Liverpool came close in the early stages when Jussi Jaaskelainen had to be alert for Bolton saving well after only two minutes following Michael Owen's headed effort from a Steven Gerrard free kick from the left hand side.
However it was the home side who opened the scoring on eleven minutes thanks to Nicky Hunt who celebrated his first ever senior goal. The full back collected a clever lay off by striker Kevin Davies before firing his hometown club into the lead from a tight angle which left Reds keeper Jerzy Dudek rooted to his goal line.
Hunt then turned provider seven minutes later when his neatly chipped pass found Henrik Pedersen in the area but despite good control from the Dane he was unable to keep his shot down and Dudek watched the ball fly over his crossbar.
On 23 minutes Hunt once again tested the Liverpool keeper with a powerful strike, this time however the Polish international denied the Bolton full back at the near post to tip the ball away to safety to deny the player his second goal of the afternoon.
Shortly before the half hour mark Bolton manager Sam Allardyce withdrew midfielder Per Frandsen due to what can only been described as an injury and he was replaced by Ibrahim Ba in the midfield, however the former French international struggled to cope with the Liverpool midfield duo of Gerrard and Dietmar Hamann and was later replaced himself by Simon Charlton.
Harry Kewell then had Liverpool's first effort of the half on 26 minutes when he rounded the Bolton goalkeeper Jussi Jaaskelainen, however the Australian international was denied by Wanderers defender Emerson Thome who managed to race back to deny the former Leeds United player just as he was about to tap the ball into the net.
Jamie Carragher, who had recently returned from a broken leg then went close for the Merseysiders shortly after when he saw his shot sail just wide of Jaaskelainen's right hand post. The full back found himself in acres of space having gone unchecked by the Trotters defence.
Shortly before half time both Steven Gerrard and Anthony Le Tallec both went close to giving Liverpool an equaliser. Gerrard's shot was saved from close range by Jaaskelainen following a neat one-two which caught the Bolton defenders in unawares, then Le Tallec failed to make use of the space which was given to him and the French youngster blasted the ball over the bar when it seemed easier to at least get the shot on target. Bolton who had been under a spell of pressure for a good five or ten minutes where releived when referee Alan Wiley blew for the half time interval.
Liverpool then started the second half pretty much as they had ended the first. In form striker Bruno Cheyrou tested Jussi Jaaskelainen with a free kick swung in from the left hand side but it was on 51 minutes when Gerard Houllier's team finally got their rewards. Steven Gerrard curled a delightful ball in from the right hand side and this was powerfully headed home by defender Sami Hyppia who left his compatriot Jaaskelainen stranded in the Bolton goal.
Bolton looked to Youri Djorkaeff to get back into the game and create that spark which is usually given to Jay-Jay Okocha. The French World Cup winner tested Dudek on 55 minutes with a free kick and then a few minutes later put Wanderers back in front when he crashed the ball home after Kevin Davies had provided the assist following a good delivery by Kevin Nolan.
The two sides played a neat passing game at times and both where looking to seal the win having gone on the offensive since the kick off. Steven Gerrard capitalised on some slack Bolton defending to bring Liverpool back into the game with barely 20 minutes remaining. A cross from the left went uncleared by the Wanderers defence and the Reds skipper ghosted in behind Emerson Thome to equalise for the Anfield club.
The Trotters had a couple of chances to win it late on. Firstly Bruno N'Gotty headed wide following a good delivery from compatriot Youri Djorkaeff, however this time N'Gotty, who has been a menace at set plays all season saw the header go wide.
Then with only a few seconds remaining Wanderers striker Kevin Davies found himself in a one on one situation with Dudek, the shot held much power but the save was as equal and this ensured that the game ended all square in what on reflection was a fair result and a very entertaining contest to watch.