Bolton assistant boss Peter Atherton felt a point was the least his side deserved after they fought back with 10 men to draw 1-1 against Northampton.
Kieron Bowie gave the Cobblers an early lead and things turned from bad to worse for the Trotters when midfielder George Thomason was dismissed after just 28 minutes.
However, despite also seeing manager Ian Evatt sent off for an incident at half-time, Bolton rallied well in the second half and rescued a point thanks to Carlos Mendes Gomes’ late header.
On the red card, Atherton said: “I didn’t see the incident from my seat at the time but I’ve watched it back and I don’t think it’s a red card. I spoke to the fourth official and he didn’t think it was a red card either.
“I don’t know if we will appeal. That will be up to the gaffer and the club but we responded really well in the second half.
“We didn’t start the game well, we all know that, but we reacted brilliantly and to dominate the second half like we did, and get a point, it shows big character from the players.
“We’re no fools, we knew what we would be come up against when we turned up and we spoke to the players about that but we just didn’t start the game well and it grew from that.
“The red card makes it a big uphill challenge but we made the tactical decision to change formation at half-time and I thought we took the game to them in the second half and dominated the ball.
“We fully deserved at least a point and we’re delighted to come away with something.”
Northampton boss Jon Brady admitted he had mixed emotions.
“It’s a bit bittersweet really because we feel like we should have won the game,” he said.
“But we had spoken to the players about us representing ourselves better because we were disappointed with our last couple of performances.
“Today we were back to representing our normal selves and playing more like what the fans are used to and I felt that was really important.
“I thought the way we set up structurally was really good and it worked in that first half and that’s down to the players and their attitude.
“Even with 10 men, Bolton have so much quality – you only have to look at the players they brought on and they could be a Championship club by the end of the season.
“We went toe to toe with them and the game ebbed and flowed in the second half but I think we have to see it as a good point.”
Brentford 3-1 Southampton: Bees begin life after Toney with comfortable win
Brentford began life without Ivan Toney with a comfortable 3-1 victory over Southampton.
Bryan Mbeumo’s brace and a Yoane Wissa goal proved to be the difference between the two sides and condemned the Saints to their third straight loss since promotion back to the Premier League.
With departed striker Toney watching in the stands after his move to Al-Ahli in Saudi Arabia, the hosts proved too strong for Russell Martin’s men. They created the superior chances and capitalised on an error-strewn performance from Southampton’s backline.
Mbeumo opened the scoring on the stroke of half-time before doubling the lead halfway through the second period and Wissa then got on the scoresheet moments later to continue Brentford’s strong start to the campaign. Yukinari Sugawara bagged a consolation in injury time for the Saints.
Brentford sit in fifth place ahead of the first international break, while Southampton are second-bottom of the league table with zero points.
Data debrief: Wissa continues to prove effective at home
Wissa now has five goals and two assists in his last seven matches at the Gtech Community Stadium.
Brentford have recorded consecutive home league wins for the first time since last November, and the first time in their opening home games since August 2018.
Brentford 3-1 Southampton: Bees begin life without Toney with comfortable win
Brentford began life without Ivan Toney with a comfortable 3-1 victory over Southampton.
Bryan Mbeumo’s brace and a Yoane Wissa goal proved to be the difference between the two sides and condemned the Saints to their third straight loss since promotion back to the Premier League.
With departed striker Toney watching in the stands after his move to Al-Ahli in Saudi Arabia, the hosts proved too strong for Russell Martin’s men. They created the superior chances and capitalised on an error-strewn performance from Southampton’s backline.
Mbeumo opened the scoring on the stroke of half-time before doubling the lead halfway through the second period and Wissa then got on the scoresheet moments later to continue Brentford’s strong start to the campaign. Yukinari Sugawara bagged a consolation in injury time for the Saints.
Brentford sit in fifth place ahead of the first international break, while Southampton are second-bottom of the league table with zero points.
Data debrief: Wissa continues to prove effective at home
Wissa now has five goals and two assists in his last seven matches at the Gtech Community Stadium.
Brentford have recorded consecutive home league wins for the first time since last November, and the first time in their opening home games since August 2018.
Pirlo sacked as Sampdoria head coach after dismal Serie B start
Andrea Pirlo has been sacked as Sampdoria's head coach after just over a season at the helm.
Pirlo, who managed Juventus for the 2020-21 campaign, has been relieved of his duties after an underwhelming start to their Serie B season.
After finishing seventh in Italy's second tier last term, the 45-year-old was given the green light to try and return to Serie A at the second time of asking.
However, an opening day draw with Frosinone was followed up with back-to-back defeats to Reggiana and Salernitana, leaving them second-bottom in the division.
During his time in charge, Pirlo won 18 of his 45 matches in charge (D10 L17), averaging 1.42 points per game, a total only bettered by his time with Juventus (2.15).
Sampdoria return to the Stadio Luigi Ferraris this weekend in search of their first three points of the season, welcoming Bari to Genoa on Saturday.
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