Manager Ian Evatt shouldered responsibility for Bolton’s latest underwhelming display in a 2-1 home defeat by Barnsley but demanded actions not words from his misfiring stars.
Wanderers were 10 minutes from a first win three games thanks to Klaidi Lolos’ 26th-minute goal.
But Davis Keillor-Dunn and Adam Phillips hit back after 80 and 89 minutes to hand Barnsley a first league win over their hosts in 18 attempts.
“Things need to change and change quickly,” said frustrated Evatt, handed a vote of confidence from the board after the previous home loss to Wigan and growing unrest among fans.
“We got to half time 1-0 up and everything seemed good. The crowd was excellent.
“But all the things we speak about and messages I hear in the changing room are just words. We don’t see enough actions.
“Thirty seconds into the second half, we concede a corner and don’t work hard enough to stop crosses. We gave them an opportunity to build momentum and pressure.
“We just didn’t recover. Our game management was so poor. We continued to play short, loose and play into trouble.
“I don’t think any of us are accepting reasonability. I try to as much as I can.
“That’s my team and they represent me. We are in this together and we have to do this together.
“At the moment we take one step forward and another one or two backwards. It can’t be that way.
“We must perform better, stop with all the right noises and messages and transfer it to the pitch. We must all accept we are nowhere near where we should be.”
Barnsley had never won a league game at the Toughsheet Community Stadium and it was May 1994 when they prevailed 3-2 at Burnden Park.
Thanks though to Keillor-Dunn and Phillips, the Tykes began to set the record straight and partially atone for last season’s aggregate play-off semi-final defeat.
“I was happy with a lot of aspects of the performance,” said manager Darrell Clarke.
“None more so than the character of the team to go a goal down, and after a poor performance last time out (a 4-0 home defeat to Leyton Orient), but then to respond.
“I felt it at half-time. I thought they were in a decent place. We didn’t play too badly in the first half either.
“But in the second we were on the front foot right from the start and I thought we deserved the win.
“We created opportunities and I always felt if we got one we might go on and win it. I am pleased the boys didn’t settle for a point.”
