Bolton Wanderers   1   Tottenham Hotspur    1      (Half-time score : 1-0)

22  Jaaskelainen

  4  Robinson
15  Steinsson
12  Knight         (31  A. O'Brien 63)
18  Ricketts

  6  Muamba
  7  Taylor         (21  Cohen 88)
11  Gardner
27  C-K. Lee   (16  M. Davies 74)

14  K. Davies  
  9  Elmander

Unused subs: 
26  Al Habsi
  3  Samuel
25  Holden
10  Riga

  1  Gomes

22  Corluka
26  King  (c)
20  Dawson
  3  Bale

14  Modric   (21  Kranjcar  63)
12  Palacios      
  6  Huddlestone      
  5  Bentley

18  Defoe        
15  Crouch

Unused subs: 
27  Alnwick
19  Bassong
  9  Pavlyuchenko
25  Rose
17  Gudjohnsen
30  Dervite

Davies 34

       
Knight (foul)  44
Taylor (unsporting conduct)  45 + 2
 

     
Huddlestone (foul)  17
Palacios (foul)  24
Defoe (unsporting conduct)  45 + 2

While there was still the physical element to Bolton's play, there was also a mixture of passing on the ground and good movement off the ball.  However, their reliance on set-pieces became their undoing, with Gomes equal to Matthew Taylor's shots and the defence standing up reasonably well to the aerial attack from corners, free-kicks and throw-ins.  For Tottenham's part, they were not in the first half, with Bolton closing them down as soon as they got the ball and there were only a couple of note-worthy efforts on the Bolton goal in the first period.

The home team started quickly.  Tottenham were thankful that Michael Dawson was alert to the danger when an eighth minute cross came in from Lee on the right wing and he threw himself in front of Elmander's shot to get a touch and take it wide.  Spurs had some good fortune in the first half and some of the second, when a lot of the chances dropped for Elmander, Knight and Muamba, who wasted the openings with wildly taken shots.  Muamba did get one on target with a volley from Dawson's clearance, but it was straight at Gomes and Elmander was put away in the left hand channel of the penalty area, but instead of steadying himself, he rashly shot first time and hit the crowd with his effort.  Spurs made a foray into the Bolton half after 12 minutes and Bale was pushed inside by Lee and Ricketts, but the Welsh defender hit a right foot shot that had power, but not direction.

Once more Wilson Palacios' reputation earned him a booking, when referee Phil Dowd (usually one of the more sensible refs, but who lost it early on today and failed to be consistent throughout) showed him yellow when he should only have had a free-kick given against him rather than that and a caution.  From it, Taylor, placed just right of centre, curled around the wall to try and catch Gomes out, but the Brazilian keeper was alert to it and dived to his left to push the ball wide, with 25 minutes gone.

In typical cup0tie action, Spurs took the play to the other end and won a corner, which Crouch flicked on and Ledley King got to with his foot, but it was taken wide by a deflection off a Bolton defender, giving Spurs another corner.  This time, it was pulled back outside the box to Tom Huddlestone, who hit a full-bloodied volley, but it was wayward in it's aim.  In a little spell of pressure, Crouch shot wide and Bentley won a header against Robinson at the far post to Bale's cross, but could not get much power behind it and it was easy for Jaaskelainen.

Against the run of play, Bolton took the lead in the 34th minute.  While Bentley was off the pitch getting a new shirt and treatment for a bloodied nose, Bolton broke upfield.  So, by the time the Spurs winger was back on, the home team had time to progress to Tottenham's last third.  Elmander was slipped through on the right side of the box by a clever ball from Lee, with the Swede pulling a low cross back to , but the ball fell to Kevin Davies and he took an early shot that didn't have a great deal behind it, but was placed well enough to hit the net.

Spurs had been slow to react to things up until now and needed to sort themselves out quickly.  A flowing move saw Bentley put a low ball into the goalmouth and Ricketts slid in to put the ball over the top, but it could have gone anywhere.  it all got a bit silly just before half-time, as Knight got booked for hitting Bale late and then both Taylor and Defoe got yellow cards for a running argument they were having.  At the interval, Clive Allen and some of the Spurs coaching staff had hard words for Dowd, about Bentley not being allowed back on the pitch, although the official claimed that he had already signalled him back on and they had not seen it.

The half-time team talk needed something and while Spurs have been predominantly better in the second half of games this season, it was necessary to up the tempo and the energy considerably to get back into the match.

However, it started much like the first half, with Elmander getting away on the right to cross and Gomes to take it acrobatically, while a Kevin Davies shot just caught the inside of Dawson's thigh to go wide for a corner, with Gomes already diving the other way.  The Swedish striker had another effort coming in from the right, but hit the side-netting and it signalled a change in Tottenham's play.  Ten minutes into the half, a high cross from the right by Bentley to the far post found Crouch climbing and for once he didn't have a free-kick given against him, as he rise above Jaaskelainen and headed over him onto the bar, but there was no Spurs player handily placed to knock it in.  All game long, Dowd had given decisions against Crouch when he had players climbing over him or one in front and another behind to restrict his movement.  In fact, the decisions through the 90+ minutes were odd, with foot up given on a couple of occasions, but not in the box ... perhaps unsurprisingly. 

A minute later and the woodwork was shuddering again, as Palacios made a surging run form midfield, leaving players behind him and hitting a shot that deflected off Robinson's foot and looped over Jaaskelainen onto the bar once more.  Five minutes later, Spurs were level.  A ball down the line by Modric found Bale and the defenders showed him inside once too often and he took them on, bursting into the box and pulled the ball back to the penalty spot, where Defoe took a touch and smashed the ball powerfully past the Bolton keeper with the aid of a slight deflection.  It was a goal that didn't look like it was going to arrive, but like the one in the first half, it looked as tough it would be coming soon.

From that point on, Tottenham had control of the game.  in the 65th minute, Bale put another ball in, that took a flick off a Bolton player and ran back into the path of Wilson Palacios, who was running onto the ball and hit it firs time, going for power and not precision, resulting in the ball going very quickly over the bar.  A minute later and Defoe set up Kranjcar to fire a shot at goal from outside the box, but the Finnish goalie was equal to it and got enough on it to take the ball out for a corner.  Then in the 70th minute a bouncing ball fell to Crouch in the Bolton box.  As he tried to bring it under control, he flicked it up and on into the middle of the goal, but Ricketts, who was close to him, put an arm up and the ball hit it, resulting in Dowd giving a penalty.  As far as Spurs were concerned, this was another bad decision, as we have missed enough spot-kicks already this season and with our most competent penalty-taker plying his trade in Scotland, it was left to Huddlestone to step up to take it.  he never really looked comfortable and his stuttering run-up indicated he wasn't sure what to do with it.  As it was he hit it at a good height for a keeper to get and not far enough into the corner of the goal, so Jaaskelainen had little trouble diving to push it out and then nobody got onto the end of the rebound, which was cleared.

Still Spurs attacked and Defoe was close to winning the tie for Tottenham when he struck a powerful shot from outside the penalty area, but the keeper was once more equal to the effort and then Bale drove a ball powerfully across goal and Crouch reacted quickly to get a touch on it with his head, but the ball went wide once more.

Into added time both sides had late chances, with Muamba slicing his shot well wide when it looked threatening for a moment and then Defoe struck a dipping shot that had Jaaskelainen rooted to the spot, but luckily for him the ball went wide and that was about that.  All back to the Lane in about 10 days time for a replay.

Should Spurs have won this game ?  On the first half showing, they were lucky to only be one down, but the second half was theirs and they should have tested the keeper more, as the Bolton midfield tired from their first half exertions and the defence shuddered when attacked either from wide positions or through the middle.

Something must be done about the penalty situation, as it is costing us wins in games too often now.  With the chance to go through being spurned, it will give Spurs another game they probably could have done without, but that will be the same for Bolton, who are in a more precarious position that us, as they need league points and quickly.

For Spurs, this is another route into Europe, but unless we finish teams off, we might find only home comforts next season.

kirk hammerton