Wigan Athletic have twice come within the width of the woodwork of taking a first-half lead over Bolton Wanderers in their Championship clash at the Macron Stadium.
Latics winger Callum McManaman struck the crossbar five minutes into a Lancashire derby between two of the division's most underperforming sides, and then hit the post on the stroke of the interval.
© Getty Images
McManaman gave makeshift Trotters right-back Josh Vela a torrid time in the opening stages as he firstly burst to the byline before standing up a cross which Shaun Maloney weakly volleyed wide at the far stick.
The Scotland international winger then went the other way and beat Vela cutting inside onto his right foot, with which he unleashed a powerful curler which flicked the top of Andy Lonergan's crossbar.
Max Clayton was lively on his first Wanderers start and, moments after seeing a shot blocked by the returning Leon Barnett, he forced Scott Carson into a good save following a sublime Lee Chung-yong pass.
Bolton have won three of five games since Neil Lennon's appointment as manager and can climb out of the relegation zone, and above Wigan, with victory, but were hanging on as the break approached.
Following a 60-second spell in which Roger Espinoza and Marc-Antoine Fortune passed up chances, McManaman wriggled free of Tim Ream only to see a bending left-footed shot rebound off the far post.
Joe Fish
