Wolves 1 Barnsley 0

Mick McCarthy may find the next phase of his Molineux revolution the most difficult of all, writes Mark Douglas.

Having delivered a ‘young, hungry’ Wolves side that boasts a happy knack of winning, he now finds himself on collision course with the club’s biggest foe in recent years – the dreaded ‘Molineux factor’.

That sense of suffocating expectation took an extended break during last season’s extraordinary run to the play-offs, but it was back with a vengeance as Wolves struggled desperately to cling to their deserved first half lead against a determined Barnsley side.

On an extraordinarily tense afternoon at Molineux, frayed nerves became sporadic boos and jeers as a Wolves side running out of steam looked to strangle the life out of a game that they had controlled relentlessly in the first half.

Short corners and spoiling tactics were never likely to go down well with that section of the home support that expects Wolves to be rolling over mid-ranging teams like Barnsley, and that sense of fingernail chewing frustration was ramped up by the home side not doing it particularly well.

Stringing pretty but ineffective sideways passes across midfield was what sent Glenn Hoddle’s stock plummeting – but in Wolves’ defence, it was at least done with an eye on preserving all three points in the last quarter of an hour on Saturday.

Large parts of the crowd didn’t like it, but McCarthy felt the tactics were justified – and that put the Wolves boss squarely on a collision course with the home support.

Read the full report in the Express & Star.

Wolves 1 Barnsley 0

Mick McCarthy may find the next phase of his Molineux revolution the most difficult of all, writes Mark Douglas.

Having delivered a ‘young, hungry’ Wolves side that boasts a happy knack of winning, he now finds himself on collision course with the club’s biggest foe in recent years – the dreaded ‘Molineux factor’.

That sense of suffocating expectation took an extended break during last season’s extraordinary run to the play-offs, but it was back with a vengeance as Wolves struggled desperately to cling to their deserved first half lead against a determined Barnsley side.

On an extraordinarily tense afternoon at Molineux, frayed nerves became sporadic boos and jeers as a Wolves side running out of steam looked to strangle the life out of a game that they had controlled relentlessly in the first half.

Short corners and spoiling tactics were never likely to go down well with that section of the home support that expects Wolves to be rolling over mid-ranging teams like Barnsley, and that sense of fingernail chewing frustration was ramped up by the home side not doing it particularly well.

Stringing pretty but ineffective sideways passes across midfield was what sent Glenn Hoddle’s stock plummeting – but in Wolves’ defence, it was at least done with an eye on preserving all three points in the last quarter of an hour on Saturday.

Large parts of the crowd didn’t like it, but McCarthy felt the tactics were justified – and that put the Wolves boss squarely on a collision course with the home support.

The manager certainly didn’t shy away from the confrontation on Saturday, growing visibly angry and remonstrating with the crowd as they voiced their frustration in an uncomfortable second half.

His point is that Wolves need help if they are to become more ruthless – not encouragement to play the kind of kamikaze attacking football that shot them in the foot on occasions last season.

That attacking philosophy may be in vogue down the road at The Hawthorns, but McCarthy is clearly taking a more pragmatic view after being stung too many times during his Molineux tenure.

Few Wolves fans who saw their side sucker punched for playing attacking football against Albion and Blues last season would argue with that, but this side are simply going to have to get better at it if they want to bring the Molineux crowd with them.

McCarthy felt his team’s jitters stemmed from the reaction of a crowd who became audibly discontented as Barnsley muscled their way back into the contest.

And, judging from his post match comments, McCarthy now hopes to halt the return of the ‘Molineux factor’ before it does his side any serious damage.

His hand is certainly strengthened by one look at the Championship table, which has Wolves flying high in the play-off positions and boasting one of the best home records in the division.

The charge sheet reads a lack of goals and an inability to finish off teams, but as McCarthy pointed out afterwards they are still putting in the effort that made Molineux proud last season.

He said: “The players are manfully digging it out. I know we were all getting frustrated, but can we have a bit of support out there?

“I can understand why everyone reacts like that and I’m not saying they are wrong. Is there a chance to change a whole culture of every single football club? I don’t think so.

“But I am asking for it here because the players don’t half put a shift in. Everybody should be proud of them and I know the fans appreciate it.

“But it could have gone pears at the end and a bit of noise in a positive manner could have helped.”

Dominance

By the time McCarthy stormed down the tunnel at the final whistle – refusing to acknowledge the applause of the Billy Wright stand and forgetting to shake Barnsley counterpart Simon Davey’s hand – the result should have been academic.

Such was Wolves’ dominance in the first period they should have been out of sight by the half-time whistle, but they found themselves sabotaged by familiar failings in front of goal as they swarmed the Tykes with their incisive movement.

The theory rebounding around Molineux at the moment is that eventually one of their Championship rivals will be sent packing with a genuine thrashing, but just getting a fair reflection of their domination would be progress for Wolves at the moment.

The front pairing against Barnsley was Freddy Eastwood and Jay Bothroyd and there were encouraging signs that two of Molineux’s most enigmatic talents are capable of dovetailing against a defence that was simply overrun at times.

Eastwood built on his midweek progress by posting his best home performance since the summer – striking the post with a first half header and coming within inches of a cathartic goal after a smart turn and snap shot inside the penalty area.

Bothroyd was lively again, too, but it was left to Neill Collins to show them the way as he emerged from a crowded penalty area to guide a bullet header past Barnsley’s resilient goalkeeper Heinz Muller.

That should have been the trigger for a glut of goals but too often the final, decisive touch went begging.

That let Barnsley back into the game and ensured the nerves continued to jangle right up until they escaped punishment for Darren Ward’s criminally underhit backpass.

So, another home win. But you would never have known it if you saw McCarthy’s grim expression as he stormed down the tunnel at full time.

Judging by Steve Morgan’s ringing midweek endorsement of his gradual revolution, McCarthy can boast high-profile backing for the way he is shaping Wolves.

So it is now up to Molineux to deliver their verdict on the efforts of this tenacious Wolves team.

One thing is for sure, McCarthy won’t bite his tongue as he attempts to defeat the Molineux factor that has done for a few of his predecessors.

His success or failure in that endeavour may just end up defining his Molineux tenure.