Why the Net has the advantage in the ‘Undies world’
- Shopping blogger Emma Iannarilli
McCarthy is manager of the month
Thursday 4th September 2008, 2:35PM BST.
Wolves boss Mick McCarthy is celebrating an early prize for leading his side to the top of the Championship after being named Manager of the Month.
McCarthy earned the award for steering Wolves to three wins and a draw in August, which has taken them top on goal difference ahead of Preston and Birmingham.
The Molineux boss insists the gong is down to the application of his staff and team, who have scored five more goals than anyone else.
McCarthy said: “This is great for the club and is testament to the good start we’ve made this season.
“It’s an award not just for me but the whole management staff and players, but we also know there’s a very long way to go.
“The team have started very well and I’m delighted if the fans have gone home happy.”
Yet McCarthy insists he is keeping his feet firmly on the ground.
He said: “I’m not shouting from the rooftops because we’ve got plenty of hard weekends to come.
“People who know me realise I never get too carried away when we win and likewise too despondent when we lose.
“So while it’s nice our results and our football have been recognised, there are still 42 games to go. We all know just how hard they’re going to be.
“It’s impossible to set targets in the Championship. There are just too many good teams who are difficult to beat.
“I’ve had good starts in this league before and I’ve had bad starts. Indeed the worst was possibly with Sunderland and we went on to win the league.”
McCarthy believes Wolves’ success is down to having two potent strikers in Chris Iwelumo and Sylvan Ebanks-Blake – and two fit wingers in Michael Kightly and Matt Jarvis.
The boss added: “So far we’ve had both of our wingers fit and firing and in Chris and Sylvan, we have got two strikers who like getting in the box.”
Iwelumo has been nominated for the Powerade Player of the Month award for August, after scoring five goals from four starts.
The 30-year-old is up against midfielders Ferrie Bodde (Swansea), Richard Chaplow of Preston and Birmingham’s Seb Larsson.
The winner will be announced on Sky Sports’ Big League Weekend 2 on Monday at 6pm.
Business Awards
Book a Business Awards table
Join our celebrations of the region's best in business on Thursday March 22 - book your table now
Lifestyle
Interactive Dining Out map
Hundreds of reviews by the Express & Star and Shropshire Star's teams to help you decide where to eat.
entertainment
All the film reviews
Before you plan a trip to the pictures, get our critics' verdicts on all the latest movie releases
OUR NEW APP
Get the new E&S app
Download the Express & Star’s new app to your iPad or iPhone to get one week of access to our digital newspapers absolutely FREE.
Well done Mick and long may it continue
Report abuse
Oh no….
Report abuse
Well done to Mick, the team and everyone else involved with the club – this is a thoroughly-deserved award.
Report abuse
Well done Mick. Can’t really ask for more at the moment. Not many teams will get much out of Ipswich and Plymouth away.
I think we should take each month as it comes along, and i am more optimistic about this season than any other.
see you at charlton…
Report abuse
Well done Mick,Another half a dozen of these awards and we’ll be celebrating the return of Premiership Football!
Keep up the good work.
Report abuse
Thats it then we now lose the next game??
Just like to say great news fot Mick and his team
good time to be a Wolves fan,Great football,top young exciting players and top of the championship
really looking forward to this season
COME ON YOU WOLVES
Report abuse
Well done Mick. Totally deserved.
Lets hope it is not the curse.
Report abuse
Well done MM, even though thats a bit hypocritical after the stick I`ve given him.
Mind you he does look a twerp in that photo, never mind.
Report abuse
well done mick and the team lets keep it up and win the leauge .WE ARE WOLVES
Report abuse
Well, Thats the kiss of death if ever you needed it, But I hope it wont be as I would love to see both teams play each other in the prem.All the best to you in the coming months Boing Boing from a Happie Baggie..(not the real one)
Report abuse
Oops, thats blown it for the next 2 months then!
Report abuse
Thank you MM-Every month now please to the promotion game–Keep the Dream Alive–Crazey Dave
Report abuse
thoroughly deserved.
Super Mick McCarthy!!
Report abuse
Oh no, not the poisoned chalice that is the Manager of the month award!!
I must admit it, is great to see more recognition for a great start to the season, I for one am eating my hat at present, having had my doubts about the current management at the end of last season, but I’m happy to be proved wrong!
So well done MM & the lads!
Report abuse
Well done MM but let’s hope that this isn’t the kiss of death that it usually is !!
Report abuse
yay
Report abuse
so he should be but i hope we dont go on a rubbish run firstly at charlton
Come on you Wolves
Well Done MM (In MM JM AND SM we trust)
Report abuse
the dreaded manager of the month award,,,you,ll lose ya next game now then….
Report abuse
well done super mick. hopefully many more 2 cum.
well done lads lrrp it up.
nice 2 see the baggies strugling (again)
hahaha
Report abuse
Well earned for an exciting and entertaining start to the season
Keep it up
Report abuse
well done mick just hope its not the kiss of deaf for us
Report abuse
I hesitate in my congratulations for the deserved award. Only because of the well known kiss of death it has brought to so many previous managers. Lets not dwell on those, well done Mick and all the back room boys who have turned out a team worth the entry fee at last.
Up The Wolves
Report abuse
Welldone Mick and the Team keep up the good work,lets hope its the 1st of many.
Report abuse
i was one of the mick knockers last season, i dont hate him but felt he lost the plot and i admit i wanted him out
after we decided to keep he got my full support after great signings. i always said id rather mick prove me wrong than prove me right
i wont though be fickle enough start chanting super mick etc… yet
we have to remember we are only 4games into the season
great start but one month doesnt make a season, look at freddy last season
keep doing what you doing mick
Report abuse
The award is well deserved – I just hope it’s not the kiss of death, as sometimes it is!
Our problems will come when Jarvis or Kites are injured. Then we will be seriously challenged I think.
Fingers crossed..
Report abuse
Well done to MM but to the team and board also things are sweet at the moment and long may it continue. Up the Wolves !
Report abuse
21 Michael
I read your comment but I could not hear what you were saying
Up The Wolves
Report abuse
Thats ma boy!
See you at Charlton.
Report abuse
Let’s buck the trend and keep on a winning run. There is no reason why we can’t beat Charlton and Crystal Palace but Preston – also having a flier – will be tough, especially now Elliot is there.
Well deserved and I hope Chris Iwelumo should snare his award – he has been a revelation. The way he is going Scotland will be calling!
Report abuse
credit where credits due.
well done mick, backroom team and the players. keep it up please.
i was critical of mick last season much of it down to frustration on team selection, tactics, management style, and overall style of play. but this season two flying wingers and seb and iwelumo scoring regularly its been brilliant.
super wolves
Report abuse
Reflecting on the last few months some posters on here must be feeling pretty stupid and if they are not they should be.
Report abuse
“This is great for the club and is testament to the good start we’ve made this season.
“It’s an award not just for me but the whole management staff and players, but we also know there’s a very long way to go.
That’s it Mad Mick – don’t make a big deal of it….hahaha
Report abuse
21
it’s death, not deaf!!!
Report abuse
great news and deserved but mick should know what follows this award -lost games ,hope mick gets to grip
Report abuse
well done mick you deserve it keep it up and youll be playing us in the prem where we both belong
Report abuse
MAD MICK GET IN !!!!!!!!
Report abuse
well done mick, i have to admit, i wanted you out last season, but things have started well, just please please please dont go back to playing the defensive game and im sure it will ba a good season all round. well done to all the lads.
Report abuse
Decided to do a bit of research to put numbers behind the claim that this is a curse. So I looked at who got the Championship MoTM award and what they did in the next game:
2004/5: 3 Wins, 2 Draws, 4 Losses
2005/6: 3 Wins, 2 Draws, 4 Losses
2006/7: 4 Wins, 0 Draws, 4 Losses
2007/8: 2 Wins, 2 Draws, 5 Losses
Twice in those four years, the August MoTM won automatic promotion (Wigan 2004 and Sheff U 2005).
So, 12 wins, 6 draws, 17 defeats: an average of 1.2 points per game.
However, August, February and March are the best months to win it (avg points: 1.75). The worst month is December (avg points: 0.25).
So, the bad news is that there is a bit of a curse. The good news is that August is the best month to ‘be cursed’.
P.S. Well done MM & all concerned
Report abuse
Well done MM – More of the same please!
Fair play & credit where its due!
Up the Wolves!
Report abuse
well done mick…uve proved me wrong…
Report abuse
Fairplay Mick Good on ya….. Keep doing what your doing… Worcester Baggie I think you need to be posting comments on your own teams blogs about west broms lack of strikers… You Doughnut!
Report abuse
Well done Mick, you thoroughly deserve it. Although it’s early days you look to be building something special. The future’s bright, the future’s Gold & Black.
Report abuse
The Chalis from the Palice is the Brew that is true–Again wel done MM do not believe in omens–Keep us going MM–Crazey Dave–Getting a Black trackie and an hair cut to match will be in the dugout next game–
Report abuse
well done boy’s, keep up the good work and lets hope the new boys fit in and put in good performances when called upon.its nice to see fans behind the team rather than running it down,everyone gets disappointed with poor performances but we need to keep behind the lads. lets make molineux a fortress. and sing our hearts out for the lads. im gonna try and get the family enclosure singing now im in there with my son. best of luck i hear you say.
Report abuse
congrats you lot deserve something to be happy about, lets just hope the curse is not around. goodluck for the season.
Report abuse
Credit where credits due…Mick, Morgan & Moxey, had to put up with a lot from nuggets like me, but they’ve dramatically turned things round & thoroughly deserve all the accolades they are now recieving.
They dug their heels in & stuck to their young & hungry policy, got rid of the dissenting underperformers & and have finally got quality strength in depth in every position.
We now have our dream team attack with wingers & strikers that not only give 100% but actually know where the goal is.
In an age where certain clubs are paying crazy money for good to average premodonna’s… just to appease their fans desires for the big signings, Wolves have brilliantly gone the other way. Those of us that remember the Bhatti era through to the Golden Tit era are very aware of not only the need to balance the books but the need to be less wasteful. I’m especially loving how Morgan & Moxey have negociated some excellent transfer deals.
Maybe this time winning manager of the month can actually be a good thing.
Simon :)
Report abuse
I’m loving this!!!! With a bit of luck all the Boo Boys will stop coming at all now there’s nothing to moan about!!!!
Well done Mick and the Lads! Keep it going.
Wolves forever!!!!
Report abuse
33 Mike
‘oh’ that explains it then, cheers mate
Up The Wolves
Report abuse
Super Mick !! Thoroughly deserved, particularly with some of the rubbish moaners have put him through !
Report abuse
I read your comment but I could not hear what you were saying
Report abuse
Well Done Mick! Now go and beat Charlton and break the hoo doo.
Report abuse
West Ham beckons…..
Report abuse
Very very well done Mick! And just desserts for someone I think has been our best manager for many years.
Credit also to we8wba (24) it is good to see those MM knockers from last year can acknowledge his achievements and give credit where credit is due! It would have been very easy for you to jump on the MM bandwagon now things look rosier but well done for standing up and being counted! It takes a big man (or woman) to do what you have done! Wrong you will hopefully prove to be but fickle you certainly ain’t!
Up the Wolves!
Report abuse
It all means nothing until next May.
Report abuse
kiss of deaf.
Only in Wolverhampton!
well done Mick.
Report abuse
Well done to ALL at THE WOLVES, keep it going.
Report abuse
Good job MM and all the management team at Wolves. Great start to the season and a genuine “fell good” factor around the place. Long may it continue.
Good luck to Big Chris too.
C’mon me babbies.
Report abuse
That should read “feel good” factor by the way!!!!!
Oh and 21, Eh?
Report abuse
Well done Mick
I repeat:
All it takes is faith.
We’re going up again, We’re going up again,
We’re going up up up again.
Magic Mick will do it.
It takes a man to suffer ignorance and smile!
Bring on the Baggies.
Report abuse
Southbank..8
Never mind looking like a twerp, if he comes on TV with that supercilious smirk on his face one more time I will probably smash the set.
Report abuse
Brummie Rob..29 Be careful what you wish for.
We had a striker last year who DID win player of month for August AND was selected for his country and you know what happened to him.
HE GOT BENCHED FOR THE REMAINDER OF THE SEASON.
Report abuse
nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo…………
Report abuse
38.
Blimmin ‘eck how long did that take you? A bit of research? More like a degree in statistics :-) Well done MM.
Report abuse
We have played 4 games and so far one-trick-mick has not screwed up. Just look at his page on Wikipedia and you will see that he has a long history of doing just that. Last season should tell you what to expect.
If at the end of this season it has not all gone pear-shaped, then I’ll apologise. However, I expect that by Christmas the Happy Clappers will be calling for his head as well!
Report abuse
38 Statto Wolf – Outstanding work, very interesting! Would be good to see more of you on here, dispelling myths and firming up facts! Or am I just sad???
Report abuse
Lets see wear you finish at the end of the season with the great MM, he done really well at Sunderland in the Prem
Report abuse
Well done Mick, the first of many. Perhaps it’s listening to the ‘CONSTRUTIVE FAN COMMENTS’ that earned you this award! keep it up.
Report abuse
Boggie 1. Aswell as Moggy at the moment?
Report abuse
Great news. Win the one in September now Mick!
Report abuse
66,MM won the CCC at Sunderland with 95pts Tony Moanbray won it with 81 and a record number of defeats
Report abuse
death or deaf THE CORNISH know what you are talking about (i think)
Report abuse
65 – since you asked……a bit of a rehash of something I did at the end of last season.
The reason why we didn’t get a promotion/playoff spot last year was simply because we couldn’t get points from the better sides.
On the final day, 9 teams (including us) had a chance of automatic/playoff spots. In these 16 matches we played, we won one, drew 6 and lost 9 (we dropped 39 points out of 48 available). That would have been good enough for 20th place in this made-up league.
Against the 15 sides that were relegated or had nothing to play for in the final match, we only lost 3 of those 30 games all season, averaging over 2 points a game. In this made up league, we’d have got automatic promotion.
Incidentally, it’s the 4th time since playoffs began that a minimum of 70 points wasn’t good enough for 6th, and on three of those occasions, it was us that missed out. What are the chances eh?!
Anyway, there’s plenty of conclusions to be made but I’ll bore you with a couple of mine:
Against the weaker teams, our defensive set-up last season (two midfielders sitting in front of the back four) stopped them from breaking us down (hence 14 clean sheets in these 30 games). We were good enough to break them down though.
Against the stronger sides, their better players/teams could break us down. Hence, only 5 clean sheets in 16 games.
The lack of numbers attacking posed significantly less problems for the better defenders we faced. Hence, 8 goals in 16 games, 10 of which we shot blanks.
Using the latest bookies odds as a starting point, the 8 sides where we have to perform significantly better against are: Birmingham, Sheff Utd, Reading, QPR, Bristol City, Preston, Ipswich and Cardiff; so we’re off to a good start having beaten Ipswich.
Meanwhile, we’re averaging more than 2 points a game from the sides the bookies expect to finish outside the playoff zone.
Early days I know, but our expansive style this season is not hurting us against the weaker teams (we’ve not kept a clean sheet but have more than made up for this with goals scored). The test will be against those sides in the list; we’ve got Preston, Bristol City and Reading before the end of September, whilst our other games this month are against sides that could realistically force their way into the top 9 by the end of the season (Palace and Charlton).
Again, stating the obvious, September will be a real test to see how serious our challenge is likely to be with our current squad.
Conclusion: please don’t get injured Kites or Jarvis.
Bet there’s no more requests after this long-winded cr*%!
Report abuse
Amazing stuff Statto! The trainspotter in me is really coming out now!
Seriously though your analysis is astonishing! I wonder if the club themselves have such detailed breakdown of where we got hurt last season!?!? There would seem to be some seriously valuable learning in what you have identified!
I propose you should be employed as the official club statastician and take up a place on the bench! Even if everyone else doesn’t like what you’re posting, you’ve won me over!
STATTO STATTO STATTO STATTO!!!!
Report abuse
73. What – and give up my matchday role as Wolfie??
Report abuse
38. Stat Wolf
Brilliant post. You’re a genius.
Bet people look the other way when you walk into a room though ;-)
Report abuse
Is it me or are we getting smarter posters since the onset of the credit crunch?
Report abuse
nice one mick long may it continue
Report abuse
73. Last comment from me today I promise.
I was critical of MM last season – mainly due to his more defensive tactics and square pegs philosophy (I won’t include the muppet reference!). But I’m hopeful that a lot of these issues have been largely dealt with.
The lack of pace in the centre of defence (Breen/Craddock/Collins/D Ward) has been addressed with Stearman/Shackell. Hopefully, this means (a) we can defend further up the pitch and (b) we don’t have a ‘slow’ centre half effectively five yards behind play because of concern about lack of pace, which the better teams exploited last year.
After his goalscoring revelations in 2006-7, Olofinjana reverted to being more defensive last season, forming effectively a back 6 with Henry. When he wasn’t playing, Potter/Gibson filled this more defensive role. This wouldn’t have been so bad had we not got a total of just 37 appearances from our two specialist wingers. Elliott, S Ward, Bothroyd, Keogh, Eastwood etc were largely ineffective as make-shift wide men last season – the square pegs problem. Hence, my comment about how crucial Kites/Jarvis are for us (and our new expansive style). This is the one area I wish we had strengthened; a back-up wide man to provide cover (which I think we have from what I’ve seen of Dan Jones – albeit a less pacey one – but I don’t think MM agrees with me).
But, with Olo no more, MM is playing David Jones, who strikes me from the opening games as more attacking minded. So, I would hope that if he is absent from the team, he would be replaced by Edwards or Davies (when fit) to effectively replace like for like. Potter should be seen as a more defensive replacement for Henry – both of these in the starting 11 would see us defending too deep, in my view. Not having two defensive midfielders in the team hasn’t hurt so far with 13 goals in 4 games.
In terms of forwards, we have a full season from SEB this year, which should make a big difference. Iwelumo has made an excellent start and the pairing seems to work well. Add Vokes/Keogh/Ward as our back up forwards and, to me at least, our squad seems stronger than our roster last year (Bothroyd, Eastwood, SEB, Elliott, Keogh, Kyle and S Ward.)
So, on top of our starting 11 from the Forest game, we have defensive cover with more pace; got to be good news.
We have cover in terms of an attacking midfielder in super-sub Edwards should Jones get injured or suspended. A return to fitness for Davies would give us extra depth. Potter should only be considered as a replacement for Henry in my view.
Injuries to either winger is a risk – does Mick change formation to play to our strengths i.e. play two attacking midfielders (Jones and Edwards/Davies) with just the one winger available, (who then maybe doesn’t need to track back as much)? Or will he still do what he did last season, albeit with different personnel i.e. play Ward, Keogh, Vokes etc as a wide man to stick to the winning formation. A third alternative would be to play more defensively i.e. Potter in alongside Henry.
Clearly, I’d prefer the extra attacking midfielder view.
I know MM has bemoaned the fact that injuries to Kites/Jarvis stopped him from playing this style last season. Hopefully, we don’t lose them for too long this season. But it will be very interesting to see what MM decides to do in this situation – one thing is for certain, what he did last season didn’t work; at least not against the better teams.
Report abuse
38 & 72 – NERD ALERT!!!
Nice work tho, you must have a lot of time on your hands!!
Mind you, 88.23% of all stats are made up!
Who’s going to prove him wrong? Not me, and I’m a business analyst!!!
Excellent info nonetheless…i almost got turned on!!!
Report abuse
I have to say that Mick’s response has increased his standing in my eyes.
He is a manager who has had a lot of ‘stick’ from this own fans – and I’m just as guilty of that as the many others who have voiced concerns about his choices.
He could have used the award to talk up his own capabilities in a “see, I told you so” kind of way.
Instead, he has recognised and generously acknowledged that he is the figurehead recipient on behalf of an awfully large number of people at the club who have made contributions to our early strong league standing.
McCarthy’s personally humble and team inclusive attitude is testimony to a more generous character than is often conveyed in the limited but gaff-laden media quotes that normally are all we have as our representation of the man.
Report abuse
64; Nobody cares if you apologise at the end of the season!
Report abuse
The only thing ya gonna win so keep it up.bless
Report abuse