IAN Evatt says his players must accept their share of the responsibility after Wanderers crashed to another disappointing defeat at Rotherham United.

Goals from Mallik Wilks, Reece James and Sam Nombe ensured the Millers maintained an unbeaten league record against Bolton which stretches all the way back to the summer of 1966.

John McAtee’s late consolation was, in truth, barely deserved on a day where Wanderers had had out-fought and their 2,000-strong away contingent had made their anger abundantly clear.

Bolton are 10th and four points outside the play-off places, wasting a chance to close the gap with an insipid display at the New York Stadium.

Evatt said after the game: “We were second best all over the pitch. I thought we actually started the game in the first 10 minutes okay but we concede a goal, again, from virtually nothing. All of their good stuff was virtually self-inflicted.

“Everyone can see conditions, everyone can see the pitch was lively, and we are still making daft, erratic decisions.

“The disappointing thing for me is that everyone knows what you are going to get when you come here, if you don’t and you don’t understand what a Steve Evans team looks like, you shouldn’t be in the game.

“We spoke about it, we discussed it, but we were second to every duel, second to every second ball, didn’t do the basics well enough, didn’t put the ball into the areas we needed to on a difficult pitch, and we were outrun, out battled, out scrapped, one to 11.”

Supporters chanted “Evatt out” and voiced their displeasure on the style of football throughout the second half. Asked about the reaction, the manager issued a curt response.

“It’s my fault, it’s my fault,” he said.

“It’s not, it’s a collective. And the players have to take responsibility as well.

“I don’t send my players out to play and perform and show that lack of fight, courage and energy.

“I think it’s time I called them out because it’s me that gets it all. I can take it all but sooner or later they have to take some responsibility.

“That is a collective thing. I will take responsibility, I always will. The first place I look is in the mirror at myself. But some of them need to look and themselves as well, because for this club that isn’t good enough.

“It is a collective thing and, for me, we are making it incredibly difficult for ourselves conceding some awful goals, and that isn’t just down to the keeper and the defenders. It is a team, collective thing. And for me it is a mentality thing. Teams that are mentally fragile and weak conded goals like that, and that is what we have been doing.

“It doesn’t matter who is in charge, the mindset is going to be the same.

“The players are still the players and we have to make sure we are better than that. And that isn’t acceptable for the level we have had in the past.”

Wanderers travel to Lincoln on Tuesday night looking to make their way in the knockout stages of the Virtu Trophy.

Asked if he expected a response from his side, he added: “We’ll see. It’s three games from Wembley, another opportunity in a competition we have done well in, we need to put that behind us. I am angry and frustrated at what I saw today.”