IF THIS GAME WAS AN AUDITION FOR the England head coach’s job, then Sam Allardyce can write off his chances of being appointed Sven-Göran Eriksson’s successor right now. Many had expected this Lancashire derby to be a full-bloodied affair, but while it got niggly at times, both sides displayed about as much passion as Eriksson in his post-match interviews. Yes, it was that lacklustre.

Along with Steve McClaren, the Middlesbrough manager, Allardyce remains probably the best and certainly the most popular English candidate to succeed the much-maligned Eriksson, but the Bolton Wanderers manager hardly enhanced his reputation yesterday.

Blackburn Rovers, admittedly, set out to frustrate Bolton from the start and rarely ventured forward, but Bolton were hardly brimming with ambition and Allardyce’s decision to remove Jay-Jay Okocha and Stelios Giannakopoulos for two full backs in the second half hardly smacked of a desire to win the match.

The Barclays Premiership is widely regarded as being the most entertaining league in Europe, but when two teams adopting variations on the 4-5-1 formation retreat almost from kick-off and put ten men behind the ball, it leaves that belief open to question.

“Necessity overrules entertainment,” Allardyce said by way of defence. “You keep your job by putting points on the board. If you lose 5-4 you get booed and the sack.” Mark Hughes, the Blackburn manager, agreed, but it is not exactly what the clubs’ supporters will want to hear.

Nat Lofthouse received a special silver plate on the pitch before kick-off in commemoration of his 80th birthday and how both teams could have done with the legendary former Bolton striker’s attacking prowess in a first half of mind-numbing tedium punctuated only by a few unseemly spats. No sooner had Aaron Mokoena hacked down El-Hadji Diouf than Stelios Giannakopoulos demonstrated Bolton’s ability to mix it with the best of them when he pole-axed Robbie Savage.

Savage exacted revenge soon after when he tripped the Greece midfield player, only for Iván Campo to take exception when Graham Poll, the referee, waved play on and duly shoulder-charged Morten Gamst Pedersen to the ground. That was pretty much the story of a truly wretched game: hit and hope or hack ’em down.

Nearly half an hour had elapsed before Bolton fashioned the game’s first chance and even then it was hardly worth waiting for. Kevin Davies flicked on Okocha’s long punt upfield but Kevin Nolan, racing unchecked through the Blackburn defence, headed over from 12 yards.

Blackburn had barely threatened before Brett Emerton whipped in a cross on the hour that was brilliantly cleared by Bruno N’Gotty and David Bentley, making his first appearance since his loan move from Arsenal, looked bright when he replaced Pedersen, but Craig Bellamy’s return from injury cannot come quick enough for Hughes’s team.

“If it’s a case of Craig missing a few games but being fit for the following 30 then so be it,” Hughes said.

Blackburn grew in confidence as the second half wore on and Bentley nearly scored when he collected Lucas Neill’s pass 25 yards out and clipped a shot at goal only for Jussi Jaaskelainen to tip the ball over the bar.

Campo’s header from Diouf’s cross late on did little to trouble Brad Friedel, but then that was the way of things on a dire afternoon at the Reebok Stadium.

BOLTON: Jaaskelainen 7 Campo 5 Ben Haim 6 N’Gotty 7 Pedersen 5 Speed 6 Nolan 6 Okocha 4 Diouf 5 Davies 5 Giannakopoulos 4 Subs: Gardner (5) for Giannakopoulos, 56; Hunt for Okocha, 78; Borgetti for Davies, 70. Subs not used: Walker, Nakata. Next: Manchester City (a). Form: DWWLDW.

BLACKBURN: Jansen 4 Pedersen 4 Savage 5 Reid 4 Emerton 5 Mokoena 6 Matteo 6 Khizanishvili 7 Nelsen 8 Neill 6 Friedel 7 Subs: Bentley (7) for Pederson, 58; Kuqi (5) for Jansen, 58. Subs not used: Dickov, Enckelman, Tugay. Next: Newcastle (h). Form: DLDWLD.

Shots on target: (h) 6 (a) 3. Fouls: (h) 18 (a) 17. Offsides: (h) 0 (a)3.

Referee: G Poll 7. Attendance: 24,405