Blackburn Rovers 1-0 Bolton Wanderers
- From the section Football
Jordan Rhodes scored a late winner as 10th-placed Blackburn maintained their faint Championship play-off hopes by beating neighbours Bolton.
The Scotland striker, 25, pounced in the fourth minute of injury time, stabbing in team-mate Doneil Henry's flick from Tom Cairney's corner.
Bolton squandered their best chance in the final 15 minutes, Craig Davies firing straight at keeper Jason Steele.
Blackburn are 11 points adrift of the top six as Bolton remain 18th.
Wanderers, who had won six of their seven previous meetings against Blackburn, are 10 points clear of the relegation zone with 10 matches left to play.
But they were unable to ease any lingering fears of the drop as Rhodes proved the difference.
The ex-Huddersfield striker was restored to Rovers' starting XI after being dropped to the bench for Sunday's FA Cup draw at Liverpool, a move which sparked speculation that he might be allowed to leave Ewood Park.
A quiet game opened up in the final stages as Steele saved Neil Danns' vicious 30-yard strike, and then stopped substitute Davies who raced through one-on-one.
Bolton keeper Ben Amos stopped Rhodes's header as the match approached the final 10 minutes, but was powerless to stop the Blackburn striker converting his 14th goal of the season in the closing moments.
Blackburn boss Gary Bowyer on rumours Rhodes could go to Middlesbrough:
"If it was a maths equation question, it just wouldn't add up, would it? Why would you loan our top scorer out?
"He's just scored the winner and will be starting at Charlton.
"He just handles the speculation enormously well. I was quietly confident of him scoring tonight because that's what he does when there's all the paper talk."
Bolton boss Neil Lennon:
"It's unacceptable. That's five games in the last month we have conceded late goals. It's cost us seven points when we should be home and hosed so we still have a bit of work to do.
"I'm thinking: 'Surely not. Surely we're not going to concede.'
"We would have gone away very happy with a point at a difficult venue. It's going to be a sleepless night again."
Line-ups
Blackburn
- 30Steele
- 2Henley
- 23HenryBooked at 85mins
- 4Kilgallon
- 14OlssonSubstituted forSpurrat 45+1'minutes
- 12Marshall
- 10Cairney
- 29EvansSubstituted forWilliamsonat 32'minutes
- 32Conway
- 9BrownSubstituted forGestedeat 70'minutes
- 11Rhodes
Substitutes
- 3Spurr
- 13Eastwood
- 17Williamson
- 19Taylor
- 20Songo'o
- 26Lenihan
- 39Gestede
Bolton
- 13Amos
- 25Vela
- 4MillsBooked at 81mins
- 54McCarthy
- 5Ream
- 47JankoSubstituted forMoxeyat 68'minutes
- 18DannsBooked at 52mins
- 51Coke
- 7Feeney
- 9Le Fondre
- 19HeskeyBooked at 66minsSubstituted forDaviesat 73'minutes
Substitutes
- 3Moxey
- 11Hall
- 17Trotter
- 22Gudjohnsen
- 24Lonergan
- 28Davies
- 52Walker
- Referee:
- Paul Tierney
- Attendance:
- 15,362
Match Stats
- Possession
- Home55%
- Away45%
- Shots
- Home16
- Away13
- Shots on Target
- Home5
- Away6
- Corners
- Home5
- Away9
- Fouls
- Home11
- Away15