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Wolves boss hails SEB wonder goal
Monday 31st March 2008, 2:48PM BST.
Mick McCarthy hailed birthday boy Sylvan Ebanks-Blake’s wonder goal after Wolves’ last-gasp victory at Charlton.
Wolves twice led through crackers from Ebanks-Blake, who turned 22 on Saturday, only to be pegged back in the fourth minute of injury-time by Leroy Lita’s first goal for the Addicks before Karl Henry’s winner.
Ebanks-Blake’s second came after he controlled a long ball from Kevin Foley on the byline, and beat Paddy McCarthy by flicking the ball one way and darting around him the other before lashing high into the net.
“Sylvan’s first goal was a great strike but I haven’t got a bloody clue how he scored the second one,” said McCarthy.
“Alan Pardew (Charlton boss) wouldn’t have been too happy with the defending in how he was allowed to turn. I’d be knocking my defenders if we’d conceded it.
“But it was wonderful play and a fantastic goal.”
Ebanks-Blake took his tally to 22 for the season including nine in 14 games since his £1.5m move from Plymouth in January and McCarthy admits he’s surprised by how well the striker has done.
“Did I expect that sort of impact from Sylvan this quickly? Absolutely!” joked the boss. “No, did I heck. I expected him to play and to score goals.
“But he’s even better than we thought he’d be because of the amount of goals he’s scored.
“I hoped he was going to score but I’m not sure I expected seven in seven and nine in 14 games.
“We’ve got a good player in Sylvan. It’s nice when you hit the jackpot, but it doesn’t always happen.
“He’d got a good goalscoring record when he came. I’d watched him a bit for Manchester United reserves and Ian Holloway did a great job in taking him to Plymouth.
“We’ve done our job in bringing him to Wolves.” McCarthy insists Wolves’ last-gasp win – their fourth in five on their travels – was deserved.
“It was tough because we had to scrap for it, but we deserved the win,” he said.
“We played well enough not to have nicked it in the way we did, but as an away side we played very well.
“We were far and away the better team in the first half. In the second half I expected Charlton to be better and to get at us and Wayne Hennessey made a couple of good saves.
“But I’m trying not to see it through rose-coloured spectacles when I say we deserved to win.
“We’ve been playing well and we’ve been eking out results away from home, that’s for sure.
“And you could see by the reaction of the bench and everyone what it meant to everyone.”
McCarthy admitted Wayne Hennessey made vital saves to deny Greg Halford’s free kick and Leroy Lita, whose effort was blocked by the keeper’s legs.
“Wayne made a couple of saves but I could argue how important was the width of the post Sylvan hit in the first half?
“That’s the nature of the game. Wayne’s a great keeper and we were very fortunate to have someone of his calibre when we lost Matt Murray at the start of the season. He’s been terrific.”
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A fantastic bargain buy for a struggling, middle of the table team.
McCarthy only needs another 6 players to make a decent Championship side.
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That comment makes no sense Bhatti Brothers, poor attempt at humour!
When MM said:
“We’ve got a good player in Sylvan. It’s nice when you hit the jackpot, but it doesn’t always happen.
Do you think that was a dig at Freddy?
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The Bhatti Brothers:
Looks like the village is missing it’s idiot!
Class strike from a class striker.
The winning goal was good too!
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Why do we need this negativity after such an important win and hard worked performance.
The Bhatti Brothers as your user name sums it up pal, negative history, negative comments.
Why can’t we be proud of the team when they have done well rahter than just say we need another six.
I’ve said it all season, Mick is building a very exciting team, so good that the thing that worries me is that if we don;t get up, Prem teams already want our players.
Olofinjana, Jarvis, Hennessey, Kightly, Foley have all been linked at some point or another and SEB is bound to be attracting interest. So can we hang on to them!!!!!
In Mick we trust
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2 Nathan, I don’t think he was having a dig.
Its a squad game and the front two are settled. On Saturday evening Gary Birtles mentioned what a good partnership Keogh and SEB are several times. The first goal epitomised that.
I doubt if anyone will congratulate KK on his inch perfect pass for the third!
Support the Wolves, Keep the Faith
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The Bhatti Brothers? ie Albion clowns!
We played well on Saturday and at long last are scoring well. The slight problem is the defence. Saying that it’s not as bad as the defence down the road.
Players are just hitting form at the right time ie George, Gray, Henry, Jarvis, Keogh and Sylvan.
People were having a dig at Elokobi – he is a rough diamond- but you can’t fault the effort, passion and he fires crosses in.
Also well done Kevin Kyle. He did the IMPACT job off the bench. He should never start but is useful in that role!
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It’s encouraging to hear from so many happy Wolves fans…Even the Samaritans in Wolverhampton have gone back on to normal hours…What next.. “tea with the mayor?”….
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7.On the strength of the win at the valley they have ordered the open top bus that we had to cancel last year.
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Well no negativity from me and I have been one of MM’s biggest critics all season. Never ever thought we had a chance. Have tentatively booked leave and a flight for the Plymouth game and the play offs, gonna cost me both arms and one leg but worth it. Can we now get on with being one million percent behind the team and stop slagging each other off? Let’s enjoy watching them down the road self-destruct and look forward to a complete Gold and Black Wembley as we play Hull in the final.
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Why has it taken Mick up until the last few weeks to stop insulting our intelligences by spouting rubbish. He has obviously realized that he has to take us seriously and is now making sensible comments.
I might even start having some respect for him soon!
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SEB is a first rate find, McCarthy deserves congratulations on getting him at that price. If we don’t make the playoffs, then we’ll be able to make a handsome profit on him to a Premiership club.
Why should we expect him to spend another year in the Championship with no guarantee of the Premiership at the end of it? Footballers have a short career, and obviously Seb has ambition, if we cannot satisfy that ambition, then its our duty to let him find his destiny elsewhere.
In the process we will make a few millions at least! Mr Morgan will like that. Wolves are turning into a nice little earner for him.
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look im not jumping up and down, dreaming of Ronaldo at the mol, but it is always encouragin to see us improving, and players like Wayne and SEB inspiring the whole team on.
COME ON YOU WOLVES !
its also great to see the tesco cretin on here really having to scavenge hard to get anything resembling a bite… ha haaaa ha. I hope for the sake of those baggie fans who arent sad enough to trawl our news bulletins to validate their existance that wba do go up. But i really will laugh my freaking head off, if a couple weeks down the line stourbaggie, grumpybaggie and sneezybaggie stick their head aorund the corner just one last time… having bottled it again.
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Its nice to get an important hard earned away win, but lets not go overbaord just yet, there’s a long way to go and so many twists and turns. I’m not sure if we are ready to go up this season but if we do then fair play to the team they will have earned it. I’ve been a wolves fan for so many years and I know not to get too excited just yet. my only wish is that we keep on winning and see where it takes us. I’m not convinced those in the top two places are the ones that will be there at the end, we just need to keep plugging away, each and every win will build more and more confidence in the players.
Keep going boys, keep battling away, you never know what can happen in this crazy league.
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Oh dear.
Got the Tesco carrier bags a bit stressed have we.
Need another 6 players do we…….and how far are we behind them and who do we have to play soon.
Kind of thought that they would have been a little quieter considering Colchester scored 3 against them.
Ought to be shutting their vast fat gobs really….lest they put their equally hysterical feet in them.
I will take GREAT pleasure if we beat them……..
It’s OUR turn this time.
About time the Wolves started playing this season…..and right in the nick of time.
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12. Ad Mant(Rant)
Stop Press!
The samaritans will stay open for you specially next Saturday.P.s. Bring your own couch..the last three left for a village called Emmerdale….
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I thought Kevin Kyle’s pass for the third goal was superb. He looked, took his time and played it perfectly. He was really unlucky not to score with his header a minute before as well. He’s done a really good job since he came and didn’t deserve the stick he got before he’d even kicked a ball for us. (No 5 – will that do?)
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