Background
Bolton was born in Bishop Auckland, County Durham.
Bolton was born in Bishop Auckland, County Durham.
He began his football career with Northern League club Shildon, where his goalscoring attracted the attention of Football League Third Division club Darlington, for whom he made two league appearances in the 1994-1995 season. He then returned to non-league football, playing for West Auckland Town and Tow Law Town before rejoining Shildon in June 2001. They were drawn to play Division Two club N ottinghamshire County.
Bolton played the first half and Shildon lost 7–2.
He left Shildon in 2004 for Darlington Railway Athletic, and also played for Esh Winning, for whom he scored twice in his first two games.