Scott Twine scored a stoppage-time winner to cap a dramatic late comeback as Bristol City stunned Bolton Wanderers with a 3-2 victory at Toughsheet Community Stadium. Just eight days after suffering a heavy 5-1 defeat at home against league leaders Middlesbrough, Bolton found themselves heartbroken once again after holding a 2-1 lead with only six minutes of normal time remaining. Second-half substitutes Sam Bell and Twine turned the match on its head, delivering a decisive blow that ended a winless streak for the visitors dating back to mid-September and handed manager Michael Skubala a welcome 44th birthday present.
The visitors were full value for their victory in an end-to-end contest that saw both sides strike the woodwork and Bolton goalkeeper Jack Bonham kept busy with several crucial second-half saves. Dom Ballard opened the scoring early for Bristol City, finding himself completely unmarked six yards out to knock in Jason Knight’s cross from the right. Bolton responded through Josh Sheehan’s long-range 25-yard effort and Sam Dalby, who deflected Atsuki Ito’s left-footed shot past Bradley Collins to put the hosts temporarily in front.
With the clock winding down, Skubala’s tactical changes shifted the momentum. Just six minutes after entering the pitch, Bell equalized in the 84th minute by converting Cameron Pring’s cross from the left. Three minutes into stoppage time, Knight delivered a precise crossfield pass to Jed Wallace on the right, whose cutback was neatly tucked away by Twine to secure the club’s fifth win of the season.
Bolton manager Steven Schumacher expressed deep frustration after the match, pointing to missed opportunities and late defensive disruption. “We’re disappointed obviously. I felt it was a game that we definitely should win or not lose because for 80-85 minutes of that game we were in complete control of it,” Schumacher said. He noted that Chris Forino’s departure due to cramp forced defensive changes that left the backline looking ragged and stretched.
Skubala praised the character of his squad following the resilient away performance. “An incredible comeback. I have just said to them in there the character of the guys is amazing,” Skubala said. “It is an excellent away win and it is never easy to win on the road but we’ve created some big chances. I really enjoyed the changes and the way they impacted the game.”
Player ratings compiled from user submissions reflected standout displays from the substitutes, with match-winner Twine and equalizer-scorer Bell both earning an average rating of 7.79 for Bristol City, while Ballard followed closely at 7.51. For Bolton, Sheehan led the ratings with 5.85, followed by Dalby at 5.54.
