Perhaps that frozen pitch last week did turn out to be a blessing in disguise? writes Wolves blogger Nathan Lloyd.
What a fantastic win this weekend down at Selhurst Park.
When I saw the team sheet, I thought here we go again. Where is the width? Where is Keogh?
As it turned out Mick decided to change the formation to a 4-5-1, something we haven’t often seen this season.
Let’s be honest, until Gray’s goal of the season contender on 76 minutes, the game was plodding along to a score draw.
But what a strike!
And Kyle comes on and plays the impact role he was brought in for, and scores a stunner.
If only all of Mick’s plans worked so well, we would be sitting high on top of this very mediocre league.
The manager took a big gamble with the formation and his choice of personnel, but it proved effective.
The Crystal Palace midfield was stifled and Kuqi left the field with a disgraceful gesture towards his own fans.
So yet again we are in a position to rebuild and try again for a crack at the play-offs.
We have Kights and Jarvis to come back in the midfield and the defence is once again looking solid with the old heads of Breen and Craddock.
Ok, we shouldn’t get carried away. We have been on a dismal run of results and the season hasn’t really got going at any point, even when we have been as high as third in the table, we haven’t really been playing good football.
But all that is irrelevant now. We have to try and put the doom and gloom behind us and get behind the lads 100 per cent to try and push for a top six spot with the remaining 13 games.
This win will have done the team and Mick the world of good and its important to take the momentum on to Colchester and then at home to Southampton the following Tuesday.
I threw my MM fan-club badge in the bin in December, but if Wolves can go on a run and we end up piping a fading Albion team to a play-off place, then I think I will pin my badge firmly back on and eat my hat for ever doubting Mick.
It will be finest tasting hat ever!
Can he prove me and all the other doubters wrong, or have we just got our heads in the clouds after our first win in five?
Wolves fans have your say below
53 Comments
A very good result, with not my favoured formation. For Colchester though, he must revert to a 4-4-2, as we must score goals against a team near the bottom.
This will probably mean Potter being dropped. The only problem is, is what forward do you play. Wolves had a very strong team out in the Senior Cup last night and lost to an admittedly strongish Blues team.
We have got to win at least the next 3 games to keep in with the chasing pack!
Nathan(fluffy)Lloyd…normal service has been resumed!
Well, 3 wins in the last ten, only another 7 or 8 to go!
Is that a spring board or a coffin lid?
Oh well, lets hope your right Nathan! Will you be shredding your hat, lightly frying until crispy, adding it on top of a pasta dish with a little Parmesan and Black Pepper or maybe roasted with a few vegetables and a rich cranberry sauce, washed down with a full bodied Red Wine?
They say every cloud has a silver lining, I think yours are diamond studded with a solid Gold lining. Perhaps you are suffering from lack of oxygen after studying those clouds for too long?
At least McCarthy has found someone to play on the wing (Gray). His rotation system has finally come up trumps!
Hi Nath i hope you are well, you have really surprised me with todays blog if i am honest.
I was expecting a, is this just papering over the cracks blog.
I read the blog and then had to check again that it had your name on it, you really are torn on the subject of Mick arent you!! One week it is get rid, one win and it is lets get behind him we can do it!!
You tortured soul, but hey we have all had managers that not only split the fans opinion they split our
own!!
Its great to see some positivity in your thoughts, the get rid of Mick rants must have worn you down.
abdonwolf (2)
Only the missus has permission to call me fluffy and I can’t recall her ever using that one.
I still don’t think Mick is the answer, but I can hardly be negative after a good result like that. I don’t think we will get in the play-offs, we simply are not good enough, but you can’t throw in the towel with nearly 40 points still to play for.
Whats wrong with a bit of positivity? Yes, I am a realist, but I can’t just knock Mick and the team ever single week.
I don’t think fluffy is the right terminology… upbeat may’be?
I would like to see Banks’s-Blake and Keogh up on top. They had something going that they were’nt allowed to continue. But a 4-5-1 formation that expands to 4-3-3 in attack may be the right way to avoid to concede goals. Luckily I think our manager has the answer to this. Go for it Mick!
Great blog Nath, WELL DONE!!
I agree with all of it, and time will tell.
Let’s not get carried away but role on Saturday!
If the members of our club had a favorite book I wonder what they are….
Steve Morgan - Great Expectations
Joleon Lescott - Gone With the Wind
Brereton Wolf - Alice’s Adventures In Wonderland
Jack Haywood - Far From The Madding Crowd
Michael Kightly - A Suitable Boy
Terry(clipboard)Connor - Noughts And Crosses
McCarthy & Moxey - The Twits
Michael Grey - The Hobbit
Jay Bothroyd - The Great Gatsby
Olofinjana - The BFG
etc…
wbabomber
Hi Bomber.
You read my mind. I was going to go down the old, “papering over the cracks”, or “false dawn” route. But I get bored with writing all the negativity and people must be sick of reading it.
The football at Molineux has been pretty dire most of the season. See, I’ve started again…
I’m just hoping that we can string a few results together and finish the season on a positive.
I was torn on the subject of Mick right up until December last year. Ever since then I have always stated that I don’t believe he can deliver the kind of football and the success that we all crave. However, I, and most fans agree that you have to support him whilst he is here and hope for the best.
Now, that might be deemed as sitting on the fence, I don’t know. I hope not.
If I chant get Mick out every week on here, especially after we win a rare game away from Molineux, some fans will dislike me even more than they do now.
So, I’m not sure I’m a tortured soul. I know where I stand on the McCarthy debate, but the club have made it abundantly clear that he is not going anywhere for the foreseeable, so what else can we do than to give him our support?
A gamble is all that it was Nathan and as many have said one swallow does not make a summer. McCarthy has a long way to go and there will be all sorts of twists and turns before this season is finally sorted. I don’t believe that we will make it I don’t believe he MM has what it takes and I don’t believe that Morgan has complete faith in MM to deliver but he is not going to reveal publicly what those thoughts are. I have said before that I don’t rate him (MM) as a manager and that has not changed but equally so I don’t think we should change him now, the end of the season is the right time to contemplate such decisions. But I still wouldn’t bet on it and I’m not sure who I would want as a replacement if there is to be one. The performance on Saturday was not good but the result was great and three points very welcome, lets hope we can get another 3 on Saturday no matter how ugly it is.
Oh! Yes about us fickle Wolves fans i see that the Kings Road FC fans were blaming their manager for failing in the Cup Final and berating the owner for putting his best mate in charge. So who’s fickle now, if being fickle is about passion and wanting your team to win every game, thats what its all about isn’t it??
Funny old game football!!
I READ A FEW PEOPLE SAYING THAT THE GAME WAS POOR AND WOLVES NOT MUCH BETTER, REALLY GLAD OF THE 3 POINTSS AND I THINK GRAY DESERVES PRAISE HE WORKS REALLY HARD AND IS QUITE SKILLFULL. KITES IS OUR ONLY SAVIOUR AS FAR AS I CAN SEE FOR THE CHANCE OF PLAYOFFS. KEEPING CLEAN SHEETS IS VITAL, HEADS GO DOWN AFTER EARLY GOALS AND BREEN ALTHOUGH NOT QUICK OVER THE GROUND IS VERY BRIGHT IN POSITTIONING HIMSELF AND THE REST OF THE BACK 4.I FEEL KYLE AS A BIT PLAYER, WILL BE BETTER USED AS SUB RATHER THAN STARTING. ANYONE THAT SCORES I WILL BE GRATEFUL TO.
JAMIE LANYON HOLIDAY PARK CORNWALL, CUBS JAMES AND JENNY
Oh and…
Freddy Eastwood - The Spy who came in from the cold… (or perhaps not!)
Enough to sink a battle ship on here!
Nathan Lloyd - “get behind the lads”
brummie rob - “keep in with the chasing pack!”
abdon - “normal service has been resumed!”
Wrath Wanderer - “one swallow does not make a summer”
“long way to go”
“all sorts of twists and turns before this season”
“Funny old game football!!”
Well done Wrath, straight to the top of the league.
“Keep up the good work”
Nathan
Happier we are not playing strikers in midfield, happier Gray is out of the back 4 he was a liabilityin defence,he holds the ball well and passes well but his legs have gone.Get Kites or Jarvis back 5 in midfield and play on the break,thats the only chance we have got.Nathan we dont dislike you in fact its the complete opposite, we just love the debate,the arguments over a pint.
The book to represent the WWFC should be WAR AND PEACE
this weekend fixture is cruicle, all the teams around us have v.tough ties and we are away to colchester (not the easiest) but winnable
think the only team around us with easier game than us is norwich (dark horses)
if we can (big IF)beat colchester we would be in great position, with plymouth really the team we targeting away to wba its unlikely they get more than 1pt there, we win we go 3pts behind them with game in hand win that level and we still got them at home
my main worry is from 29th march we got to play charlton (away) cardiff (home) bristol c (away) ipswich (home) coventry (away) plymouth (home)
i dont personally think we will beat chalton away, we havnt ever got 1pt at ricoh, bristol i hope tailing off a bit but if not we in for v.hard game there.
home to cardiff - they usually do us to be honest, ipswich are rubbish away but they may just stick 10men behind ball if they ahead of us in league as its 3rd last game, plymouth last game should win but same ipswich on last day season they can catch us up or ahead of us it will be cracker
most probably you can shove wba into the last 6-7games as well
we have tough run in but also one which can put us in the playoffs with key wins or results
remind me bit of year we went up we had to go likes norwich, sheffutd and get results
Good blog Nath!
You have to think though; the next game is away so he will probably stick with the same XI. However
Colchester being down the bottom, surely an attacking formation would be more suited. I think MM will
go for the 4-4-2, with SEB and perhaps bring Keogh back, but the fact he was dropped completely from
the squad, maybe he will have to settle for the bench!
Very good result; lets hope its the start of something good (Has that been overused this season?)
The question still stands, is MM the man to take us up.
The result the weekend was good.
Let’s get behind the player, (who ever is selected) support the team.
I am pleased we won at Palace as i didn’t think we would, I always think its one of the hardest grounds to go to and get a result
With regard to Kyle, when he came on I was screaming obsenities at the radio regarding him coming on instead of Eastwood, but give him credit he scored a great goal and yes like many of us he will play a lot more than Freddie between now and the end of the season.
I am sad to say Freddie Eastwood will remain an enigma at Wolves, I thought when we signed him he would eventually rank alongside Bully and Robbie Keane but I dont think that will ever happen and it would’nt suprise if he is loaned out between now and the loan window in March and you can bet he will score a hatful of goals for his new club.
My final point is we have 13 games to play and we can still get into the play offs and while this is possible we must still believe. The Championship is all about timing and Stoke currently lead the way who will bet they will be there in May. There are a lot of clubs jockeying for position and I am sure the lead will change again between now and the end of the season.
There is still a lot football to be played, there are a lot of average teams in this division and who’s to say we wont be in the shake-up come May
Perhaps it would be a good policy to approach the game the same against Colchester as we did at Palace. Concentrate on keeping it tight and not concede early on and then gradually expand our game and hopefully nick a win. That win has given everyone a lift and we can only hope for more of the same. We have players that can give us different options such as Kyle coming on and putting himself about, Gray showed a different side to his game etc. It is probably about getting the tactics right and adjusting to the opposition on the day. The baggies are in our sights!
Good blog nathan, got to say you summed it up for me (im probably the only one who read it this way but…)
its been such a dire season that when we finally get the one win its like a lift and a ray of light, we feel ourselves having to look on the wins as good wins because they have been to and far between.
What i mean is, normally we would be talking about the performance, saturday we would of said “smash and grab” where as we are saying how such a great win it was against a very poor palace side!
sort a sigh of relief really!
suppose its because we are all waiting for it to be put mathmatically out of our hands, we all feard it would be so saturday was a great win to keep us in there!
if anyone gets that or nathan you do then well done!
anyway, the palace win will mean diddly sqwat if we dont beat colchester, simple as really! we need 6 points from colchester and southampton now, then we can start thinking of the play offs……..
What about:
Stephen Elliott, Karl Henry and Steven Ward - The Untouchables.
Gary Breen - No Country for Old Men.
Jody Craddock - My Left Foot.
have you ever seen a more fickle bunch of fans?
Good blog nathan….i been 2 all but a few away this season and palace was 1 of them just beacause of the wy we performed against cardiff and stoke…but 3 points is 3 points even thou people have been saying it was 2 bad teams, well all i can say is its 2 bad teams with a chance 4 the play offs…i have no doubt that if kites was back and jarvo was fit again with the formation he played it would pay off…lets hope u can sneak in the playoffs and hope 4 a couple of good days out!!
I was at the Bucks Head last night to watch the reserves play as it was a strong side…freddy was in and had 90 mins to show what he can do infront of a few hundred fans and Mick McCarthy…I Wish the South Bank faithful were there to witness his performance (or lack of one!!) this bloke really has a chip on his shoulder but maybe it was cause it was the reserves but ya never no. Get the lad out if your not going to use him properly…no point him sitting there banging on Micks door every 3 weeks for a run out…lone him to walsall they need a striker…….
Wacky
some of you need to go to specsavers! the football was garbage again and why wouldn’t it be? lots of third rate players and a third rate manager playing boring negative football.the worst manager we have had in my lifetime just counting the days to him gone. moxey should carry the can and go as well.
I understand that Kuqi has been transfer listed for his gesture. Someone call Mick! Another striker!
Hello Mum!
Well done fluffy Nathan. Ah bless.
Nothing wrong with a bit of positivity, but don’t get carried away with this failing regime.
A certain J.Lescott is getting more goals in defence in the Premiership than any of our 1000 or so strikers in the championship.
Still think this was a false dawn and we will lose to Colchester at the weekend and then to Southampton on Tuesday. At which point Mick should do the decent thing and bugger off and talk common sense at another club.
On the book theme:-
MM - Great Expectations!
Regarding Freddie Eastwood why not loan him out - it’s a no lose situation. If he gets his confidence back and starts scoring then we recall him, if he doesn’t we know MM has made the right decision and if MM does eventually step down and he proves himself on loan, a new manager might want to start afresh.
We are still rubbish.
I think we will finish 7th or 8th as we have done in seasons past.
We might have the most clean sheets in this league but we also score the least, not a great combo.
When will Sam Allardyce get the call?
Good luck to Bully at Stafford and well done to Robbie Keane on winning at the weekend.
21. mr smug says….
“have you ever seen a more fickle bunch of fans?”
Yes actually, Sunderland fans when McCarthy was their manager!
Also Smug, do you know any other words other than ‘fickle’. To be fair you probably know ‘boo’ and ‘albion fans’ am I righr?
18. Thamewolf
Just a quick question, do you live in Thame (Oxon)?
28. Dont drag me into this, i dont know any mr smug. Ive got enough to worry about with my high blood pressure caused by this lot, this season.
12 Cliche spotter wolf.
Will it all go pear shaped this weekend, I’ll be sick as a parrott if it does and over the moon if it doesn’t but at the end of the day it’s a funny old game and you have to take the rough with the smooth and knuckle down to a shift.
I can handle the book Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland as my book, as long as I end up grinning like the Cheshire cat.
Can I recommend AbdonWolf for “How to Stop Worrying and Start Living,” by Dale Carnegie? (I’m sorry if it’s a little highbrow.) Another might be the “Book of Lamentations” from the Bible.
Remember everyone Palace were truly truly awful. Don’t believe me? Just read Warnock’s post match
comments. The formation worked at Palace thanks to two great individual strikes. Such good fortune will
not come around regularly. A vey public and humble apology if Kyle scores again this season and we
finish in the play-offs!
Great win.
Wish I could say the same about the performance.
It is a crying shame that we have to go out against a side in the form Palace are with a midfield designed to kill the game. I have nothing against the 5-man midfield for away matches as long as they have a couple of attacking midfielders in them to support the loan striker.
I still fear the consequences if we are lucky and go on a run. We could still make the playoffs and then it doesn’t need much more luck to end up promoted. I fear that would be a disaster for Wolves with the current squad.
Better we fail to make it. Mick might then be a man of his word and resign.
Who would you like to see replace him? I would beg Morgan to go all out to attract Gus Poyet. When he left Leeds their fortunes changed for the worse almost immediately. Within two weeks of him arriving at Spurs as first team coach and they look like different players. Not by coincidence I feel.
Nice blog Fluffykins
This bore draw finally ended with a speculative effort that happened to brilliantly go in. We’ve had hundreds of efforts from a similar range that are blazed over and usually defenses are happy to restict us to such low risk chances. Kyle’s goal was also a great strike…but the defenders really made a pigs ear of letting him get to the ball. But for once it’s nice not to be on the recieving end of a defenders once in a lifetime wonder goal that seals our fate.
I’m hoping with Kightly & Jarvis back for the crucial run in we’ll start carving proper well worked chances to beat competant defences rather than relying their errors.
Simon
32. Breretonwolf
I’m a bit worried about the books you suggest!
Can’t abide ’self help’ or ‘God Squad’!
I think your more ‘Mad Hatter’ than ‘Cheshire Cat’
Last post to Nathan Lloyd.
I think the old Nathan is better than the ‘fluffy’ Nathan. Only 30 odd posts, bit lame really, we’re starting to look as thread bare as the Albion defense!
A good level headed blog, I was making similar points on your Simpsons blog. It makes more sense to keep MM then wildly sack him in my opinion at we will know by the end of the season if he is the messiah, or just a very naughty boy.
If every fan can squeeze a bit of extra effort and passion out of the players by show our support, it might be worth a few more valuable points.
Kites & Jarvis are nearing fitness and Breen & Craddock are looking solid. George is back and the new signings are good. MM 4-5-1 was unexpected yet effective, it may be the answer to us getting results?
Oh and Abdontesco, dont be too upset if we make the playoffs mate.
I think Ipswich will definately be in the playoffs especially when David Nugent signs.
Abdon wolf (29) Is there another Thame? England’s greatest one-day show?
Great blog, but lost the thread, you are wrong if you feel that one win every now and again will move us up the division. From the first whistle we are a poor middle of the division team with supposed 30M backing. After over half the season we are in a worse place than last season at this time with an owner and manager serving lip service to the few who want to listen to the bleating as to why it is that way. How soon we forget the irish run up and the Morecombe debacle.
This team with Mickey Mouse running it have failed to win more than a couple in a row…why does anyone believe that he can pull it off during the rest of the season?
As regards the MM Fan Badge, I saw my cats when it lifted its tail up last night. Where it should be right now!
Mr Smug
Yes l have seen a more fickle bunch of fans.
At nearly every football club in this country.
Nathan, couldn’t imagine your ‘missus’ calling you fluffy, few other things perhaps but not that.
What does Nathan mean about “piping” Albion to the play-offs. Are we going to accompany them on the bagpipes or something?
I think it is ridiculous for people to change their views on the back of one goal or one win. Kevin Kyle has scored 18 goals now in 8 years. If anyone thinks that Saturdays goal is going to turn him into a goal machine they are crazy. Similarly Wolves win was their 4th in 14 games so it we are hardly on a roll.
Of course Kyle’s goal was a good one and the win was good too and we all hope it’s the start of something better. But we need to play well for three months now to achieve anything this season and not just get the odd good result.The next six games will define our season - Colchester, Southampton, Preston, Burnley, Scunthorpe, QPR. All winnable games for a team worthy of promotion. I think if we win less than 4 of them we can write this season off. If we win four or more then we can genuinely say we are still on track.
Personally I think it could go either way, and thats why these games are the crunch time for us.
Bilstonian
Your right, I forgot a ‘p’!
45, No, Nathan, what you mean to say is “You’re right” Must try harder.
No, Nathan, you mean “You’re right.” Your thoughts are great, grammar rubbish
Fair play for the positivity mate, thats the approach I always try to take, except when i’m ranting about Sky Sports!
If Wolves don’t keep winning then fair enough, but a win is a win and its something to build on at least.
Bilstonian (grammarian)
The subject is football not linguistics.
Although I’m not sure that you put much effort into the syntax of the sentence, “Your thoughts are great, grammar rubbish”. Doesn’t really flow does it?
Look forward to your disection of my ramblings tomorrow.
Toodle pip.
No, Nathan, the word is dissection.
It’s dissection, not disection, Nathan.
Well done Bilstonian. You proved my point.
Trying focusing on what really matters?
Do you get out much?
Think I may have touched a nerve, Nathan. Those who can, do, those who can’t, blog.