done Juke!
Best Senior debut of 2014
It’s been greta to see young players getting their debuts at Bolton, admittedly it would have been nice to have more. Hayden White and Oscar Threlkeld came close, however Andy Kellet was fantastic against Leicester City.
Best Manager of 2014
Since we’ve had two managers in one year, I can do this. Neil Lennon wins…
Best Moment of 2014
This could have easily been one of our wins 4-0 or 5-1 wins from last season, because they felt fantastic. It could have been Eidur Gudjohnsen joining, or Neil Lennon first match- even Jutkiewicz’s last goal for us against Birmingham. However, for me it was a few days ago- Emile Ivanhoe Heskey’s goal against Blackburn. The noise generated from our incredible fans was unforgettable.
Biggest Regret of 2014
Not seeing Chris Eagles shine again is easily my biggest regret. Had we just convinced him to stay on he’d rip defences apart again under Neil Lennon. Other might say not signing the Juke or not seeing Stuart Holden return, but losing our best player from the previous season was a huge blow.
Best Commenter of 2014
I’m guessing you all know how hard this has been to pick from. The likes of Aussie Mike, Barney Grumble, Boltongav, Harwood61, Skopleos Chris, robmoss2k, Fred Madagascar, Muur, El Cynico… have all been fantastic. I really wish I could name all of you in this article because your comments have been a joy to read and really do make the site what it is, and many of you have been doing this for a number of years and I thank you for this. Since this has been so hard, I’ve been unable to pick one- superiority does not exist in opinion-sharing in my opinion, so I’d just like to thank you again for being so great.
Thank you so much for supporting this site over the year. I think I can speak on behalf of Mr Ecky in saying that all of the readers of this site really do make it what it is. This year has been very hard for Bolton and I do question how you keep faith- I certainly struggle to do so. The future does look on the up for our beloved club though, as manager Neil Lennon continues to work his magic.
I’d like to take this time to say that we have a new writer on board- his name is Rob Latham and he has worked with me before in the past at one of my previous sites- ‘Iterum Football’. Don’t look it up- it’s awful. He’ll be writing a few a week as we aim to increase the amount of content for you.
Here’s to a great 2015! Thanks for all your support.