Dean West and Chris Swailes grabbed the goals which boosted Bury's First Division survival hopes and dented Bolton's promotion charge at rainswept Gigg Lane.

West fired Neil Warnock's battlers ahead on the half hour and Swailes headed home a second on the stroke of half-time.

Neil Cox pulled a goal back for Bolton in injury time but it was too little too late for Colin Todd's fifth-placed outfit.

Bury's win lifted them above Port Vale to 18th place and the Shakers were good value for the three precious points.

With only win in their previous 21 outings Bury looked like sacrificial lambs but they carried the fight to Bolton.

Carl Serrant, on loan from Newcastle, flighted in a high cross in the 30th minute which Bolton keeper Stephen Banks should have held.

But under pressure from Andy Preece he spilled the ball to midfielder West who poked home a low shot from 10 yards despite Cox trying to intervene on the line.

The response from Bolton should have produced an equaliser as they carved out two clear-cut chances.

Claus Jensen swept round keeper Dean Kiely only to see Nick Daws clear his shot off the line and then Bolton's Danish midfielder burst through the middle to hammer a shot on the run which Kiely was happy to beat away.

It looked ominous for the home side but at the end of the first half they struck again to take a stranglehold on the game.

It was something akin to poetic justice for after Cox had fouled Laurent d'Jaffo he escaped what should have been a booking.

But, when Daws swung in a free kick, Swailes climbed high above a pack of players to power home a downward header from eight yards.

Bolton were constantly urged forward by their fleet-footed Danish duo of Jensen and Per Frandsen and they redoubled their efforts after the break only to find Kiely in brilliant form.

He somehow contrived to turn aside a deflected free-kick from Jensen and then produced an even more amazing one-handed stop to deny Michael Johansen.

A string of Bolton efforts flashed narrowly wide before Bury hit back and went close to increasing their lead.

A left-wing raid ended with Chris Billy's cross eluding Banks and substitute Paul Barnes hammered a shot on target but Andy Todd managed to fling himself in the path and concede a corner.

In injury time Bolton had the consolation of a Cox goal courtesy of a blistering 20-yard drive after he had been set up by Jensen.

The last action of the match was a booking for Kiely who needlessly barged into Cox as the Bolton man retrieved the ball from the net.

Teams

Bury: Kiely, West, Serrant, Daws, Lucketti, Woodward, Swailes, Billy, D'Jaffo (Barnes 66), Bullock, Preece.Subs Not Used: Littlejohn.

Booked: Bullock, Daws.

Goals: West 27, Swailes 45.

Bolton: Banks, Cox, Phillips, Frandsen, Todd, Fish, Johansen, Jensen, Gudjohnson, Taylor, Gardner.

Subs Not Used: Warhurst, Fullarton, Hansen.

Goals: Cox 90.

Att: 7,680

Ref: D Laws (Whitley Bay).