Matt Jansen rescued a point for Blackburn after his strike partner Andy Cole was sent off.

Cole was dismissed after 18 minutes for kicking out at Mike Whitlow, appearing to make contact with the defender's thigh.

Bolton then took the lead through Rod Wallace, only for Jansen to pull Blackburn level.

With both sides struggling near the foot of the table, a point apiece is hardly what they wanted.

There were only glimpses of good football, the day being for ball winners rather than ball players.

Hakan Unsal was handed a debut by Blackburn manager Graeme Souness after completing his move from Galatasaray for a nominal fee.

Unsal was drafted into midfield with Tugay suspended and concerns about Damien Duff's hamstring, the young Irishman being on the bench.

Skipper Gary Flitcroft returned after missing the Worthington Cup triumph against Tottenham because of suspension.

French World Cup winner Youri Djorkaeff made his home debut for Bolton in this crucial relegation battle. But Michael Ricketts had to settle for a place on the bench after failing to score since January.

Not surprisingly with so much at stake the game started a blistering pace. Ricardo Gardner got away down the left for Bolton and drove in a low cross that was scrambled away with Djorkaeff poised for any mistake. Then Kevin Nolan played a quick free-kick into the path of Fredi Bobic but Nils Johansson made a timely block for Blackburn.

The visitors retaliated and David Dunn whipped in a fierce shot that went narrowly wide of the target.

Blackburn new boy Unsal almost put them ahead after 12 minutes when Ricardo Gardner lost possession to Dunn. The home fans thought Gardner had been fouled but referee Paul Durkin would have none of it, indicating he had dived. Unsal latched onto the loose ball and rifled a 25 yard shot the wrong side of the post.

The game took a dramatic turn when Cole was sent off. He reacted angrily to a challenge by Whitlow, who was given a yellow card.

Losing such an influential player as Cole so early in the game gave Blackburn an uphill task. Cole was the hero of their Worthington Cup triumph at the weekend when he scored the winner.

Bolton tried to push home their advantage with their opponents down to 10 men. But Ricardo Gardner and Fredi Bobic got in each other's way at the back post and Gardner hooked his shot high into the crowd.

Blackburn had re-grouped after Cole's dismissal and began to get a bit more possession. However Jansen was left fighting a lone battle up front and had little chance to show what he could do.

Bolton opened the scoring on the stroke of half-time after a mistake by Henning Berg. His attempted backpass was woefully short and Wallace nipped in to steer a shot beyond Brad Friedel.

Souness decided to improve his attacking options at half-time. He brought on Spanish striker Yordi to partner Jansen up front with Stig Bjornebye going off.

It was a bold move by Souness, who was anxious to avoid the club's 11th defeat in the past 13 league games. Wallace, however, should have added a second goal in the 49th minute when Nicky Southall played the ball in, only to blaze a shot over the top.

Then Blackburn keeper Friedel made a remarkable double stop from Nolan and Wallace.

Bolton manager Sam Allardyce decided to bring on Ricketts after 56 minutes for the ineffective Bobic. The striker, on loan from Borussia Dortmund, had found it hard going against Johansson.

Ricketts got clear of his marker in the 59th minute to get on the end of Southall's cross but there was little power in his header.

Bolton keeper Jussi Jaaskelainen then did well to divert a fierce drive from Unsal to safety after a poor clearance by Bruno N'Gotty.

Blackburn were beginning to find holes in the Bolton defence and equalised through Jansen. He played a neat one-two with sub Damien Duff before firing a shot into the corner.

That goal energised Blackburn, who did not appear to be a man down and Jansen almost grabbed a second.

Flitcroft played a short free-kick into his path but Jaaskelainen managed to tip away Jansen's driven shot.

Teams:

Bolton: Jaaskelainen, N'Gotty, Bergsson, Whitlow, Southall (Barness 79), Tofting, Nolan, Gardner, Djorkaeff, Bobic (Ricketts 54), Wallace (Holdsworth 85).

Subs Not Used: Poole, Espartero.

Booked: Whitlow.

Goals: Wallace 45.

Blackburn: Friedel, Neill, Berg, Johansson, Bjornebye (Yordi 45), Dunn, Hughes (Gillespie 62), Flitcroft, Unsal (Duff 62), Cole, Jansen.

Subs Not Used: Miller, Taylor.

Sent Off: Cole (19).

Goals: Jansen 68.

Att: 27,203

Ref: P Durkin (Dorset).