Mick McCarthy has told Black Country rivals Wolves and Albion they are still “masters of their own destiny” as the promotion race reaches fever pitch tonight.

Wolves go into tonight’s sell-out Molineux showdown against the Baggies with two games in hand on five of the teams above them knowing a victory will put them on level points with sixth-placed Crystal Palace.

Victory for Albion will put them two points clear at the top with nine to play for. And Wolves boss McCarthy believes both clubs can still shape their own special climaxes to the campaign.

“It’s down to ourselves and West Brom, we both need the points,” said McCarthy. “We’re masters of our own destiny and our other rivals vying for those spots can’t do anything about it. This is one game that is vital for both clubs.”

The Molineux boss says his only target this season was to win the Championship and, if as seems likely, Wolves can’t win the title, then they will go for second place.

“I set one target which was to win it (Championship) and then we’ll see where we end up after that,” said McCarthy.

“If we don’t win it, then we’ll go for second but I just want to win as many games as we can. I don’t set points targets.

“We had a situation about 10 weeks ago when everyone was setting points targets and I said ‘hold on a minute, let’s win the next game’ and we’ve been doing ok.”

McCarthy’s stance is sensible given the frequent changes of leadership this season which is likely to see the lowest points tally win the league.

“I’m not surprised no one has walked away with it because there is only Reading (2005-06) in recent years who have tore away from everyone else. You can go as far back as Crystal Palace winning in the play-offs in 2004. They were fifth bottom in October or November until Iain Dowie took over.

“It’s always very close – I can’t remember anyone else who has ever run away with it.

“It looks like it sometimes at the end of a season but I don’t think that’s the case. You can have a team win their last three games and end up winning it by seven or eight points and it looks like you have walked it.

“But that’s never the case. If we’ve had a bad result ourselves we’ve looked around and elsewhere in the league, teams have all drawn or our rivals have lost,” he said.

McCarthy admits there have been some surprise challengers this season, with Bristol City and Stoke leading the way ahead of relegated teams Charlton and Sheffield United.

“I don’t think anyone was expecting Bristol City to be there and fair play to Gary Johnson because he has done well, said the Wolves gaffer.

“The surprises are Charlton and Sheffield United aren’t there because everyone tipped them along with Southampton to be up there.”

McCarthy again re-iterated his relief to be playing teams with the same aims, rather than confront the unpredictability of a side just relegated or battling the drop.

“I said a few weeks ago I was delighted with our run-in and people looked at me quizzically,” he said. “First and foremost, we can do damage to the teams in and around us.

“They are suffering the same anxieties as us. The last thing I wanted was to play a relegated team who turn up and play wonderful, free-flowing football because they’re not bothered any more.”