Article #34348

With Sam Dalby’s 81st-minute overhead kick, Bolton could start to plan for their return to the Championship, a division they left in 2019 as a club in turmoil. After administration, emergency loans, points deductions and a spell in League Two, they have found their way back under Steven Schumacher.

Stockport, looking to reach the second tier for the first time in 24 years, were game opponents in a tetchy meeting of two clubs from Greater Manchester but were overpowered. With the score level at 1-1 after an hour, Schumacher gave Bolton a lift with the introduction of Dalby, who has been playing through an ankle injury, and within 20 minutes the substitute had stretched their lead to 3-1 with a picture-book goal. Rúben Rodrigues’s late penalty against 10 men added gloss.